List of historical period drama films and series set in Near Eastern and Western civilization
The historical period drama is a film genre in which stories are based upon historical events and famous people. Some historical dramas are docudramas, which attempt an accurate portrayal of a historical event or biography, to the degree that the available historical research will allow. Other historical dramas are fictionalized tales that are based on an actual person and their deeds, such as Braveheart, which is loosely based on the 13th-century knight William Wallace's fight for Scotland's independence.
Due to the sheer volume of films included in this genre and in the interest of continuity, this list is primarily focused on films pertaining to the history of Near Eastern and Western civilization.
For films pertaining to the history of East Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia, please refer also to the list of Asian historical drama films.
Films set in Prehistoric Era
- One Million B.C. (1940)
- One Million Years B.C. (1967)
- Prehistoric Women (1950)
- Prehistoric Women (1967)
- When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970)
- Creatures the World Forgot (1971)
- Quando le Donne Avevano la Coda (1970)
- Quando le Donne Persero la Coda (1972)
- Caveman (1981)
- Quest for Fire (1981)
- The Tragedy of Man (2011)
- The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986)
- Ice Age (franchise) (2002–2016)
- 10,000 BC (2008)
- AO, le dernier Néandertal (AO, the Last Neanderthal) (2010)
- The Croods (2013)
- B.C. Butcher (2016)
- Alpha (2018)
Films set in Ancient Era (3000 BC–500 BC)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
The Bible: In the Beginning... | 1966 | 50,000 BC - 2100 BC or 4004 BC/3761 BC–1677 BC (according to the Hebrew calendar) | Film based on the Bible, starting with the Book of Genesis and ending with Abraham. |
La Donna dei Faraoni | 1961 | 3100 BC | Set shortly after the unification of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt by the First Dynasty of Egypt. |
The Scorpion King | 2002 | before 3067 BC | set at least a decade or more before the demise of Mathayus in the prologue of The Mummy Returns. |
Noah | 2014 | 2800 BC or 2348 BC (according to the Hebrew calendar) | American epic biblical drama film inspired by the Genesis flood narrative and Noah's Ark in the Book of Genesis. |
Land of the Pharaohs | 1956 | 2589–2566 BC | Based on the reign of Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops), a member of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt. |
Il Sepolcro dei re | 1960 | 2589–2566 BC | Based on the reign of Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops), a member of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt. |
Sudan | 1945 | 2558–2532 BC | Set during the reign of the pharaoh Khafra (Chephren), a member of the Fourth Dynasty of Egypt. |
The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior | 2008 | 2270–2215 BC | Set during the reign of Sargon of Akkad, founder of the Akkadian Empire. |
Sodom and Gomorrah | 1962 | 2100 BC | A epic film which is loosely based on the tale of the cities Sodom and Gomorrah in the Book of Genesis. |
Abraham | 1994 | 2100-2000 BC or 1852–1677 BC (according to the Hebrew calendar) | A television film based on the life of the patriarch Abraham. |
The Bible (miniseries) | 2013 | 2100 BC–67 AD | Television miniseries based on the Bible, starting with Abraham. |
Jacob | 1994 | 2000 BC (according to the Hebrew calendar) | A German/Italian/American television film based on the novel Giacobbe by Francesco Maria Nappi. The novel is in turn based on the depiction of the patriarch Jacob in the Book of Genesis. |
Mohenjo Daro | 2016 | 2016 BC | Filmset in 2016 BC, in the ancient city of Mohenjo-daro. The historical city was one of the largest settlements of the Indus Valley Civilisation, and one of the world's earliest major cities. |
Slave of Dreams | 1995 | 1901 BC–1850 BC | Set in Ancient Egypt and based on the story of Joseph, a Vizier depicted in the Book of Genesis. The era of the film's setting corresponds to the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. |
Joseph | 1995 | 1901 BC–1850 BC | Set in Ancient Egypt and based on the story of Joseph, a Vizier depicted in the Book of Genesis. The era of the film's setting corresponds to the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. |
Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend | 2011 | c. 1600 BC | Docudrama which depicts a re-enactment of the events surrounding the Minoan eruption, a major catastrophic volcanic eruption in the island of Thera (modern Santorini). The historical eruption devastated the island, and communities and agricultural areas on nearby islands and Crete. The event is thought to be connected to a decline and eventual downfall for the Minoan civilization, an incident believed to have inspired the legend of Atlantis. |
Nefertiti, Regina del Nilo | 1961 | c. 1370–1330 BC | Set in Ancient Egypt; loosely based on the life of Nefertiti, Great Royal Wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten. Nefertiti and her husband were members of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, and were ruling figures of the Amarna Period. |
The Egyptian | 1954 | 1350 BC | Based on the novel The Egyptian by Mika Waltari, who adapted the Story of Sinuhe. The film mentions the pharaoh Akhenaten, the Hittite Empire, and iron technology. |
Tut | 2015 | 1332–1323 BC | The three-part miniseries is based on the life of Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, a member of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. |
The Ten Commandments | 1956 | c. 13th century BC | Set in Ancient Egypt, during the reign of Ramesses II, a member of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. The film is based on the founding myth of the Exodus, as depicted in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. |
Exodus: Gods and Kings | 2014 | 1290–1213 BC | Set in Ancient Egypt, during the reign of Ramesses II, a member of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. The film is based on the founding myth of the Exodus, as depicted in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. |
Helen of Troy | 1956 | c. 1250 BC | Set in western Anatolia during the Trojan War, largery based on the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey by Homer. |
Troy | 2004 | c. 1250 BC | Set in western Anatolia during the Trojan War, loosely based on the epic poem Iliad by Homer. |
Iphigenia | 1977 | c. 1200 BC | Set in the port town of Aulis, Greece immediately before the Greek expeditionary force set sails to attack Troy. Due to unfavorable weather conditions, king Agamemnon of Mycenae offers his daughter Iphigenia as a human sacrifice to the goddess Artemis. The film is based on the theatrical play Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides. |
The Fury of Achilles | 1962 | c. 1200 BC | Set in western Anatolia in the 9th year of the Trojan War, based on the epic poem Iliad by Homer. King Agamemnon of Mycenae has lost his slave concubine Chryseis, and demands Briseis as a replacement concubine. Briseis is the slave concubine of Achilles, the leader of the Myrmidons, and Achilles feels insulted due to having to give her up to his superior. In retaliation, Achilles refuses to fight or lead his troops alongside the other Greek forces. The Trojans temporarily start gaining an advantage in the ongoing war. |
The Trojan Horse | 1961 | c. 1200 BC | Set in western Anatolia in the 10th and final year of the Trojan War. |
The Trojan Women | 1971 | c. 1200 BC | Set in the immediate aftermath of the Trojan War, based on the theatrical play The Trojan Women by Euripides. The city of Troy has been sacked and the victors of the war are taking decisions on the fates of surviving captives. The film focuses on the fates of female captives Hecuba, Andromache, Cassandra, and Helen of Sparta. Meanwhile, Astyanax, the underage heir to the Trojan throne and relative of all four women, is scheduled for execution. |
The Avenger (1962 film) | 1962 | early 12th century BC | Aeneas struggles to establish a new home-land in the Italian Peninsula for his fellow survivors of the Trojan War. The film is based on the epic poem Aeneid by Virgil, which depicts Aeneas and his Trojan colonists as ancestor of the Romans. |
Electra | 1962 | early 12th century BC | Set in the aftermath of the Trojan War in Mycenae, based on the theatrical play Electra by Euripides and the traditional accounts of conflicts within the family of the Atreidai. Agamemnon, King of Mycenae returned victorious from the Trojan War, but was assassinated by his own wife Clytemnestra and by his first cousin Aegisthus (who served as Clytemnestra's lover and a rival claimant to the throne). Years, later Electra (the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra) seeks revenge for her father's murder, by plotting the assassinations of both her mother and her stepfather. |
Ulysses | 1954 | early 12th century BC | Set in the aftermath of the Trojan War, based on the epic poem Odyssey by Homer. It depicts the ten-year struggle of war veteran Odysseus to return home to the island of Ithaca following the war. |
The Odyssey | 1997 | early 12th century BC | Set in the aftermath of the Trojan War, based on the epic poem Odyssey by Homer. It depicts the ten-year struggle of war veteran Odysseus to return home to the island of Ithaca following the war. |
Samson and Delilah | 1949 | 1118–1078 BC | A romantic biblical drama film which depicts the story of Samson, a strongman whose secret lies in his uncut hair, and his love for Delilah, the woman who seduces him. Samson and Delilah are characters in the Book of Judges, where Samson is depicted as the last of the Biblical judges in its narrative, and Delilah as a woman of Nahal Sorek who was bribed by the lords of the Philistines to learn his secrets. |
Pharaoh | 1966 | 1069 BC | Set in Ancient Egypt during the reign of a fictitious king "Ramses XIII" (there were only 11 kings by that name). The film is based on the novel Pharaoh by Bolesław Prus, and depicts the final years of the historical Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt. Ramses XIII rises to the throne when still in his 20s, following the deaths of his father, and the incapacitating illnesses and (one suicide) of a number of older brothers. Egypt is in decline due to a combination of internal and external threats, and Ramses is pushing for necessary reforms but his efforts are resisted by the powerful, bureaucratic priesthood. Ramses dies young, before accomplishing his goals. His political rival "Herhor" (the historical Herihor) succeeds him on the throne and attempts some of the same reforms, but still fails to rescue Egypt from its decline. |
King David | 1985 | c. 1040–970 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, it depicts the life and reign of David, Kings of Israel. Based on the Books of Samuel. David is the supposed founder of the House of David (Davidic line). |
A Story of David | 1960 | c. 1040–970 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, it depicts the complex relationship between Saul, Kings of Israel and his son-in-law and eventual successor David. Based on the Books of Samuel, where Saul is depicted as the founder of the Kingdom of Israel. |
David and Goliath | 1960 | c. 1040–970 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, focused on the conflict between rival kings Saul and Asrod, and their representatives in champion warfare: David and Goliath of Gath. Based on the Books of Samuel, which depict Achish as a king of Gath who was in conflict with Saul and recruited David to serve in his army. |
David and Bathsheba | 1951 | 1040–970 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, during the reign of David, Kings of Israel. David is married to Michal, daughter of his predecessor Saul. David has an extramarital affair with Bathsheba, wife of the soldier Uriah the Hittite. Uriah is one of David's Mighty Warriors (a group of soldiers personally loyal to David), but David arranges for Uriah to be killed in battle and then claims Bathsheba as his new wife. Based on the Books of Samuel. |
Solomon and Sheba | 1959 | 1011–931 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, during the reign of Solomon, Kings of Israel. Solomon forms a political alliance with the Queen of Sheba, becomes a lover of his new ally, and introduces pagan rituals in his kingdom. His exiled half-brother Adonijah offers his military services to Ancient Egypt and leads an Egyptian army in an invasion of Kingdom of Israel. The events of the film are loosely based on narratives from the Books of Kings and the Books of Chronicles. The Books of Kings depict Adonijah and Solomon as sons of David and rival claimants to the throne of Israel, but do not feature Adonijah as loyal to Egypt. Instead, Solomon himself is traditionally depicted as an ally of Egypt and as husband of a Pharaoh's daughter. |
Sins of Jezebel | 1953 | 874–853 BC | Set in the Southern Levant, during the reign of Ahab, Kings of Israel. The film depicts the reign of the Omrides, based on Books of Kings and the Books of Chronicles. Jezebel, Ahab's queen comsort, is depicted as having an extramarital affair with the military commander Jehu. This contradicts the traditional narrative, where Jezebel never has extramarital affairs and where she is assassinated by Jehu during the coup d'état which elevated him to the throne. |
I Am Semiramis | 1962 | 810 BC | Set in the Neo-Assyrian Empire, during the reign of semi-legendary queen Semiramis. The legends are in part based on the historical Shammuramat, queen consort of Shamshi-Adad V and regent for her son Adad-nirari III. |
Romolo e Remo | 1961 | 753 BC | Based on the story of Romulus and Remus, and the founding of the city of Rome and the Roman Kingdom. |
Romulus and the Sabines | 1961 | c. 750 BC | Based on the Rape of the Sabine Women, an origin myth for the Roman Kingdom. Shortly after the founding of the kingdom and the start of the reign of Romulus, Rome still lacks a female population and its residents can not reproduce. Romulus organizes bride kidnappings from neighboring people, primarily targeting the Sabines. This leads to a war between the Roman and Sabines, and the eventual assimilation of the Sabines by the Romans. |
The Rape of the Sabine Women (1962 film) | 1962 | c. 750 BC | Based on the Rape of the Sabine Women, an origin myth for the Roman Kingdom. Shortly after the founding of the kingdom and the start of the reign of Romulus, Rome still lacks a female population and its residents can not reproduce. Romulus organizes bride kidnappings from neighboring people, primarily targeting the Sabines. This leads to a war between the Roman and Sabines, and the eventual assimilation of the Sabines by the Romans. |
Duel of Champions | 1961 | c. 650 BC | Based on the Roman legend of the Horatii, set in the reign of Tullus Hostilius. The Roman Kingdom is at war with the city of Alba Longa and the outcome will by decided by champion warfare. Rome sends three brothers from gens Horatia and Alba Longa sends three brothers from gens Curiatia (gens). Publius Horatius emerges as the sole survivor of the combat, and Alba Longa is annexed by the Roman Kingdom. |
War Gods of Babylon | 1962 | c. 627 BC | Set in the Neo-Assyrian Empire; focusing largely on Sardanapalus (probably the Greek name for Ashurbanipal, but anachronistically including Zoroaster (11th–10th century BC) and Hammurabi (1792–1750 BC). |
Queen of Babylon | 1954 | 600 BC | Set in the Neo-Babylonian Empire, depicts Semiramis as a Babylonian queen. |
Gautama Buddha | 2007 | c. 563–483 BC | Depicting the life of the Gautama Buddha. Siddhārtha Gautama is a member of the Ikshvaku dynasty, and seeks a solution to human misery and a path for salvation. He redefines the concept of the Dharma (cosmic law and order). |
The Beast of Babylon Against the Son of Hercules | 1963 | 539 BC | A fictionalized account of the downfall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and its conquest by the Achaemenid Empire under the Cyrus the Great. The cruel Balthazar (Belshazzar) has usurped the Babylonian throne and rules through state terrorism. He systematically offers young women as human sacrifice to his gods. Nippur, a descendant of former king Sargon II, fails to stop the usurper on his own. His life is saved by Zairus (Cyrus the Great) and he agrees to help the Persian king in his campaign to conquer Babylon. The historical Belshazzar was a son of king Nabonidus and served as a regent in his father's absence, but never became a king in his own right. During Cyrus' conquest, Nabonidus was captured and his life apparently spared, but Belshazzar may have died during the fall of the city.[1] |
Hero of Rome | 1964 | 509 BC | The story combines the Roman legends of Gaius Mucius Scaevola and the expulsion of king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus. In the film, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus has already been deposed, and the Roman Kingdom has been replaced by a Roman Republic. Lars Porsena, King of Clusium wages war against the Republic in an attempt to restore his ally Tarquinius to the throne. The Roman Senate offers the military leadership to Gaius Mucius Scaevola, a recently released prisoner of war whose right hand is permanently disabled. Scaevola trains himself to fight with his left hand, and leads his troops to victory against Lars Porsena. |
Coriolanus: Hero without a Country | 1964 | 493 BC | The Roman legend of Gaius Marcius Coriolanus. Coriolanus is a Roman general who distinguishes himself in a war between the Roman Republic and the Volsci. When the aristocratic Coriolanus proposes political reforms which will severely reduce the rights of the plebs, most of the Romans turn against him and he is exiled. The vengeful Coriolanus offers his military services to the Volsci, and leads an invasion army against Rome. Coriolanus refuses requests for a peaceful resolution by his former countrymen, but changes his mind when the Romans senf his own mother and his wife as their representatives. |
Films set in Classical Era (500 BC–600 AD)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
La battaglia di Maratona | 1959 | 490 BC | Greece: Battle of Marathon |
Ester e il re | 1960 | 486–482 BC | the biblical story of Esther |
One Night with the King | 2006 | 486–482 BC | the biblical story of Esther set in the Achaemenid Empire |
The 300 Spartans | 1961 | 480 BC | Greece: Battle of Thermopylae |
300 | 2007 | 480 BC | Greece: Battle of Thermopylae |
300: Rise of an Empire | 2014 | 480 BC | Greece: Battle of Salamis |
Il tiranno di Siracusa | 1961 | 400 BC | Syracuse, Sicily |
Brenno il nemico di Roma | 1963 | 387 BC | the Gallic sack of Rome |
Hercules (2014 film) | 2014 | 358 BC | An American action fantasy adventure film based on the graphic novel Hercules: The Thracian Wars which present a realistic and more human version of Hercules. |
Alexander the Great | 1956 | 356–323 BC | Ancient kingdom of Macedonia and Persia |
Alexander | 2004 | 356–323 BC | Ancient kingdom of Macedonia and Persia |
Il Colosso di Rodi | 1961 | 280 BC | |
Asoka | 2001 | 304–232 BC | Ancient India, during early years of the rule of Maurya emperor Asoka |
Revak the Rebel | 1960 | c. 218 BC | Iberian Peninsula immediately before the Second Punic War |
Siege of Syracuse | 1960 | 214–212 BC | the Roman Siege of Syracuse during the Second Punic War |
Cabiria | 1914 (silent) | 218–202 BC | during the Second Punic War |
The Secret Under the Rose | 2006 | 218–202 BC | during the Second Punic War |
Hannibal | 1959 | 218–202 BC | during the Second Punic War |
Scipio Africanus: The Defeat of Hannibal | 1937 | 202 BC | Battle of Zama which ended the Second Punic War |
Hannibal – Rome's Worst Nightmare | 2006 | 218–202 BC | during the Second Punic War |
The Centurion | 1961 | 146 BC | Battle of Corinth between Rome and the Achaean League |
Spartaco | 1953 | 73–71 BC | the Third Servile War in Rome |
Spartacus | 1960 | 73–71 BC | the Third Servile War in Rome |
Spartacus | 2004 | 73–71 BC | the Third Servile War in Rome |
Spartacus | 2010–2013 | 73–71 BC | the Third Servile War in Rome |
Julius Caesar | 2002 | 100–44 BC | a bio-pic of Julius Caesar, not the Shakespeare play about his death and the aftermath |
Druids | 2001 | 58-51 BC | the struggle between Julius Caesar and Vercingetorix in the Gallic Wars |
A Queen for Caesar | 1962 | 48 BC | Egypt leading up to the arrival of Julius Caesar |
Julius Caesar | 1953 | 44–42 BC | Shakespeare's play about the death and aftermath of this famous dictator |
Julius Caesar | 1970 | 44–42 BC | Shakespeare's play about the death and aftermath of this famous dictator |
Cleopatra | 1934 | 48–30 BC | Egypt and Rome – follows her relationships first with Julius Caesar and then with Mark Antony |
Cleopatra | 1963 | 48–30 BC | Egypt and Rome – follows her relationships first with Julius Caesar and then with Mark Antony |
Cleopatra | 1999 | 48–30 BC | Egypt and Rome – follows her relationships first with Julius Caesar and then with Mark Antony |
The Cleopatras | 1983 | 305–30 BC | Egypt – The entire Ptolemaic dynasty |
Rome | 2005–2007 | 52–30 BC | from the end of the Gallic Wars to the death of Mark Antony and the beginning of the Principate |
Empire | 2005 | 1st century BC | Rome |
Imperium: Augustus | 2003 | 49 BC–14 AD | Rome – the life of Augustus, the first emperor |
Massacre in the Black Forest | 1967 | 9 AD | Germany – The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, where the Cheruski ambushed and annihilated three Roman legions. |
I, Claudius | 1976 | 12 BC–54 AD | Rome – the reigns and family life of the Julio-Claudians |
The Nativity Story | 2006 | 4 BC | Judea – The Biblical account of the nativity of Jesus, following the story of Mary and Joseph until the birth of Jesus occurs. |
Jesus of Nazareth | 1977 | 4 BC to 30–33 AD | Judea – the life of Jesus christ |
Ben-Hur | 1959 | c. 26–30 AD | Based on the 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace |
Ben-Hur | 2016 | c. 26–30 AD | Based on the 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace |
The Last Temptation of Christ (film) | 1988 | 27–30 AD | Judea – the life of Jesus christ |
The Passion of the Christ | 2004 | 33 AD | Judea – The final 12 hours of Jesus christ life |
Risen | 2016 | 33 AD | Judea – Immediately after Jesus' crucifixion |
The Caesars | 1967 | 27 BC–68 | Rome – the Julio-Claudian dynasty |
The Inquiry | 2006 | c. 37 | Roman province of Judea shortly after the death of Jesus |
The Robe | 1953 | 30–36 | Rome – ending reign of Tiberius, the beginning of Caligula |
Imperium: Saint Peter | 2005 | ca. 33–67 | Saint Peter |
A.D. The Bible Continues | 2015 | 33–41 | Beginning with the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, and continues with the first ten chapters of the Book of Acts. |
Caligula | 1979 | 37–41 | Rome – the reign of the third emperor |
Demetrius and the Gladiators | 1954 | 41 | Ancient Rome – the end Caligula reign |
Messalina | 1951 | 41–48 | Rome – about the reign of Messalina and Claudius |
Messalina | 1960 | 41–48 | Rome – about the reign of Messalina and Claudius |
Boudica | 2003 | 60 | Britain – a rebellion shortly after the area had been conquered by Rome |
Nero | 2004 | 41–68 | Rome – spanning the reigns of Claudius and Nero |
St. Thomas | 1975 | 52–72 | Rome – low budget Indian film on the missionary work of Thomas the Apostle in India. |
Quo Vadis | 1951 | 54–68 | Rome during the reign of Nero |
Pompeii | 2014 | 62–79 AD | Pompeii in the days leading up to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius |
The Sign of the Cross | 1932 | 64 | Persecution of the Christians immediately after the Great Fire of Rome |
Masada | 1981 | 72–73 | Roman province of Judea during the First Jewish–Roman War |
Dacii | 1967 | 86–87 | Dacia (modern Romania) – Domitian's Dacian War |
The Apocalypse | 2002 | c. 90–96 | Rome – Ephesus |
Revolt of the Praetorians | 1964 | 96 | Rome – the assassination of Domitian |
The Column | 1968 | 105–106 | the Roman Emperor Trajan conquering Dacia |
Centurion | 2010 | 117 | Roman Britain – the supposed fate of the Ninth Legion |
The Eagle | 2011 | 140 | Roman Britain – a young Roman man attempts to find out what happened to his father and the Ninth Legion |
The Fall of the Roman Empire | 1964 | 180–192 | Rome during the reign of Commodus |
Gladiator | 2000 | 180–192 | Rome during the reign of Commodus |
The Magnificent Gladiator | 1964 | c. 260–268 | Rome during the reign of Gallienus |
Sheba and the Gladiator | 1959 | c. 260–273 | Rome and the Palmyrene Empire during the reigns of Aurelian and Zenobia |
Sebastiane | 1976 | c. 288 | Rome Low-budget homo-erotic film about Saint Sebastian |
Katherine of Alexandria | 2012 | 307 | Roman province of Egypt shortly before the legalization of Christianity |
Constantine and the Cross | 1962 | 306–312 AD | Rome's first Christian emperor from the death of Constantius Chlorus to the Battle of the Milvian Bridge |
Fabiola | 1949 | c. 312 | Rome early in the reign of Constantine I |
Mayura | 1975 | 354–365 AD | Kannada film set in Kadamba Dynasty, during the reign of Raja Mayurasharma |
Augustine of Hippo | 1972 | 354–430 | Roman province of Africa |
Augustine: The Decline of the Roman Empire | 2010 | 354–430 | Roman province of Africa - focusing on the life of Augustine of Hippo, and including the Vandal conquest of Carthage |
Roar | 1997 | 400 | Ireland – Celtic warriors attempt to repel a fictitious Roman invasion |
Agora | 2009 | c. 360–415 | Life and death of scientist/philosopher Hypatia of Alexandria and the destruction of the Library. |
Revenge of the Barbarians | 1960 | 410 | the Visigothic sack of Rome |
St. Patrick: The Irish Legend | 2000 | 387–493 | Ireland and Roman Britain during the life of Saint Patrick |
Sign of the Pagan | 1954 | 406–453 | Rome – the Huns conquests and the downfall of the Roman Empire |
Attila | 1954 | 406–453 | Rome – the Hunnic leader up to his retreat from the Po river |
Attila | 2001 | 406–453 | Rome – the life and death of the famous Hunnic leader |
Die Nibelungen | 1924 | c. 450 | about the Germanic hero Siegfried, his murder, and his widow's vengeance |
Die Nibelungen | 1967 | c. 450 | about the Germanic hero Siegfried, his murder, and his widow's vengeance |
Ring of the Nibelungs | 2004 | c. 450 | about the Germanic hero Siegfried |
Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire | 2006 | 2nd century BC – 410 | From Tiberius Gracchus to the Sack of Rome (410). BBC Docu-drama. |
King Arthur | 2004 | early 5th century | the Roman withdrawal from Britain and the Battle of Mount Badon |
Hagbard and Signe | 1967 | 5th century | Scandinavia during the Germanic Heroic Age |
Arthur of the Britons | 1972–1973 | 5th century | Britain after the Roman withdrawal |
The Last Legion | 2007 | 476–490 | connecting (in heavily fictionalized fashion) the deposition of the last Roman emperor Romulus Augustus by Odoacer with the Battle of Mount Badon |
The Mists of Avalon | 2001 | late 5th – early 6th centuries | heavily fictionalized story of King Arthur |
Teodora | 1919 | c. 500–548 | Byzantine empress Theodora |
Theodora, Slave Empress | 1954 | c. 500–548 | Byzantine empress Theodora |
The Last Roman | 1968/1969 | 526–553 | the Ostrogoths' struggle against the Byzantine emperor Justinian I and his generals Belisarius and Narses – adaption of a novel by Felix Dahn |
Lovespell | 1981 | 6th century | Britain and Ireland – adaptation of the Brythonic legend of Tristan and Iseult |
Fire and Sword | 1982 | 6th century | Britain and Ireland – adaptation of the Brythonic legend of Tristan and Iseult |
Tristan + Isolde | 2006 | 6th century | Britain and Ireland – adaptation of the Brythonic legend of Tristan and Iseult |
Grendel Grendel Grendel | 1981 | 6th century | animated film based on the 1971 novel Grendel, retelling the Anglo-Saxon poem from the monster's perspective |
Beowulf & Grendel | 2005 | 6th century | Denmark in the Germanic Heroic Age – loose adaptation of the Anglo-Saxon poem of Beowulf |
Grendel | 2007 | 6th century | Denmark in the Germanic Heroic Age – very loose adaptation of the Anglo-Saxon poem of Beowulf |
Beowulf | 2007 | 6th century | Denmark in the Germanic Heroic Age – loose adaptation of the Anglo-Saxon poem of Beowulf |
Hamlet | 1964 | 6th century | Denmark in the Germanic Heroic Age – this is a Russian adaptation of the Shakespeare play based on the Danish legend of Amleth |
Prince of Jutland | 1994 | 6th century | Denmark in the Germanic Heroic Age - legend of Amleth from the Danish Gesta Danorum |
Goliath and the Barbarians | 1959 | 568 | the Lombard invasion of Italy |
Sword of the Conqueror | 1961 | 567-572 | Alboin and the Lombard invasion of Italy |
Films set in Medieval Era (600–1500)
Early Middle Ages (7th to 10th centuries)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Excalibur (film) | 1981 | 500–537 | England – the life of King Arthur |
The Message | 1976 | 570–632 | Arabian Peninsula – the life of Muhammad |
Muhammad: The Messenger of God (film) | 2015 | 570–632 | Arabian Peninsula – the life of Muhammad |
Omar (TV series) | 2012 | 595–644 | the life of Omar ibn Al-Khattab, one of the companions of Muhammad |
681 AD: The Glory of Khan | 1981 | 632–681 | epic about the fall of Old Great Bulgaria and the creation of modern-day Bulgaria; focuses on Kanasubigi Asparuh's life |
Roland the Mighty | 1956 | 778 | Roland, a knight of Charlemagne's court who was killed at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass |
King Lear | 1971 | 800 | Celtic Britain |
King Lear | 1999 | 800 | Celtic Britain |
Charlemagne, le prince à cheval | 1993 | 768–800 | Charlemagne's reign up to his coronation as emperor in 800 |
An Ancient Tale: When the Sun Was a God | 2003 | c. 800 | Poland – the death of Popiel and the rise of Piast the Wheelwright |
Vikings (2013 TV series) | 2013– | 793–865 | Series inspired by the sagas of Viking Ragnar Lothbrok, one of the best-known legendary Norse heroes and notorious as the scourge of England and France. |
Attack of the Normans | 1962 | early 9th century | set in England during the Viking Age ("Normans" in the title being used in its original continental sense, meaning "Vikings") |
The Last Viking | 1997 | 9th century | Viking Age |
The Last Kingdom (TV series) | 2015– | late 9th century | Viking Age |
Pope Joan | 1972 | 9th–11th century | Fictitious medieval legend of a woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to the status of Pope in the Middle Ages. |
Pope Joan | 2009 | 814–855(?) | Fictitious medieval legend of a woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to the status of Pope in the Middle Ages. |
The Vikings | 1958 | 860s | highly fictionalized account of the death of Ragnar Lodbrok and the subsequent invasion of Northumbria by two of his sons |
Alfred the Great | 1969 | c. 870–899 | England – Alfred the Great, king of Wessex repels the army of Guthrum and begins the unification of England |
The Saxon Chronicles | 2006 | c. 871–899 | England – the reign of Alfred the Great |
A Viking Saga | 2008 | 870s | Russia – the Rus prince Oleg of Novgorod defeats Askold and Dir |
Boris I | 1985 | 852–889 | St. Boris I Michael (first half of the 9th century – 2 May 907), a Bulgarian tzar who imposed Christianity in AD 865 and introduced the new Slavonic alphabets of Glagolitza and Cyrillic in the Bulgarian Empire |
The Conquest | 1996 | 896 | Magyar settlement in Hungary |
When the Raven Flies | 1984 | 897 | Iceland in the Viking Age |
Útlaginn | 1981 | 9th century | Iceland – adaptation of the saga of Gisli Sursson |
Pathfinder | 1987 | c. 900 | Norway – based on a Sami legend |
In the Shadow of the Raven | 1988 | c. 900 | Iceland in the Viking Age |
White Viking | 1991 | c. 900 | Iceland in the Viking Age |
The 13th Warrior | 1999 | 922 | blends elements of the historical account of the travels of Ahmad ibn Fadlan (AD 922), the legend of Beowulf (6th century), and the Kurosawa film Seven Samurai |
The Castilian | 1963 | 930–970 | Ferdinand Gonzalez: an early hero of the Spanish Reconquista |
Gniazdo | 1974 | c. 972 | about Mieszko I of Poland |
The Viking Sagas | 1995 | late 10th, early 11th centuries | Iceland – borrows elements from several Icelandic sagas, most notably Laxdœla saga and Njáls saga |
The Ceremony of Innocence | 1970 | 978–1016 | a fictionalized version of the reign of Æthelred the Unready |
Njálssaga | 2003 | 960–1020 | Iceland – adaptation of Njáls saga |
The Viking | 1928 | 999 or 1000 | Leif Ericson and the expedition to North America |
Valhalla Rising | 2009 | 1000 | Scandinavia and North America in 1000 AD |
Severed Ways | 2009 | 1007 | North America – two Scandinavians left behind in North America after the settlements made by Leif Ericson were abandoned |
Prince Vladimir | 2006 | 980–1015 | Kievan Rus' – Vladimir I of Kiev |
The Viking | 2016 | 970–1016 | Kievan Rus' – Vladimir I of Kiev |
Films set in 11th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Setting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Nemanjići rađanje kraljevine | 2017 | 1135–1254 | Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia | Nemanjić dynasty in Medieval Serbia |
Yaroslav – A millenium ago | 2011 | 1000–1010 | Kievan Rus' | bio-pic about the Rus prince Yaroslav I the Wise |
Yaroslav the Wise | 1981 | 978–1054 | Kievan Rus' | bio-pic about the Rus prince Yaroslav I the Wise |
Princ Rastko srpski | 2017 | 1135–1233 | Serbia, Bosnia | life of a Serbian prince Rastko Nemanjić |
Macbeth | 1971 | 1050s | Scotland | Scottish king Mac Bethad mac Findlaích |
Macbeth | 1997 | 1050s | Scotland | Scottish king Mac Bethad mac Findlaích |
Lady Godiva of Coventry | 1955 | 1050s | England | an English noble woman who allegedly rode naked through the streets of Coventry in protest of unfair taxation |
The Physician (2013 film) | 2013 | 1100 | England/Middle East | A adventure film based on the novel of the same name by Noah Gordon. |
William the Conqueror | 1982 | 1066 | England | William the Conqueror, the Norman duke who conquered England |
Blood Royal: William the Conqueror | 1990 | 1066 | England | During the Norman conquest |
1066 The Battle for Middle Earth | 2009 | 1066 | England | During the Norman conquest |
Hereward the Wake | 1965 | 1066–1087 | England | Hereward the Wake, the Anglo-Danish leader who led a resistance against Norman rule |
The War Lord | 1965 | 1066–1100 | England | A knight in the service of a duke goes to a coastal village where an earlier attempt to build a defensive castle has failed. |
El Cid | 1961 | 1040–1099 | Spain / Kingdom of Castile | Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, an 11th-century Spanish warrior known as El Cid |
The Raid of the Aegean | 1946 | 1096–1099 | Eastern Mediterranean Sea | First Crusade |
The Mighty Crusaders | 1958 | 1096–1099 | Levant | First Crusade |
Rytsarskiy roman | 2000 | 1096–1099 | Byzantine Empire | First Crusade |
The Crusaders | 2001 | 1096–1099 | Italy and the Levant | First Crusade |
Films set in 12th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Setting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Stealing Heaven | 1988 | c. 1120 | France | Peter Abelard and Héloïse |
Didgori: Land of Sacrificed Knights | 2009 | 1121 | Kingdom of Georgia | Battle of Didgori, in which Georgia's king David IV defeated the Seljuks |
The Pillars of the Earth | 2010 | 1120–1170 | England | during the civil wars between King Stephen and his cousin Maud |
Destiny | 1997 | 1126–1198 | Spain | about Averroes, the 12th-century philosopher from Muslim-controlled Andalusia in Spain whose commentaries would become a staple for subsequent generations of students of Aristotle in Europe |
The Devil's Crown | 1978 | 1154–1216 | England | During the reigns of Henry II, Richard I and John |
Becket | 1964 | 1155–1170 | England | archbishop Thomas Becket, once a close personal friend of Henry II |
Barbarossa | 2009 | 1176 | Northern Italy | Battle of Legnano |
The Lion in Winter | 1968 | 1183 | England | Henry II is in power as his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine plots with their sons |
The Lion in Winter | 2003 | 1183 | England | Henry II is in power as his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine plots with their sons |
Kingdom of Heaven | 2005 | 1183–1190 | Kingdom of Jerusalem | events which led to the Third Crusade (the Battle of Hattin and the Siege of Jerusalem) |
Soldier of God | 2005 | 1187 | Kingdom of Jerusalem | a Templar who has survived the Battle of Hattin |
Saladin | 1963 | 1187–1192 | Levant | events leading up to and including the Third Crusade |
Richard the Lion-Hearted | 1923 | 1190 | Levant | based on Sir Walter Scott's The Talisman and set in the Third Crusade |
Richard the Lion-Hearted | 1992 | 1190 | Levant | based on Sir Walter Scott's The Talisman and set in the Third Crusade |
King Richard and the Crusaders | 1954 | 1191 | Levant | While leading the Third Crusade, King Richard Lionheart battles treachery in his own camp as well as the Saracens and their charismatic leader Saladin. |
Knight Kenneth | 1993 | 1190 | Levant | based on Sir Walter Scott's The Talisman and set in the Third Crusade |
Arn – The Knight Templar | 2007 | 1179–1187 | Kingdom of Jerusalem | a Swedish knight is sent to Jerusalem as penance while his lover languishes in a convent |
Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End | 2008 | 1187–1205 | The Levant and Sweden | following the Battle of Hattin, the knight returns home to Sweden and participates in the civil wars |
Ivanhoe | 1997 | 1192 | England | adaptation of the novel by Sir Walter Scott about the English knight who returns from the Third Crusade to find that his name has been falsely slandered |
The Adventures of Robin Hood | 1938 | 1190s | England | During the life of Richard the Lionheart after his release from captivity in 1194 |
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves | 1991 | 1190s | England | During the life of Richard the Lionheart after his release from captivity in 1194 |
Robin Hood | 2010 | 1199 | England | from the death of Richard the Lionheart until the early reign of King John |
Robin and Marian | 1976 | 1199–c. 1201 | England | from the death of Richard the Lionheart until the early reign of King John |
The Life and Death of King John | 1951 | 1199–1216 | England | The reign of King John |
The Life and Death of King John | 1984 | 1199–1216 | England | The reign of King John |
Francis of Assisi | 1961 | 1182–1226 | Italy | Francis of Assisi |
Brother Sun, Sister Moon | 1972 | 1181–1226 | Italy | Francis of Assisi |
Francesco | 1989 | 1181–1226 | Italy | Francis of Assisi |
Films set in 13th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Setting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gates to Paradise | 1968 | 1212 | France | the ill-fated Children's Crusade |
Ironclad | 2011 | 1215 | England | the siege of Rochester Castle |
The Conqueror | 1956 | 1192–1227 | Mongolia | A film about the life of Temüjin, who later came to be known as Genghis Khan |
Mongol (film) | 2007 | 1192–1227 | Mongolia | A film about the early life of Temüjin, who later came to be known as Genghis Khan |
Eye of the Eagle | 1997 | 1218 | Denmark | |
Ironclad: Battle for Blood | 2014 | 1221 | England | A survivor of the Great Siege of Rochester Castle fights to save his clan from Celtic raiders. A sequel to the 2011 film, Ironclad. |
Alexander – Battle of Neva | 2008 | 1240 | Russia | Prince Alexander Nevsky and the Battle of Neva |
Alexander Nevsky | 1938 | 1241 | North-eastern Europe | Prince Alexander Nevsky and the Battle of the Ice |
Valley of the Bees | 1968 | 13th century | Kingdom of Bohemia | |
The Adventures of Marco Polo | 1960 | 1254–1325 | China | the Italian explorer who traveled to the court of Kublai Khan |
Marco Polo | 1982 | 1254–1325 | China | the Italian explorer who traveled to the court of Kublai Khan |
Marco Polo | 2007 | 1254–1325 | China | the Italian explorer who traveled to the court of Kublai Khan |
Marco Polo (TV series) | 2014 | 1254–1325 | China | the Italian explorer who traveled to the court of Kublai Khan |
Herkus Mantas | 1972 | 1260–1273 | Prussia | the Great Prussian Uprising against the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades |
Kings of the Sun | 1963 | 1300s | Mexico | On the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the Native American tribe of chief Black Eagle clashes with the Mayan tribe of king Balam |
The Virgin Spring | 1960 | late 13th century | Sweden | adaptation of the 13th century Swedish ballad, Töres döttrar i Wänge |
The Black Rose | 1950 | mid-to-late 13th century | China | the fictional exploits of a young Englishman who travells to China, falls in love along the way, and manages to return with a formula for gunpowder |
Knights of the Quest | 2001 | 1271 | Europe | French knights journey to Greece to retrieve the Shroud of Turin |
Braveheart | 1995 | 1296–1305 | Great Britain | William Wallace, a Scotsman who fought for Scotland's independence in the 1290s |
The Bruce | 1996 | 1274–1329 | Scotland | Robert the Bruce, who took over the rebellion against Edward "Longshanks" following the death of William Wallace in 1305 |
Les Rois maudits | 1972 | 1285–1328 | France | the later Capetian dynasty and the arrest of the order of the Knights Templar and the seizure of their wealth by the French crown in 1307 |
Les Rois maudits | 2005 | 1285–1328 | France | the later Capetian dynasty and the arrest of the order of the Knights Templar and the seizure of their wealth by the French crown in 1307 |
Films set in 14th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Setting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
The Tears of Saint Peter | 1995 | 1300 | Sweden | a con-artist selling the "Tears of Peter," which are said to be a cure for any illness |
Tower of Lust | 1955 | 1314 | France | Margaret of Burgundy, Queen of France |
Tower of Screaming Virgins | 1968 | 1314 | France | Margaret of Burgundy, Queen of France |
Anchoress | 1993 | 1325 | France | An anchorite |
The Name of the Rose | 1986 | 1327 | Italy | set in an Italian monastery |
Kristin Lavransdatter | 1995 | early-to-mid-14th century | Norway | |
The Decameron | 1971 | 1348 | Italy | |
Black Death | 2010 | 1348 | England | During the initial outbreak of the plague |
World Without End | 2012 | 1300s | England | A sequel to the 2010 miniseries The Pillars of the Earth, set in England during the 1300s |
Journey to Mecca | 2009 | 1325 | Middle-East | A dramatised documentary film charting the first real-life journey made by the Islamic scholar Ibn Battuta from his native Morocco to Mecca for the Hajj |
The Seventh Seal | 1957 | 1351 | Sweden | During the initial outbreak of the plague |
Second Sight | 1994 | 1349 | Norway | During the initial outbreak of the plague |
A Knight's Tale | 2001 | 1356 | England | loose adaptation of The Knight's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer, this tale is partially inspired by the exploits of William Marshall, but set in the 1350s (with mention made to Edward, the Black Prince and the Battle of Poitiers (1356)) |
Inês de Castro | 1944 | 1357 | Portugal | Inês de Castro, the lover of Pedro I of Portugal, who had her posthumously declared his wife and queen in 1357 |
A Walk with Love and Death | 1969 | 1358 | France near Paris and Meaux | Angelica Huston in the turmoil of the Jacquerie |
The Dark Avenger | 1955 | 1359 | England | Edward, the Black Prince |
Du Guesclin | 1948 | 1354–1380 | France | Bertrand du Guesclin, a Constable of France in the Hundred Years' War |
Kazimierz Wielki | 1976 | 1333–1370 | Poland | Casimir III the Great of Poland |
John Wycliffe: The Morning Star | 1984 | 1325–1384 | England | the life and teachings of John Wycliffe, the 14th-century English theologian who is often seen as a fore-runner of the Protestant Reformation |
The Canterbury Tales | 1972 | late 14th century | England | |
The Canterbury Tales | 1998–2000 | late 14th century | England | |
The Reckoning | 2003 | 1380 | England | |
Richard the Second | 1978 | 1367–1399 | England | adaptation of Shakespeare's play about Richard II |
Boj na Kosovu | 1989 | 1389 | Serbia, Montenegro | a battle between Medieval Serbia and the Ottoman Empire |
12 Paces Without a Head | 2009 | 1401 | Baltic Sea | medieval German folk-hero Klaus Störtebeker, a pirate captain in the Baltic Sea who was said to have walked 12 paces after being decapitated by officials of the Hanseatic League |
Mircea | 1989 | 1386–1418 | Wallachia | Mircea the Elder, who repelled the Ottoman Empire during his reign |
Andrei Rublev | 1966 | c. 1360–1430 | Russia | about the life of Andrei Rublev, who was considered to be the greatest medieval Russian painter of icons and frescoes |
Films set in 15th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Setting | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Krzyzacy | 1960 | 1406–1410 | Eastern Europe | the Battle of Grunwald |
Henry V | 1944 | 1413–1422 | England and northern France | Henry V of England's wars in France |
Henry V | 1989 | 1413–1422 | England and northern France | Henry V of England's wars in France |
The Whore | 2010 | 1414–1415 | Germany | |
John Hus | 1977 | 1415 | Bohemian | John Hus, the theologian from Prague whose proto-reformationist teachings prompted his conviction and execution for heresy, which would be the catalyst for the anti-imperial Hussite Wars which would plague central Europe in the 15th century |
Joan of Arc | 1948 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
Banović Strahinja (film) | 1983 | 1389 | Serbia | a battle between Medieval Serbia and the Ottoman Empire |
Saint Joan | 1957 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
Joan of Arc | 1999 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc | 1999 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
The Passion of Joan of Arc | 1928 | 1431 | England | The trial and execution of Joan of Arc |
Joan the Maiden, Part 1: The Battles, Part 2: The Prisons | 1994 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
Jeanne d'Arc, le pouvoir et l'innocence | 1989 | 1429–1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
The Silence of Joan | 2011 | 1431 | France | Joan of Arc, the French heroine of the Hundred Years' War |
The Hour of the Pig | 1993 | 1452 | France | a public defender in a remote, rural province finds himself expected to defend a pig in a murder trial |
Tirante el Blanco | 2006 | 15th century | France and Constantinople | adaptation of the 1490 romance, Tirant lo Blanc, about a French knight in the service of the Byzantine emperor in campaigns against the Ottoman Turks |
Vlad Tepes | 1979 | 1439–1476 | Wallachia | about prince Vlad the Impaler of Wallachia, who fought to repel the invading Muslim Ottoman Empire throughout his reign |
Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula | 2000 | 1439–1476 | Wallachia | about prince Vlad the Impaler of Wallachia, who fought to repel the invading Muslim Ottoman Empire throughout his reign |
The Conquest of Constantinople | 1951 | 1453 | Constantinople | the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman sultan Mehmed II |
Dorotej (film) | 1981 | 1389 | Serbia | a battle in Medieval Serbia |
Fetih 1453 | 2012 | 1453 | Constantinople | The siege of Constantinople in 1453 by the Ottoman Turks, ending the Byzantine Empire. |
Richard III | 1955 | 1452–1485 | Richard III of England | |
Black Arrow | 1985 | 1455–1485 | adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson novel about the Lancastrian hero in the Wars of the Roses | |
The Conclave | 2006 | 1458 | depicting this tense, politically charged Papal election | |
Tower of London | 1939 | 1462–1483 | during the reign of Edward IV of England | |
Tower of London | 1962 | 1483–1485 | during the reign of Richard III of England | |
The Shadow of the Tower | 1972 | 1485–1509 | during the reign of Henry VII of England | |
The White Queen | 2013 | 1464 | the House of York and the House of Lancaster, are in violent conflict over the throne[2] | |
Princes in the Tower | 2005 | 1490s | the trial of Perkin Warbeck, who claimed to be prince Richard, rightful heir to the throne before his untimely death in the Tower as a child | |
Christopher Columbus | 1985 | 1492 | the discovery and conquest of the New World by Christopher Columbus | |
Christopher Columbus: The Discovery | 1992 | 1492 | the discovery and conquest of the New World by Christopher Columbus | |
1492: Conquest of Paradise | 1992 | 1492–1506 | the discovery and conquest of the New World by Christopher Columbus | |
The Borgias | 1981 | 1492–1503 | the family life and papacy of Rodrigo Borgia, widely considered to be the epitome of papal corruption of the era | |
Los Borgia | 2006 | 1492–1503 | the family life and papacy of Rodrigo Borgia, widely considered to be the epitome of papal corruption of the era | |
Borgia | 2011 | 1492–1503 | the family life and papacy of Rodrigo Borgia, widely considered to be the epitome of papal corruption of the era | |
The Borgias | 2011 | 1492–1503 | the family life and papacy of Rodrigo Borgia, widely considered to be the epitome of papal corruption of the era | |
Muhteşem Yüzyıl | 2011–2014 | 1494–1566 | Based on the life of Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent | |
The White Princess | 2017 | 1485 | England | Elizabeth of York's marriage to Henry VII, as well as his early reign |
Renaissance Era (1500–1700)
Films set in 16th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Apocalypto | 2006 | 1502 | Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, the declining period of the Maya civilization |
The Agony and the Ecstasy | 1965 | 1508–1512 | the painting of the Sistine Chapel |
Luther | 2003 | 1505–1530 | Martin Luther |
Henry VIII and His Six Wives | 1972 | 1509–1547 | Henry VIII of England |
The Private Life of Henry VIII | 1933 | 1509–1547 | Henry VIII of England |
Monarch | 2000 | 1509–1547 | Henry VIII of England |
Henry VIII | 2003 | 1509–1547 | Henry VIII of England |
The Tudors | 2007–2010 | 1509–1547 | Henry VIII of England |
Judgement | 1970 | 1514 | Rebellion of György Dózsa, Hungary |
The Other Conquest | 1998 | 1521 | Mexico, depicting the secret adherence to traditional religious beliefs of the converted Aztec survivors |
Wara Wara | 1930 | 16th century | romance set at the time of the Spanish conquest of Bolivia |
The Headsman | 2005 | c. 1525 | an executioner in Tyrol (part of the Holy Roman Empire) |
A Man for All Seasons | 1966 | 1525–1535 | Thomas More |
Anne of the Thousand Days | 1969 | 1525–1536 | Anne Boleyn, Queen Consort of King Henry VIII and the mother of Queen Elizabeth I |
The Other Boleyn Girl | 2008 | 1525–1536 | Anne and Mary Boleyn |
Ivan the Terrible | 1944, 1958 | 1530–1584 | Two-part film about Ivan IV of Russia |
Ivan Groznyy | 2009 | 1530–1584 | 19-episodes TV Series about Ivan IV of Russia |
Tsar | 2009 | 1530–1584 | Film about Ivan IV of Russia |
The Royal Hunt of the Sun | 1969 | 1532 | Francisco Pizarro's capture of Atahualpa, Sapa Inca. |
Young Bess | 1953 | 1535–1558 | From the death of Anne Boleyn to the corronation of Elizabeth I of England |
Mary of Scotland | 1936 | 1542–1587 | Mary, Queen of Scots |
Mary, Queen of Scots | 1971 | 1542–1587 | Mary, Queen of Scots |
Jodhaa Akbar | 2008 | 1542–1605 | The love story of Mughal emperor Akbar the Great and Rajput princess "Jodhaa" i.e. Empress Mariam uz-Zamani |
Gunpowder, Treason & Plot | 2004 | 1542–1605 | The reigns of Mary, Queen of Scots and her son James I of England |
The Return of Martin Guerre | 1982 | 1548–1588 | The case of Martin Guerre in France - a true case of identity theft. |
Lady Jane | 1986 | 1553 | About Lady Jane Grey, Queen Regnant of the Kingdom of England for nine days. |
Mughal-e-Azam | 1960 | 1556-1605 | The Story of Akbar the Great, Mughal emperor and his son Jahangir. Jahangir's relationship with slave girl Anarkali is featured. |
Elizabeth R | 1971 | 1558–1603 | The reign of Elizabeth I of England |
Elizabeth | 1998 | 1554-1563 | The early reign of Elizabeth I of England |
The Virgin Queen | 2005 | 1558–1603 | The reign of Elizabeth I of England |
Aguirre, the Wrath of God | 1972 | 1560 | Lope de Aguirre's ill-fated expedition down the Amazon in search of El Dorado. |
El Greco | 2007 | 1567–1600 | Greek biographical film about the life of the Greek painter of the Spanish Renaissance, Doménikos Theotokópoulos, known as El Greco |
Dangerous Beauty | 1998 | 1562-1583 | The film is about Veronica Franco, a courtesan in 16th-century Venice who becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft.[3] |
La Reine Margot | 1954 | 1572 | France during the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. The massacre was part of the French Wars of Religion. |
La Reine Margot | 1994 | 1572 | France during the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. The massacre was part of the French Wars of Religion. |
The Princess of Montpensier | 2010 | 1572 | France during the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre. The massacre was part of the French Wars of Religion. |
Elizabeth I | 2005 | 1578–1603 | The last 25 years of the reign of Elizabeth I of England |
Ermak | 1996 | 1580–1690 | Yermak Timofeyevich and the Russian conquest of Siberia. |
Elizabeth: The Golden Age | 2007 | 1585–1590 | The reign of Elizabeth I of England and the Spanish Armada. |
The Seven Samurai | 1954 | 1586 | It follows the story of a village of farmers that hire seven ronin (masterless samurai) to combat bandits who will return after the harvest to steal their crops. |
Fire Over England | 1937 | 1588 | The Spanish Armada during the Anglo-Spanish War. |
Mihai Viteazul | 1970 | 1593–1601 | Michael the Brave, prince of Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania |
The Merchant of Venice | 2004 | 1596 | Set in the Republic of Venice. The film focuses on the Venetian Ghetto. |
Nova Zembla | 2011 | 1596-1597 | About the last journey of Willem Barentsz and Jacob van Heemskerk, when they and their crew attempted sail to the Indies via Northeast Passage over Russia. They were stranded on the island of Nova Zembla. |
Beatrice Cenci | 1909 | 1577-1599 | About the life events of Beatrice Cenci |
Beatrice Cenci | 1926 | 1577-1599 | About the life events of Beatrice Cenci |
Beatrice Cenci | 1941 | 1577-1599 | About the life events of Beatrice Cenci |
Beatrice Cenci | 1956 | 1577-1599 | About the life events of Beatrice Cenci |
Beatrice Cenci | 1969 | 1599 | It depicts real life events of Francesco and Beatrice Cenci |
Ran | 1985 | late 16th century | As an adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy King Lear, the film stars as Hidetora Ichimonji, an aging Sengoku-era warlord who decides to abdicate as ruler in favor of his three sons. |
Kagemusha | 1980 | Late 16th century | It is set in the Sengoku period of Japanese history and tells the story of a lower-class criminal who is taught to impersonate a dying daimyō to dissuade opposing lords from attacking the newly vulnerable clan. The daimyō is based on Takeda Shingen, and the film ends with the climactic 1575 Battle of Nagashino. |
The Floating Castle | 2012 | Late 16th century | Set in feudal Japan, the film is based on the Siege of Oshi and depicts the struggle of Oshi's villagers in defending their fortress against Toyotomi Hideyoshi's campaign against the Hojo clan. |
Shōgun | 1980 | 1600 | The miniseries is loosely based on the adventures of English navigator William Adams, who journeyed to Japan in 1600 and rose to high rank in the service of the shōgun. |
Films set in 17th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Kagemusha Tokugawa Ieyasu | 2014 | 1603–1605 | A biographical TV Movie set in the times of Tokugawa Ieyasu's reign. |
The New World | 2005 | 1608 | The colonization of Jamestown, Virginia |
1612 | 2007 | 1612 | The Tsardom of Russia during the Time of Troubles |
The Last Valley | 1970 | c. 1618-1648 | Set in the Kingdom of Germany, Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years' War. |
Molière | 1978 | 1622–1673 | The French playwright Molière |
Day of Wrath | 1943 | 1624 | Loosely based on the case of alleged witch Anne Pedersdotter, and using a fictitious witchcraft trial as a metaphor for the then-current Nazi persecution of Jews. |
The Three Musketeers | Several adaptations (1903–2014) | 1625–1673 | Based on the novels ('The Three Musketeers' and its sequels) by Alexandre Dumas. The protagonists are loosely based on historical figures Charles de Batz-Castelmore d'Artagnan, Armand d'Athos, Isaac de Porthau, and Henri d'Aramitz. |
Cardinal Richelieu | 1935 | 1626–1642 | The life of the great 17th-century French statesman Cardinal Richelieu and his dealings with Louis XIII of France |
Queen Christina | 1933 | 1632–1654 | Christina, Queen of Sweden |
Le Roi danse | 2000 | 1632–1687 | Jean-Baptiste Lully, an Italian immigrant to France and noted composer of Baroque music. |
Black Robe | 1991 | 1634 | Jesuit missionary among the Hurons. |
The Devils | 1971 | 1634 | The life and trial of Urbain Grandier, who was convicted of witchcraft and burned. He was blamed for the Loudun possessions. |
The Devil's Whore | 2008 | 1638–1660 | The English Civil War and the reign of Oliver Cromwell |
Witchfinder General | 1968 | 1640s | Set during the English Civil War. A fictionalized depiction of Matthew Hopkins, a witch-hunter. |
Admiral | 2015 | 1640s-1650s | The life of Michiel de Ruyter and the Dutch civil war |
A Field in England | 2013 | 1640s | During the English Civil War |
Barbara | 1997 | 1640 | Set in Faroe Islands. About a love triangle between the pastor for the parish of Vágar, his unfaithful wife, and her foppish lover. |
Cromwell | 1970 | 1640–1653 | The English Civil War and the dissolution of the Rump Parliament |
Alatriste | 2006 | 1643 | Life of a Spanish soldier (Capitaine Alatriste) until the Battle of Rocroi. Based on the novel by Arturo Perez-Reverte |
Molière | 2007 | 1645 | The French playwright Molière |
The Libertine | 2004 | 1647–1680 | Life of the poet John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester |
With Fire and Sword | 1999 | 1648–1654 | The Khmelnytsky Uprising in Ukraine against the control of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It led to the period of the Commonwealth known as the Deluge. |
To Kill a King | 2003 | 1648–1658 | The reign of Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector. |
Charles II: The Power and The Passion | 2003 | 1649–1685 | The reign of Charles II of England |
The Deluge | 1974 | 1655–1660 | The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the Second Northern War |
The Man in the Iron Mask | 1977 | 1660–1667 | Loosely based on the existence of the Man in the Iron Mask. Set in France in the reign of Louis XIV |
Versailles (TV Series) | 2015 | 1668- | Fictionalized drama about the reign of King Louis XIV and the building of Versailles |
Colonel Wolodyjowski | 1968 | 1668 | The Ottoman invasion of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, part of the Polish–Ottoman Wars. |
Time of Violence | 1988 | 1668 | Bulgarian Christian region is selected by the Ottoman rulers to serve as an example of conversion to Islam |
Vatel | 2000 | 1671 | France during the life of master chef François Vatel |
The Prince of Homburg | 1997 | 1675 | Adaptation of the Heinrich von Kleist play fictionalizing the deeds of Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg in the Battle of Fehrbellin against Sweden. The Battle was part of the Scanian War. |
Witchhammer | 1970 | 1678–1696 | Northern Moravia witch trials |
The Red Violin | 1998 | 1681 | One section of the film is set in 1681 in Cremona |
Peter the Great | 1984 | 1682–1725 | The reign of Peter I of Russia |
The Cantor of St Thomas's | 1984 | 1685–1750 | German composer Johann Sebastian Bach |
The Crucible | 1996 | 1692–1693 | Dramatization of the Salem witch trials that took place in Province of Massachusetts Bay |
The Draughtsman's Contract | 1982 | 1694 | Set during the reign of William III and Mary II in England. |
Tous les matins du monde | 1991 | late 17th century | French composer Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe. |
Films set in Industrial Era (1700–1900)
Films set in the 18th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
The First Churchills | 1969 | 1650 – 1722 | A BBC serial about the life of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and his wife, Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough |
The Sovereign's Servant | 2007 | 1709 | The Battle of Poltava during the Great Northern War. |
Rob Roy, the Highland Rogue | 1953 | 1713 | Scottish folk hero Robert Roy MacGregor |
Rob Roy | 1995 | 1713 | Scottish folk hero Robert Roy MacGregor |
Black Sails (TV series) | 2014 | 1715-1726 | Set roughly two decades before the events of Treasure Island and during the Golden Age of Piracy |
Blackbeard | 2006 | 1718 | the infamous pirate Edward Teach |
King of the Wind | 1990 | 1727 | Depicts the life of the Godolphin Arabian, an Arabian colt in 18th-century Kingdom of Great Britain during the reign of George II of Great Britain. |
The Scarlet Empress | 1934 | 1729–1796 | Catherine II of Russia, the "enlightened despot" who reigned as Empress of Russia. |
Catherine the Great | 1995 | 1729–1796 | Catherine II of Russia |
The Rise of Catherine the Great | 1934 | 1740s | Early years of Catherine II of Russia |
Young Catherine | 1991 | 1744 | Early years of Catherine II of Russia |
The Great King | 1942 | 1740- 1786 | It depicts the life of Frederick the Great |
Sachsens Glanz und Preußens Gloria | 1985–1987 | 1697–1763 | A six-part TV movie, which goes back to historical events of the years 1697-1763 |
Maria Theresa | 1951 | 1740-1780 | Depicts the life of Maria Theresa |
Maria Theresa | 1980 | 1740-1780 | Depicts the life of Maria Theresa |
George Washington | 1984 | 1743–1783 | George Washington's life up to the American Revolutionary War. |
Chasing the Deer | 1994 | 1745–1746 | Jacobite Rising of 1745 |
Culloden | 1964 | 1745–1746 | Jacobite Rising of 1745 |
The Master of Ballantrae | 1953 | 1745–1746 | Jacobite Rising of 1745 |
The Master of Ballantrae | 1984 | 1745–1746 | Jacobite Rising of 1745 |
Mein Name ist Bach | 2003 | 1747 | Depicts Johann Sebastian Bach's visit to Frederick the Great in Potsdam, Prussia, when The Musical Offering was composed. |
Horseman | 2003 | 1747 | Set in the borders between the regions of Bosnia and Dalmatia, the crossroads of the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Venice. It deals with issues relating to the region's native Croats as they struggle to live between two empires and two faiths: Catholicism and Islam. Also covers the possibility of a love affair between a Christian soldier and a Muslim noblewoman. |
The Amazing Grace | 2006 | 1748 | Tells the story of John Newton's transformation from slave trader to Anglican priest; story is set in Calabar, Nigeria. |
Plunkett & Macleane | 1999 | 1748 | Loosely based on The Gentlemen Highwaymen William Plunkett and Captain James MacLaine. They were highwaymen noted for their restrained and courteous behavior towards their victims. |
Treasure Island | 1934 | c. 1750 | Adaptation of the famous pirate story by Robert Louis Stevenson |
Treasure Island | 1950 | c. 1750 | Adaptation of the famous pirate story by Robert Louis Stevenson |
Treasure Island | 1972 | c. 1750 | Adaptation of the famous pirate story by Robert Louis Stevenson |
Treasure Island | 1990 | c. 1750 | Adaptation of the famous pirate story by Robert Louis Stevenson |
Adesuwa | 2012 | 1752 | Benin Kingdom |
Casanova | 2005 | 1753–1757 | Giacomo Casanova |
A Tale of Two Cities | 1911 | 1755–1792 | England and France prior and during the French Revolution. |
A Tale of Two Cities | 1935 | 1755–1792 | England and France prior and during the French Revolution. |
A Tale of Two Cities | 1958 | 1755–1792 | England and France prior and during the French Revolution. |
A Tale of Two Cities | 1980 | 1755–1792 | England and France prior and during the French Revolution. |
A Tale of Two Cities | 1989 | 1755–1792 | England and France prior and during the French Revolution. |
Amadeus | 1984 | 1756–1791 | Austria composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |
Barry Lyndon | 1975 | 1756–1789 | The Seven Years' War, etc. |
The Last of the Mohicans | 1936 | 1757 | French and Indian War |
The Last of the Mohicans | 1992 | 1757 | French and Indian War |
Northwest Passage | 1940 | 1757 | French and Indian War and the ranger campaign of Robert Rogers |
Clive of India | 1935 | 1757 | Robert Clive, Commander-in-Chief, India and the Battle of Plassey. The Battle was part of the Carnatic Wars. |
The Mission | 1986 | c. 1760-1763 | Jesuit missionaries in South America |
Belle | 2013 | 1761–1804 | The true history of Dido Elizabeth Belle, a mixed–race daughter of British Naval officer John Lindsay and an African woman. She was taken to England by her father to be raised by his uncle, William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, as an aristocratic Lady, as befits her blood line. This forces Lord Mansfield, the Lord Chief Justice, to confront his own views on race, society and the antiquated laws of the time. |
Mozart's Sister | 2010 | 1763 | The early life of Maria Anna Mozart, older sister of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. |
Unconquered | 1947 | 1763 | Pontiac's War focusing on the Siege of Fort Pitt. |
Brotherhood of the Wolf | 2001 | 1764–1767 | Based on a real-life series of killings that took place in France in the 18th century and on the famous legend of the Beast of Gévaudan |
Sons of Liberty | 2015 | 1765–1776 | A story about the Founding Fathers of the United States and the American Revolution. |
A Royal Affair | 2012 | 1766–1783 | Set at the court of the mentally ill King Christian VII of Denmark, and focuses on the romance between his wife, Caroline Matilda of Great Britain, and the royal physician Johann Friedrich Struensee. |
Les Deux Fragonard | 1989 | c. 1768 | Story of the painter Jean-Honoré Fragonard and his cousin, the anatomist Honoré Fragonard, called "Cyprien Fragonard" in the movie, and the supposed model for The Swing |
The Duchess | 2008 | 1770s - 1790s | The life of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire |
John Adams | 2008 | 1770–1826 | The story about the American Founding Father John Adams from the Boston Massacre in 1770 to his death in 1826.[4] |
Marie Antoinette | 1938 | 1774–1792 | Marie Antoinette, Queen consort of France |
Marie Antoinette Queen of France | 1956 | 1774–1792 | Marie Antoinette, Queen consort of France |
Marie Antoinette | 2006 | 1774–1792 | Marie Antoinette, Queen consort of France |
Drums Along the Mohawk | 1939 | 1776 | Settlers during the American Revolution. They suffer British, Loyalist, and Indian attacks on their farm. |
1776 | 1972 | 1776 | A musical retelling of the American Revolution's political struggle in the Continental Congress to declare independence. |
The Crossing | 2000 | 1776 | George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River and the Battle of Trenton |
Revolution | 1985 | 1776–1777 | Fictionalized story of the American Revolution in New York |
The Patriot | 2000 | 1776–1781 | Based on the life of Francis Marion, an officer of the Continental Army officer during the American Revolutionary War. |
Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor | 2003 | 1776–1782 | Depicting Benedict Arnold, both an early hero of the American Revolution and a notorious defector. |
The Queen's Necklace | 1946 | 1780s | Based on the Affair of the Diamond Necklace. Jeanne of Valois-Saint-Rémy, a descendant of the House of Valois and courtesan takes revenge by scamming Marie Antoinette, Cardinal de Rohan, and others. The scandal kindling the flames of the French Revolution. |
The Affair of the Necklace | 2001 | 1780s | Based on the Affair of the Diamond Necklace. Jeanne of Valois-Saint-Rémy, a descendant of the House of Valois and courtesan takes revenge by scamming Marie Antoinette, Cardinal de Rohan, and others. The scandal kindling the flames of the French Revolution. |
Ridicule | 1996 | 1783-1794 | On the brink of the French Revolution. A minor baron and engineer from Lyon tries to gain audience with King Louis XVI of France in order to fund drainage of the mosquito-infested swamps bringing sickness and death to his region. |
Botany Bay | 1953 | 1787 | Fictional story about the First Fleet sailing to Botany Bay, New South Wales |
The Madness of King George | 1994 | 1788 | The deteriorating mental health of George III of the United Kingdom, King of Great Britain and Ireland |
George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation | 1986 | 1788–1797 | George Washington's life during his time as President of the United States. |
Mutiny on the Bounty | 1935 | 1789 | the Mutiny on the Bounty |
Mutiny on the Bounty | 1962 | 1789 | the Mutiny on the Bounty |
The Bounty | 1984 | 1789 | The Mutiny on the Bounty |
Farewell, My Queen | 2012 | 1789 | Marie Antoinette, Queen consort of France |
The French Revolution | 1989 | 1789–1794 | French Revolution |
The Scarlet Pimpernel | 1934 | 1792 | French Revolution |
The Scarlet Pimpernel | 1982 | 1792 | French Revolution |
The Red Violin | 1998 | 1793 | One section of the film is set in Vienna, Archduchy of Austria in 1793. |
Charlotte Corday | 2008 | 1793 | Trial and execution of Charlotte Corday after her murder of Jean-Paul Marat. Marat was a Jacobin journalist and politician. |
Danton | 1983 | 1794 | Conflict between Georges Danton and Maximilien Robespierre during the French Revolution. |
A császár parancsára | 1957 | 1794 | Ignác Martinovics and Hungarian Jacobins in 1794. |
Beau Brummell | 1954 | c. 1795 | Beau Brummell, a 19th-century arbiter of fashion in England who popularized the man's suit and necktie |
Sangolli Rayanna (film) | 2012 | 1798–1831 | Film is about Sangolli Rayanna, a prominent freedom fighter from Karnataka, who fought the British East India Company till he was captured and executed in 1831. |
Sleepy Hollow (film) | 1999 | 1799 | Set in the years after the American Revolution, when a Headless Horseman haunted a little town, Sleepy Hollow, New York. |
The Remains of Nothing | 2004 | 1799 | Eleonora Fonseca Pimentel |
Désirée | 1954 | 1799–1815 | The love story between Désirée Clary and Napoleon I |
Napoléon | 1927 | 1799–1815 | Napoléon I of France |
Turn: Washington's Spies | 2014–2017 | 1776–1814 | American Revolutionary War |
Films set in the 19th century
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World | 2003 | 1803–1805 | During the Napoleonic Wars |
Vanity Fair | 2004 | 1803–1814 | The Napoleonic era |
War and Peace | 1956 | 1803–1815 | The Russian Empire during the Napoleonic era |
The Duellists | 1977 | 1804–1814 | The Napoleonic Wars |
Tripoli | 1950 | 1805 | Battle of Derne |
Conquest | 1937 | 1806–1816 | The love story between Marie Walewska and Napoleon I |
Amazing Grace | 2006 | 1807 | William Wilberforce's Abolitionist campaign to abolish slavery in the British Empire |
Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. | 1951 | 1807 | The Napoleonic Wars |
The Pride and the Passion | 1957 | 1807–1814 | The Napoleonic Wars, the Peninsular War in Spain |
Lady Caroline Lamb | 1972 | c. 1810–1828 | Lady Caroline Lamb, the British aristocrat, novelist and Lord Byron's lover |
Waterloo | 1970 | 1815 | Battle of Waterloo during the Napoleonic Wars. |
Les Misérables | 1934 | 1815–1832 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
Les Misérables | 1935 | 1815–1832 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
Les Misérables | 1995 | 1815–1832 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
Les Misérables | 1998 | 1815–1832 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
Les Misérables | 2012 | 1815–1832 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
The Count of Monte Cristo | 1934 | 1815–1838 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
The Count of Monte Cristo | 1975 | 1815–1838 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy) |
The Count of Monte Cristo | 2002 | 1814–1831 | France after Napoleon I (Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy); Unlike the first two films, this version states 1814 at the start. Dantes' plan happens over a three-year period, having been imprisoned for thirteen years, as is stated during the film. The ending is set shortly after Albert's sixteenth birthday, having been born in 1815. |
Bright Star | 2009 | 1818–1821 | The last three years of poet John Keats' life |
El Santo de la Espada | 1970 | 1821–1822 | José de San Martín and the Spanish American wars of independence |
Bouboulina | 1959 | 1821–1829 | Laskarina Bouboulina, heroine of the Greek War of Independence |
The Deceivers | 1988 | 1825 | British officer in India investigates the Thugee cult |
The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser | 1974 | 1828–1833 | The story of foundling Kaspar Hauser in the German Confederation. |
Kaspar Hauser (film) | 1993 | 1828–1833 | The story of foundling Kaspar Hauser in the German Confederation. |
The Horseman on the Roof | 1995 | 1832 | Second cholera pandemic in July Monarchy France |
The Alamo | 1960 | 1836 | Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. |
The Alamo | 2004 | 1836 | Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. |
The Young Victoria | 2009 | 1837 - 1840s | Early reign of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and her marriage to Albert, Prince Consort |
Amistad | 1997 | 1839–1841 | Mutiny aboard La Amistad, a ship containing slaves from Africa. The ship had left Havana and was bound for Camagüey, both ports being in Spanish Cuba. The film follows the ship's entry into United States custody and the subsequent trial. The case was resolved by the trial United States v. The Amistad. |
How the West Was Won | 1962 | 1839–1889 | United States expansion into and settlement of the West. |
The Emigrants | 1971 | 1840s | The Swedish immigrants in Minnesota |
Song of Love | 1947 | 1840–1856 | The marriage of Robert and Clara Schumann and their close friendship with Johannes Brahms. All three were notable composers. |
12 Years a Slave | 2013 | 1841–1853 | The story of free African American Solomon Northup after he was abducted and sold into slavery. Based on the autobiography of the same name |
Edward the Seventh | 1975 | 1841–1910 | The life of Edward VII, King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. |
Gangs of New York | 2002 | 1846–1863 | New York City prior and during the American Civil War. The events occur in the crime- infested neighborhood of Five Points, Manhattan. The film opens in 1846 with a conflict between a Nativist gang and the Dead Rabbits. The action then moves forward to the 1860s with the Nativists still active and involved with William M. Tweed, "boss" of Tammany Hall. The action culminates in the New York City draft riots of 1863. |
Eureka Stockade | 1949 | 1854 | Peter Lalor and the Eureka Rebellion, a gold miners' rebellion at the Eureka Stockade (Ballarat, Australia). |
The Charge of the Light Brigade | 1968 | 1854 | The disaster of the Crimean War known as the Charge of the Light Brigade. It took place within the Battle of Balaclava. |
Sissi (film) | 1955 | 1854 | It is the first installment in the trilogy of films about Empress Elisabeth of Austria, nicknamed Sissi. |
Sissi – The Young Empress | 1956 | 1855–1856 | Sissi adapts to life as Empress of Austria. |
Quanto è bello lu murire acciso | 1976 | 1857 | Failed rising organized by Carlo Pisacane in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies |
Mountains of the Moon | 1990 | 1854–1864 | Journey of Richard Francis Burton and John Hanning Speke in their expedition to Central Africa and the rivalry that followed |
Ride with the Devil | 1999 | 1861–1864 | Depicts the activities of Confederate States of America Bushwhackers, guerrilla fighters, in Missouri. |
Gone with the Wind | 1939 | 1861–1877 | Georgia during the American Civil War and the Reconstruction Era. |
Mrs Brown | 1997 | 1861–1883 | The relationship between Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and her personal servant John Brown. |
Glory | 1989 | 1862–1863 | The American Civil War from the Battle of Antietam to the Second Battle of Fort Wagner |
Gettysburg | 1993 | 1863 | The Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War |
Wyatt Earp | 1994 | 1863–1884 | Events leading up to and following the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral |
Lincoln | 2012 | Early 1865 | Events chronicling the last few months of the life of President of the United States Abraham Lincoln. |
The Conspirator | 2011 | April 1865 | Based on the events of the aftermath of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. |
Hell on Wheels | 2011–2016 | 1865–1867 | based on the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad. |
Dances with Wolves | 1990 | c. 1865–1870 | Fictional story set during the American Civil War and its aftermath in the American West, interaction with the Lakota Sioux |
Tommy's Honour | 2016 | 1866–1876 | The complex and bittersweet relationship between the pioneering and legendary Scottish golfing champions Old Tom Morris and Young Tom Morris. |
Riel | 1979 | 1869–1885 | The activities of Louis Riel, a Métis in both the Red River Rebellion of Manitoba and the North-West Rebellion in the District of Saskatchewan. |
Young Winston | 1972 | 1874–1902 | The biography Winston Churchill before he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during World War II. |
Centennial Summer | 1946 | 1876 | Set in Philadelphia at the time of the Centennial Exposition |
Wild Bill | 1995 | 1876 | The last days of legendary lawman Wild Bill Hickok |
The Last Samurai | 2003 | 1876–1877 | Events in the wake of the Meiji Restoration in the Empire of Japan, 1876–1877 |
Zulu Dawn | 1979 | 1879 | The Battle of Isandlwana during the Anglo-Zulu War |
Zulu | 1964 | 1879 | The Battle of Rorke's Drift during the Anglo-Zulu War |
Thousand Pieces of Gold | 1991 | 1880s | Chinese immigrant woman in the American Old West. |
The Miracle Worker | 1962 | 1880–1887 | The early childhood of Helen Keller, her infancy contraction of blindness and deafness and Anne Sullivan's arrival |
Tombstone | 1993 | 1881–1884 | Events leading up to and following the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral |
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford | 2007 | 1881–1892 | The end of Jesse James' career as a criminal and the man who eventually kills him, Robert Ford in 1882 |
The Four Feathers | 1939 | 1882–1888 | During the British Army's Nile Expedition |
The Four Feathers | 2002 | 1882–1888 | During the British Army's Nile Expedition |
Khartoum | 1966 | 1884 | Charles George Gordon defense of the Sudanese city of Khartoum from the forces of the army of Muhammad Ahmad during the Siege of Khartoum. Muhammad Ahmad had proclaimed himself to be the Mahdi. |
Geronimo: An American Legend | 1993 | 1886 | Events leading up to the capture of Geronimo, a prominent Apache leader during the Apache Wars. |
From Hell | 2001 | 1888 | Set in London, about the Jack the Ripper murders. The full historical case is covered in the Whitechapel murders. |
Mayerling | 1968 | 1888–1889 | Based on the Mayerling Incident, a series of events leading to the apparent murder–suicide of Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and his lover Baroness Mary Vetsera. |
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid | 1969 | 1890s–1908 | Covers the activities of Butch Cassidy and Harry Longabaugh, prominent members of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch. The Wild Bunch was a loosely organized outlaw gang from Wyoming. |
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee | 2007 | 1890 | Wounded Knee Massacre |
Heaven's Gate | 1980 | 1892 | Covers the Johnson County War |
Hostiles | 2017 | 1892 | a U.S. Cavalry officer who must escort a Cheyenne war chief and his family back to their home in Montana |
El Presidente | 2012 | 1896–1964 | Philippine Revolution and the final years and death of President of the Philippines Emilio Aguinaldo |
Rough Riders | 1997 | 1898 | Depicts The Battle of San Juan Hill, part of the Spanish–American War |
Heneral Luna | 2015 | 1898–1899 | The Second Phase of the Philippine Revolution and the heroism of General Antonio Luna |
Films set in Modern Era (1900–1950)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Trotsky | 2017 | 1898–1918 | Biographical television miniseries about Leon Trotsky |
Gandhi | 1982 | 1893–1947 | Biopic about the life and activism of Mahatma Gandhi. |
Mao Zedong (TV series) | 2013 | 1893–1949 | TV series about Mao Zedong, from his chilhold to foundation of People's Republic of China |
The Knick | 2014 | 1900 | Doctors, Nurses, and others work at The Knickerbocker hospital |
55 Days at Peking | 1963 | 1900 | Depicts the Battle of Peking during the Boxer Rebellion. |
Breaker Morant | 1980 | 1901 | An Australian Lieutenant, Harry "Breaker" Morant, who ordered the summary execution of several prisoners during the Second Boer War |
Nicholas and Alexandra | 1971 | 1904–1918 | Covers the last 14 years of the life and reign of Nicholas II of Russia, last Emperor of Russia. Includes the events of World War I, the Russian Revolution, the Russian Civil War and the shooting of the Romanov family. |
A Dangerous Method | 2011 | 1904–1912 | Covers personal and professional relationships between Carl Jung, Sigmund Freud and Sabina Spielrein |
Rosa Luxemburg | 1986 | 1904–1919 | Biography Of Marxist And Anti-War Activist Rosa Luxemburg and her assassination in 1919. |
The Battleship Potemkin | 1925 | 1905 | The Russian battleship Potemkin uprising, part of the Revolution of 1905 in the Russian Empire. |
The Real Glory | 1939 | 1906 | Moro Rebellion |
The Passion of Marie | 2012 | 1910 | Biopic about Marie, the wife of Danish painter Peder Severin Krøyer |
Iron Jawed Angels | 2004 | 1913–1920 | American women's suffrage movement during the 1910s |
Titanic | 1943 | 1912 | the Titanic disaster |
Titanic | 1953 | 1912 | the Titanic disaster |
A Night to Remember | 1958 | 1912 | the Titanic disaster |
Titanic | 1997 | 1912 | the Titanic disaster |
Reds | 1981 | 1912–1920 | Russian Revolution |
Doctor Zhivago | 1965 | 1912–1923 | World War I, the Russian Revolution and the Russian Civil War |
Stalin | 1992 | 1917–1953 | Brutal Career and Corruption of Soviet Leader Joseph Stalin |
Gallipoli | 1981 | 1914–1915 | Gallipoli Campaign of World War I |
Flyboys | 2006 | 1914–1917 | Focusing on the Lafayette Escadrille, a unit of American volunteer combat pilots in service for the Allies of World War I. |
Admiral | 2008 | 1914–1917, 1964 | Covers the last three years of the naval career of Alexander Kolchak, a Vice-Admiral in the Imperial Russian Navy and leader of the anti-communist White Movement during the Russian Civil War. The film also depicts the love triangle between the Admiral, his wife, and the poet Anna Timiryova. |
All Quiet On The Western Front | 1930 | 1914–1918 | Western Front of World War I |
All Quiet On The Western Front | 1979 | 1914–1918 | Western Front of World War I |
A Very Long Engagement | 2004 | 1914–1920s | Western Front of World War I |
The Aviator | 2004 | 1914–1947 | Biopic about Howard Hughes, an aviation pioneer, director, and successful film producer. |
La Masseria Delle Allodole | 2007 | 1915 | Set during World War I in the Ottoman Empire, depicting the Armenian Genocide. |
Ararat | 2002 | 1915 | Based on the Defense of Van in 1915, an Armenian insurgence in the Ottoman Empire during the Armenian Genocide. |
The Promise | 2017 | 1915 | The Armenian Genocide |
Shimon Haber | 2008 | 1915–1919 | Development and usage of Chemical weapons in World War I |
Lawrence of Arabia | 1962 | 1916–1918 | T. E. Lawrence and the Arab Revolt in the Ottoman Empire. |
Michael Collins | 1996 | 1916–1922 | Later life of Irish resistance leader Michael Collins and his participation in the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. |
The Lighthorsemen | 1987 | 1917 | Battle of Beersheba in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. |
The Wind Rises | 2013 | 1918–1945 | The life of Jiro Horikoshi |
The Lost Battalion | 1919 | 1918 | Covers the fate of the Lost Battalion, units of the 77th Infantry Division. The units under the command of Major Charles White Whittlesey penetrated deep into the Forest of Argonne in France during World War I. They were trapped and surrounded by the German Army. |
The Lost Battalion | 2001 | 1918 | Covers the fate of the Lost Battalion, units of the 77th Infantry Division. The units under the command of Major Charles White Whittlesey penetrated deep into the Forest of Argonne in France during World War I. They were trapped and surrounded by the German Army. |
1918 | 1985 | 1918 | Written by Horton Foote, depicts life in Texas and the devastating effect of the great flu epidemic of 1918. |
The Wind that Shakes the Barley | 2006 | 1919–1923 | The Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War |
Chariots of Fire | 1981 | 1919–1924 | British runners face prejudice and compete in the 1924 Summer Olympics. The runners are Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams. Liddell was a Scottish man and Abrahams was A British Jew. |
Evita | 1996 | 1919–1952 | Biopic of Eva Perón, First Lady of Argentina. |
J. Edgar | 2011 | 1919–1972 | Life and career of J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 1935 to 1972. |
Anastasia | 1956 | 1920s | Based upon theories on the survival of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia and the activities of Anna Anderson. Anderson was the most famous of the Romanov impostors. |
Legionnaire | 1998 | 1920–1926 | Rif War |
Jinnah | 1998 | 1920–1947 | Depicts the role of Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the independence of Pakistan. |
The First of the Few | 1942 | 1922–1936 | Aerospace engineer R.J. Mitchell designs the Spitfire despite his failing health. |
The King's Speech | 2010 | 1924–1939 | The quest of George VI, King of the United Kingdom to overcome his stammer. |
The Ogre | 1996 | 1925–1945 | The account of a simple Frenchman caught up in the events of World War II. He involuntarily serves in the French Army, spends time as a prisoner of war in East Prussia, and gets hired to take care of the animals in the local estate of Hermann Göring. When fired, the Frenchman finds a new job at nearby Kaltenborn Castle, a Nazi Germany military academy for boys. He gets tasked with recruiting children to serve the cause. Continuing service while Nazi Germany deteriorates and East Prussia faces a Soviet invasion. |
Evita | 1996 | 1926–1952 | Rise of Eva Perón, a powerful First Lady of Argentina |
Lion of the Desert | 1981 | 1929–1931 | About the struggle of Libyan rebels under Omar Mukhtar against the Italian Royal Army in the years leading up to World War II. |
The Legend of Bagger Vance | 2000 | 1931 | Set in Savannah, Georgia during the Great Depression; loosely based on the Bhagavad Gita. The story starts by setting a background. A noteworthy golf player went off to fight in World War I. He returned a decorated veteran but traumatized by the deaths of his unit in battle. He then sunk into a life of habitual alcohol intoxication. In 1931, there is to be an exhibition match between famous golfers Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen. The veteran is asked to participate and compete against them. A mysterious man volunteers to be his caddie, helping the veteran to come to grips with his personal demons and play golf again. |
Road to Perdition | 2002 | winter 1931 | A film set in Illinois during the Great Depression, and featuring Prohibition Era-organized crime figures. The protagonist is a mob enforcer for an Irish mob boss. The son of the boss wants to kill him, however, and manages to kill his wife and one of his sons. The protagonist and his remaining son escape to Chicago, attempting to find new work under Al Capone and his Chicago Outfit. Underboss Frank Nitti rejects the offers of the protagonist to join them. Nitti also contacts the Irish mob boss and they agree to have the protagonist killed. Starting an escalating conflict. |
Bonnie and Clyde | 1967 | 1931–1934 | About the exploits of Bonnie and Clyde, American outlaws and robbers during the Great Depression. |
Frances | 1982 | 1931–1958 | Life of actress Frances Farmer |
Public Enemies | 2009 | 1933–1934 | Set during the Great Depression, it chronicles the final years of the notorious bank robber John Dillinger. |
The National Anthem | 1999 | 1934–1935 | Set in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation of Manchuria and the resulting conflict. |
A Pearl in the Forest | 2008 | 1934–1938 | Set during the Great Purge initiated by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union. The film focuses on the spillover effects of the Purge on the Mongolian People's Republic, a satellite state of the Soviet Union. |
Atonement | 2007 | 1935–1940 | A romantic suspense war film. Opening in the interwar period of the United Kingdom, during the late 1930s, and continuing to the early days of World War II. The film opens in 1935 with the interactions between the girls of the wealthy Tallis family and their cousin Lola on one side, and a lower class-man by the name of Robbie Turner on the other. When Lola gets raped, Robbie gets blamed for the act, arrested, and imprisoned. Four years later, Robbie is released on condition of serving in the British Army as part of the British Expeditionary Force on the areas of the French Third Republic. |
Olga | 2004 | 1935–1942 | The relationship between German-Brazilian communist militant Olga Benário and Luís Carlos Prestes, one of the main leaders of the opposition against Brazilian dictatorship of Getúlio Vargas. |
Unbroken | 2014 | 1936–1998 | The life of Louis Zamperini. |
Race | 2016 | 1936 | The life of Jesse Owens wons four gold medals during Athletics. |
The Hindenburg | 1975 | 1937 | The Hindenburg disaster at Naval Air Station Lakehurst, New Jersey. |
The Flowers of War | 2011 | 1937 | The Nanking Massacre during the Second Sino-Japanese War. |
John Rabe | 2009 | 1937 | The Nanking Massacre during the Second Sino-Japanese War. |
The Good Shepherd | 2006 | 1938–1961 | Rise of Central Intelligence Agency's counterintelligence, leading up to the Bay of Pigs Invasion |
KanColle: The Movie | 2016 | 1939–1991 | Based on Kantai Collection and true events of World War II and Cold War. |
Schindler's List | 1993 | 1939–1945 | German industrialist Oskar Schindler's efforts to keep Jewish people from being interred in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. |
The Last Bastion | 1984 | 1939–1945 | Australia during World War II |
Hacksaw Ridge | 2016 | 1939–1945 | World War II experiences of Desmond Doss |
The Pianist | 2002 | 1939–1945 | Poland during World War II |
Max Manus: Man of War | 2008 | 1939–1945 | Norway during World War II and Winter war |
April 9th (film) | 2015 | 1940 | German invasion of Denmark |
Battle of Britain | 1969 | 1940 | The Battle of Britain |
Darkest Hour | 2017 | 1940 | May–June, 1940. Winston Churchill's early days as Prime Minister, as Hitler closes in on Britain during World War II. |
Dunkirk | 2017 | 1940 | May 27, 1940 – June 4, 1940. The Dunkirk evacuation of World War II |
Malèna | 2000 | 1940–1944 | Italy during World War II |
The Way Back | 2010 | 1941 | Escape from a Siberian Gulag |
Sink the Bismarck! | 1960 | May 1941 | Depicts German battleship Bismarck and its last battle. |
Defiance | 2008 | August 1941 | Story of three Jewish brothers of the Bielski partisans who saved and recruited Jews during the Nazi occupation of Belarus. |
Tora! Tora! Tora! | 1970 | December 7, 1941 | The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor |
Pearl Harbor | 2001 | December 1941-April 1942 | The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and the subsequent American retaliation in the Doolittle Raid. |
Hong Kong 1941 | 1984 | December 1941 | The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, and the story of local resistance against Japanese forces. |
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas | 2008 | 1942 | Set during the Holocaust |
The Gallant Hours | 1960 | 1942 | U.S. Navy admiral William Halsey in the crucial early weeks of his command of American forces in the Guadalcanal campaign of World War II. |
The Bridge on the River Kwai | 1957 | 1942–1943 | Construction of the Burma Railway by forced labour, mainly British prisoners of war, during the Burma Campaign of World War II. |
Midway | 1976 | June 1942 | The Battle of Midway |
Stalingrad | 1993 | August 1942-February 1943 | The Battle of Stalingrad from a German perspective. |
The Thin Red Line | 1998 | August 1942-February 1943 | The Guadalcanal Campaign |
Enemy at the Gates | 2001 | winter 1942–1943 | The activities of Soviet sniper Vasily Zaytsev in the Battle of Stalingrad |
Sophie Scholl – The Final Days | 2005 | February 1943 | The ultimate days of Sophie Scholl, a White Rose revolutionary. She actively opposing Nazi Germany until her execution and death. |
Cross of Iron | 1977 | spring 1943 | Eastern Front |
The Dam Busters | 1955 | May 1943 | Development of the Upkeep bouncing bomb and its use in Operation Chastise |
Memphis Belle | 1990 | May 1943 | About the 25th and last mission of the Memphis Belle, an American Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber flying over Nazi Germany as part Strategic bombing operations. |
Patton | 1970 | 1943–1945 | The exploits of United States Army General George S. Patton during World War II |
Red Tails | 2012 | 1944 | Tuskegee Airmen during World War II |
The Longest Day | 1962 | June 6, 1944 | The Normandy landings, the first stage of the Invasion of Normandy |
Saving Private Ryan | 1998 | June 1944 | The Normandy landings and their aftermath |
Windtalkers | 2002 | June–July 1944 | Focuses on Navajo code talkers during the Battle of Saipan |
Valkyrie | 2008 | 1944 | Set in Nazi Germany during World War II. It depicts the 20 July plot in 1944 by German army officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler and to use the Operation Valkyrie national emergency plan to take control of the country. |
A Bridge Too Far | 1977 | September 1944 | Operation Market Garden |
Kanal | 1956 | September 1944 | Warsaw Uprising |
Flame & Citron | 2008 | 1944 | the story of two Danish resistance movement fighters nicknamed Flame and Citron, during the Nazi occupation of Denmark |
Saints and Soldiers | 2003 | December 1944-January 1945 | The Malmedy massacre and its aftermath during the Battle of the Bulge. |
Battle of the Bulge (film) | 1965 | December 1944-January 1945 | The Battle of the Bulge. |
The Great Raid | 2005 | January 1945 | Liberation of the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on the island of Luzon, Philippines. The camp was set up during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. |
Flags of Our Fathers | 2006 | February–March 1945 | the Battle of Iwo Jima from an American perspective. |
Letters from Iwo Jima | 2006 | February–March 1945 | The Battle of Iwo Jima from a Japanese perspective. |
Fury | 2014 | April 1945 | 2nd Armored Division Tank crewmen during the Western Allied invasion of Germany |
Downfall | 2004 | April–May 1945 | Depicting the final ten days of Adolf Hitler's reign over Nazi Germany and their immediate aftermath. Events take place during the Battle of Berlin. |
Ashes and Diamonds | 1958 | May 1945 | Polish Home Army soldiers assigned to assassinate a Communist commissar |
The Good German | 2006 | July–August 1945 | During the Potsdam Conference |
Nuremberg | 2000 | November 1945-October 1946 | The first of the Nuremberg trials |
Judgment at Nuremberg | 1961 | 1947 | The Judges' Trial |
The Black Dahlia | 2006 | 1947 | The murder Elizabeth Short and subsequent investigation |
Exodus | 1960 | 1947–1948 | Foundation of Israel |
Cast a Giant Shadow | 1966 | 1948 | United States Army colonel Mickey Marcus's involvement in the Israeli War of Independence |
Films set in Atomic Era (1950–2000)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
The Founding of a Republic | 2009 | 1945–1949 | Inspired by true events, Founding of a Republic weaves a rousing tale of Mao Zedong who fought against Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang and led his people in battle in the ultimate sacrifice for his country to found a new People's Republic of China. |
The Crown (TV series) | 2016 | 1947–present | Follows the political rivalries and romance of Queen Elizabeth II's reign and the events that shaped the second half of the 20th century. |
American Hot Wax | 1978 | 1950 | Disc jockey Alan Freed's involvement in the emergence of Rock and roll |
71: Into the Fire | 2010 | 1950 | The story of student-soldiers trying to protect a middle school during the early days of the Korean War. |
Taegukgi (film) | 2004 | 1950–1953/2003 | A drama about the fate of brothers forced to fight in the Korean War. |
The Finest Hours | 2016 | 1952 | The SS Pendleton Coast Guard rescue mission attempt |
The Motorcycle Diaries | 2004 | 1952–1967 | The life of Che Guevara |
The Kennedys (miniseries) | 2011 | 1952–1968 | The triumphs and tragedies of the most popular political family in American history. |
The Front Line (2011 film) | 2011 | 1953 | A drama centered on the Korean War's final battle that will determine the border between north and south |
The Death of Stalin | 2017 | 1953 | The events that transpired after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. |
Good Night, and Good Luck | 2005 | 1953 | The conflict between veteran radio and television journalist Edward R. Murrow and U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy relating to the anti-Communist Senator's actions with the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations |
Elvis (1979 film) | 1979 | 1953–1972 | The story follows the life and career of rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. |
The People vs. Larry Flynt | 1996 | 1953–1988 | Biopic about Larry Flynt, publisher of Hustler magazine |
The Quiet American | 2002 | 1954 | The film covers early American covert involvement in Vietnam during the last days of the First Indochina War. It set the stage for the subsequent Vietnam War. |
The Founder | 2016 | 1954 | The story of Ray Kroc, a salesman who turned two brothers' innovative fast food eatery, McDonald's, into one of the biggest restaurant businesses in the world with a combination of ambition, persistence, and ruthlessness. |
The Battle of Algiers | 1966 | 1954–1960 | During the Algerian War |
Lumumba | 2000 | 1955–1961 | Path of the first Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo Patrice Lumumba and his killing. The Republic itself was the former Belgian Congo following its independence. |
Che | 2008 | 1955–1967 | The life and death of Che Guevara |
Goodfellas | 1990 | 1955–1980 | Biopic about mobster Henry Hill |
Blow | 2001 | 1955–1994 | Biopic about drug trafficker George Jung |
Nasser 56 | 1996 | 1956 | The Suez Crisis from the Egyptian point of view |
Children of Glory | 2006 | 1956 | Hungarian Revolution of 1956 |
Great Balls of Fire! | 1989 | 1956–1958 | The early career of Rock and roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis |
Quiz Show | 1994 | 1956–1958 | Twenty-One Quiz show scandals |
My Week with Marilyn | 2011 | 1956 | The film focuses on the week during the shooting of the 1957 film when Marilyn Monroe was escorted around London by Colin, after her husband Arthur Miller had returned to the United States. |
Bridge of Spies (film) | 2015 | 1957–1961 | During the Cold War, an American lawyer is recruited to defend an arrested Soviet spy in court, and then help the CIA facilitate an exchange of the spy for the Soviet captured American U2 spy plane pilot, Francis Gary Powers. |
Scandal | 1989 | 1959–1963 | Christine Keeler, Stephen Ward and the Profumo affair |
Heaven & Earth | 1993 | 1960 - 1980 | Vietnam War |
The Odd Angry Shot | 1979 | 1960s | Experiences of Australian soldiers during the Vietnam War |
The German Doctor | 2013 | 1960 | The life of Josef Mengele in Argentina. He was a former Nazi wanted for War crimes. He was a target for Nazi hunters. |
Gagarin: First in Space | 2013 | 1960–1961 | The Vostok 1 mission, making the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin the first human to cross into outer space. It was the first human spaceflight. |
Hidden Figures | 2016 | 1961 | The black female mathematicians who worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the Space Race |
K-19: The Widowmaker | 2002 | 1961, 1989 | Soviet submarine K-19 nuclear disaster |
Saving Mr. Banks | 2013 | 1961–1964 | Events surrounding the development of the film Mary Poppins |
JFK | 1991 | 1961–1966 | The assassination of President of the United States John F. Kennedy and subsequent investigation |
Thirteen Days | 2000 | 1962 | The Cuban Missile Crisis |
Z | 1969 | 1963 | The assassination of Grigoris Lambrakis |
All the Way (film) | 2016 | 1963–1965 | Lyndon Johnson becomes the President of the United States in the chaotic aftermath of John F. Kennedy's assassination and spends his first year in office fighting to pass the Civil Rights Act. |
LBJ (film) | 2016 | 1963–1969 | The story of U.S. President Lyndon Baines Johnson from his young days in West Texas to the White House. |
Catch Me If You Can | 2002 | 1963–1974 | The life of Frank Abagnale, a con artist and famous check forger. |
Ghosts of Mississippi | 1996 | 1963–1990 | Events surrounding the murder of NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers during the civil rights movement in Mississippi |
Mississippi Burning | 1988 | 1964 | The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation investigation into the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner |
The Doors | 1991 | 1964–1971 | Biopic about the 1960s–1970s rock band of the same name which emphasizes the life of its lead singer, Jim Morrison |
Selma (film) | 2014 | 1965 | Selma to Montgomery march in Alabama during the civil rights movement |
The Year of Living Dangerously | 1982 | 1965 | Set in Indonesia during the overthrow of President Sukarno |
1965 (film) | 2014 | 1963–1966 | Singapore in Malaysia, 1964 race riots in Singapore (Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation) and National Day of 1965 |
We Were Soldiers | 2002 | 1965 | The Battle of Ia Drang in the Vietnam War |
Born on the Fourth of July | 1989 | 1965–1968 | Ron Kovic's experiences in the Vietnam War |
Coming Home | 2014 | 1966–1976 | Cultural Revolution in China. |
Platoon | 1985 | 1967–1968 | Vietnam War |
Half of a Yellow Sun | 2013 | 1967 - 1970 | the Nigerian Civil War |
Detroit | 2017 | 1967 | The 12th Street Riot in Detroit, Michigan |
Bobby | 2006 | 1968 | The assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy |
Full Metal Jacket | 1987 | 1968 | Battle of Huế in the Vietnam War |
Coming Home | 1978 | 1968 | Vietnam War |
The Damned United | 2009 | 1968–1975 | Brian Clough as manager of Derby County and Leeds United |
American Gangster | 2007 | 1968–1976 | Frank Lucas and his heroin drug trade. |
The Deer Hunter | 1978 | 1968–1975 | Vietnam War |
Hamburger Hill | 1987 | 1969 | Battle of Hamburger Hill in the Vietnam War |
Apocalypse Now | 1979 | 1969 | Vietnam War |
Chappaquiddick (film) | 2017 | 1969 | Chronicles the untold story of Ted Kennedy and the Chappaquiddick Incident during July, 1969 |
Nixon | 1995 | 1969–1974 | The political life of President of the United States Richard M. Nixon |
Zodiac | 2007 | 1969–1975 | the Zodiac murders in Northern California |
City of God | 2002 | 1960 - 1980 | The growth of organized crime in the Cidade de Deus suburb of Rio de Janeiro |
Secretariat | 2010 | 1970–1973 | Race horse Secretariat. |
Dekada '70 (The 70s) | 2002 | 1970 | Based on the novel of the same name by Lualhati Bautista. The setting is period of Martial law during the Marcos Era |
Elvis & Nixon | 2016 | 1970 | The untold true story behind the meeting between Elvis Presley, the King of Rock 'n Roll, and President Richard Nixon, resulting in this revealing, yet humorous moment immortalized in the most requested photograph in the National Archives. |
Apollo 13 | 1995 | 1970 | Apollo 13 lunar mission |
Milk | 2008 | 1970–1978 | Gay rights activist Harvey Milk |
The Last King of Scotland | 2006 | 1971–1976 | President of Uganda Idi Amin |
Pirates of Silicon Valley | 1999 | 1971–1997 | Follows the growth of the personal computer industry through the lives of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs |
The Post | 2017 | 1971–
1972 |
Journalists from The Washington Post and The New York Times who published the Pentagon Papers regarding the covert involvement of the United States government during the Vietnam War. |
Bloody Sunday | 2002 | 1972 | Bloody Sunday shootings in Northern Ireland |
All the President's Men | 1976 | 1972 | The Nixon-era Watergate scandal |
Alive | 1993 | 1972 | Crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 |
Cry Freedom | 1987 | 1972–1978 | Steve Biko and Donald Woods in the apartheid era of South Africa |
Munich | 2005 | 1972–1979 | Mossad efforts to avenge the Munich massacre, the murder of Israeli athletes during the 1972 Summer Olympics |
All the Money in the World | 2017 | 1973 | The kidnapping of John Paul Getty III in July 1973. |
Missing | 1982 | 1973 | The 1973 Chilean coup d'état and the murder of Charles Horman |
Vinyl | 2016 | 1973 | The musical industry in 1973. |
The Killing Fields | 1984 | 1973–1979 | The Cambodian genocide under the Khmer Rouge regime |
Balibo | 2009 | 1975 | the Indonesian invasion of East Timor and the Balibo Five |
Raid on Entebbe | 1977 | 1976 | The July 1976 rescue of passengers from a hijacked plane |
Dazed and Confused | 1993 | 1976 | Based on Richard Linklater's life experiences. |
Frost/Nixon | 2008 | 1977 | the Frost-Nixon interviews |
Summer of Sam | 1999 | 1977 | The Son of Sam murders in New York City |
Romero | 1989 | 1977–1980 | The assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero at the height of the Salvadorian Civil War |
Boogie Nights | 1997 | 1977–1984 | The rise and fall of fictional pornographic film actor Dirk Diggler |
Gracie | 2007 | 1978 | Six years after the introduction of Title IX |
American Hustle | 2013 | 1978 | Abscam operation |
54 (film) | 1998 | 1979 | The last year of Studio 54 in New York City. |
Argo | 2012 | 1979–1980 | A portrayal of the CIA's role in the Canadian Caper. |
The 9th Company | 2005 | 1979–1989 | Young Soviet Army recruits are stuck in the bloody war in Afghanistan, that was started by politicians. |
Walesa: Man of Hope | 2013 | 1980–1989 | Portrayal of Polish labor leader Lech Walesa and the Solidarity Movement. |
Miracle | 2004 | 1980 | The United States men's national ice hockey team's gold medal victory at the 1980 Winter Olympics |
The Iron Lady (film) | 2011 | 1979 – 1990 | An elderly Margaret Thatcher talks to the imagined presence of her recently deceased husband as she struggles to come to terms with his death while scenes from her past life, from girlhood to British prime minister, intervene. |
The Reagans | 2003 | 1980–1989 | Legacy and career of Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy Reagan. |
Charlie Wilson's War | 2007 | 1980–1989 | CIA's covert involvement in the Soviet–Afghan War |
Goodbye Bafana | 2007 | 1980–1990 | Nelson Mandela's imprisonment |
Catch a Fire | 2006 | 1980–1994 | Set during the early 1980s concerning the plight of the ANC's military wing in the apartheid-era of South Africa |
Wonderland | 2003 | 1981 | Wonderland murders |
Hunger | 2008 | 1981 | 1981 Irish hunger strike (Part of the Cold War and The Troubles) |
An Ungentlemanly Act | 1992 | 1982 | The first days of the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands |
Tumbledown | 1988 | 1982 | Falklands War (Part of the Cold War and The Troubles) |
The Falklands Play | 2002 | 1980–1982 | Diplomacy leading up to and during the Falklands War |
Heartbreak Ridge | 1986 | 1983 | A hard-nosed, hard-living Marine gunnery sergeant clashes with his superiors and his ex-wife as he takes command of a spoiled recon platoon with a bad attitude. |
Steve Jobs (film) | 2015 | 1984–1998 | Covers fourteen years of Steve Jobs computing career |
Paid in Full | 2002 | 1985 | During the Crack epidemic of the 1980s |
Climber's High | 2008 | 1985 | Historical drama about Japan Airlines Flight 123 |
Shizumanu Taiyō | 2009 | 1985 | Historical drama about Japan Airlines Flight 123 |
Foxcatcher | 2014 | 1986–1996 | Wrestling coach John Eleuthère du Pont and Wrestlers Mark Schultz and Dave Schultz and the events of Foxcatcher farm in the lead up to, and following, the 1988 Summer Olympics. |
Straight Outta Compton (film) | 2015 | 1986–1996 | The story behind rap group, N.W.A |
Narcos | 2015 | 1989 | Pablo Escobar rules the Columbian Drug Cartels. |
Atomic Blonde | 2017 | 1989 | Spy thriller set in the days before, during and after the Fall of the Wall |
Jarhead | 2005 | 1989–1991 | Gulf War |
Three Kings | 1999 | 1991 | 1991 uprisings in Iraq against Saddam Hussein and aftermath of the Gulf War and the Dissolution of the Soviet Union |
The Perfect Storm | 2002 | 1991 | 1991 Perfect Storm |
Invictus | 2009 | 1991–1995 | Post-apartheid South Africa and the 1995 Rugby World Cup |
Snowtown | 2011 | 1992–1999 | Snowtown murders |
Black Hawk Down | 2001 | 1993 | The Battle of Mogadishu, Somali Civil War |
The Fighter | 2010 | 1993 | About boxer Micky Ward and his family |
Hotel Rwanda | 2004 | 1994 | Assassination of Juvénal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira and Rwandan Genocide |
Shooting Dogs | 2005 | 1994 | Rwandan Genocide |
Sometimes in April | 2005 | 1994 | Rwandan Genocide |
Shake Hands with the Devil | 2007 | 1994 | Rwandan Genocide |
The Special Relationship | 2010 | 1994–2001 | The United Kingdom–United States Special Relationship between Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair and President of the United States Bill Clinton |
Savior | 1998 | 1995 | During the Bosnian War in former Yugoslavia |
Behind Enemy Lines | 2001 | 1995 | the Mrkonjić Grad incident during the Bosnian War in former Yugoslavia |
The Queen | 2006 | 1997 | A fictional account of the immediate events following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales |
Open Water | 2004 | 1998 | Tom and Eileen Lonergan |
Blood Diamond | 2006 | 1999 | During the Sierra Leone Civil War |
Films set in Information Era (after 2000)
Title | Release date | Time period | Notes on setting |
---|---|---|---|
Spotlight | 2015 | 2001 | The Boston Globe's investigative story on the Sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic archdiocese of Boston and September 11 attacks |
World Trade Center | 2006 | 2001 | September 11 attacks |
W. | 2008 | 1966–2003 | The life and presidency of President of the United States George W. Bush |
Barry | 2016 | 1981–2009 | A look into the early life of U.S. President Barack Obama. |
United 93 | 2006 | 2001 | September 11 attacks |
House of Saddam | 2008 | 1979–2006 | A mini-series that explores the inner workings of Saddam Hussein's family and his relationship with his closest advisers. |
The Social Network | 2010 | 2003–2007 | The founding of the social networking service-website Facebook |
The Impossible | 2012 | 2004 | The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, from the viewpoint of a tourist family in Thailand |
The Hurt Locker | 2008 | 2004 | the Iraq War, just before the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami |
Lone Survivor | 2013 | 2005 | Based on the 2007 non-fiction book of the same name about Operation Red Wings by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson |
The Big Short | 2015 | 2005–2008 | Based on the 2010 book of the same name, about numerous financial experts who predict and proceed to take advantage of the 2008 financial meltdown |
The Fifth Estate | 2013 | 2007–2010 | About Julian Assange and the foundation of his news-leaking site WikiLeaks |
Too Big to Fail | 2011 | 2008 | The 2008 financial meltdown |
Captain Phillips | 2013 | 2009 | Kidnapping of merchant mariner Richard Phillips by Somalian pirates |
Deepwater Horizon | 2016 | 2010 | Deepwater Horizon explosion |
American Sniper | 2014 | 1998–2011 | Based on the 2012 memoir of former US Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle |
Zero Dark Thirty | 2012 | 2001–2012 | The finding and assassination of Osama Bin Laden |
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi | 2016 | 2012 | During an attack on a U.S. compound in Libya, a security team struggles to make sense out of the chaos. |
Patriots Day | 2016 | 2013 | Boston Marathon Bombing |
Operation Red Sea | 2018 | 2015 | The People's Liberation Army Navy entered the Yemeni Civil War and the International military intervention against ISIL. |
Donald Trump's The Art of the Deal: The Movie | 2016 | 1986–2016 | A satirical rendition of Donald J. Trump's 1987 best selling business book, The Art of the Deal. |
See also
- List of films based on actual events
- List of films based on Greco-Roman mythology
- List of Vietnamese historical period drama films
- List of films set in ancient Rome
- List of war films and TV specials
- List of World War II films
- Middle Ages in film
- Asian historical period drama films
- Historical period drama
References
- ↑ Albertz 2003, p. 69-70.
- ↑ The White Queen
- ↑ Dangerous Beauty
- ↑ "John Adams". Retrieved 3 March 2018 – via www.imdb.com.
Sources
- Albertz, Rainer (2003). Israel in Exile: The History and Literature of the Sixth Century B.C.E. Society of Biblical Literature. ISBN 9781589830554.
External links
- History on Film - A historian looks at how Hollywood has presented historical events in the films.
- Fraser, George McDonald, The Hollywood History of the World, from One Million Years B.C. to 'Apocalypse Now', London: M. Joseph, 1988; "First U.S. ed.", New York: Beech Tree Books, cop. 1988. Both eds. collate thus: xix, 268 p., amply ill. (b&w photos). ISBN 0-7181-2997-0 (U.K. ed.), 0-688-07520-7 (U.S. ed.)
- The Period-Drama Timeline listing costume dramas according to the year in which they are set.
- Enchanted Serenity of Period Films A fansite dedicated to period films.
- Period Movies and Dramas listings of period films and costume dramas according to various criteria (century, subject, alphabetical, directors, and actors).
- Recycled Movie Costumes Site dedicated to documenting costumes used in more than one film
- Frock Flicks Blog and podcast about costumes in historical costume movies and TV shows.
- Period Movies Box Blog with information on latest period movies, exciting facts and honest reviews.