We know; Sometimes delving into history can be a real feat. Many dates to remember, many events to relate to each other… and, above all, very little time to read about it all.
If you are really interested in learning history but you don’t have time, or if you are simply passionate about cinema, you will like to know that there are many films that narrate historical events or biographies of famous people, and they can be a good way to start. Let’s see what they are.
Movies that will make it easier for you to study history
We propose a list of 20 films that will help you better understand some historical moments, and with which you will learn history without hardly realizing it.
1. Pharaohby Jerzy Kawalerowicz (1966)
For many, the best film about ancient Egypt, despite the fact that the events it narrates take place under a fictitious reign (that of Ramses XIII, a pharaoh who never existed). However, the recreation of ancient Egyptian culture is so exquisite and accurate that it is worth viewing if you want to have a realistic image of how the men and women of Ancient Egypt lived, thought and dressed.
2. Alexander the Great (Alexander)by Oliver Stone (2004)
A biopic about the Macedonian king Alexander the Great, one of the greatest conquerors the world has ever known. Through Stone’s film, we will travel from the protagonist’s homeland to the ends of Asia, and all of this very well seasoned with a magnificent soundtrack by Vangelis.
3. Spartacus (Spartacus)by Stanley Kubrick (1960)
The historic slave revolt that put Rome in check, led by the Thracian Spartacus, made into a film by the brilliant Stanley Kubrick. The film, based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast, is a very correct recreation of Republican Rome in the years before the birth of Christ.
4. The Lion in winterby Anthony Harvey (1968)
Excellent English film that portrays the ins and outs of power in 12th century England, as well as the family quarrels between Richard the Lionheart, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and their children.
5. Alexander Nevskyby Sergei Eisenstein (1938)
This Soviet film presents the heroic resistance of the Novgorod Republic (in modern Russia) against the Teutonic Knights The action takes place in the Middle Ages (13th century), and constitutes a very interesting portrait of Eastern Europe at the time. Once again, the soundtrack enriches the whole, as it was composed by none other than Sergei Prokofiev.
6. The name of the rose (Der name der Rose)by Jean-Jacques Annaud (1986)
Although the story takes place in a fictional abbey and the story told is not real, this film, based on the extraordinary novel by Umberto Eco, perfectly reflects what life was like in a medieval monastery. It also offers a very accurate and realistic dissection of the thinking of the time, making it an excellent film to delve into the culture of the Middle Ages.
7. Joan of Arcby Luc Besson (1999)
Probably the most controversial of the filmed biographies of the French saint, since moves away from religious topics and, for the first time, he ventures the possibility that Juana suffered some disorder. In any case, and controversy aside, the film is a very good testimony of 15th century Europe and the chaos that the Hundred Years’ War entailed.
The best film to understand how the religious schism promoted by Henry VIII at the beginning of the 16th century originated and what it meant. The film focuses on the biography of Thomas Moore (Thomas More), an English humanist who opposed, first, the monarch’s divorce and, later, the change of faith that he wanted to establish.
9. Kagemusha (shadow of the warrior)(Kagemusha) by Akira Kurosawa (1980)
The always magnificent Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, author of the also excellent The seven samuraibrings us a drama set in feudal Japan ; specifically, in the Sengoku period (16th century). The film allows us to delve into the social reality of Japan at the time.
10. Cromwellby Ken Hughes (1970)
The film tells the life of Oliver Cromwell, a politician who led the Parliament of England during the English Revolution and Civil War. The film, which has a luxury cast, is an excellent way to immerse yourself in this crucial moment in English history.
eleven. Dantonby Andrzej Wajda (1983)
The last days of the revolutionary George-Jacques Danton, which focus above all on his antagonism with the bloodthirsty Robespierre. The film is exquisitely set and is of great help to recognize who is who in the darkest era of the French Revolution
12. waterlooby Sergei Bondarchuk (1970)
The great Soviet director takes the reins of this film, which narrates the last great defeat of General Bonaparte. For many critics, it is the best film to understand the decline and fall of the Gran Corso.
13. 12 years a slaveby Steve McQueen (2013)
A young free black man from the northern United States is made a slave, while the country is hopelessly approaching civil war. Essential film to know the reality of American slavery and the social and political context that triggered the Civil War.
14. Nicolás and Alejandra (Nicholas and Alexandra)by Franklin Schaffner (1971)
The love story between Tsar Nicholas II of Russia and Alix of Hesse, who became Empress Alexandra after her marriage. The film focuses on his intimate life, but does not leave aside the political and social events of the moment, such as hunger and misery, the disaster of the war with Japan or the disastrous influence of Rasputin on the imperial couple. Essential film to understand the stages that led to the Russian Revolution.
Very harsh allegation of the shipwreck that the crash of ’29 meant for many American families The film, based on the successful novel of the same name by John Steinbeck, narrates the adventures of the Joad family who, due to the prevailing crisis, must emigrate to California in search of a better life.
16. Schindler’s Listby Steven Spielberg (1993)
Possibly the most remembered of the films that revolve around the Jewish Holocaust. Oskar Schindler, a real person, rescued thousands of Jews from death; The film reflects the businessman’s story, with fictional touches of course, and reflects like no other all the horror that this episode of history entailed.
17. The holy innocentsby Mario Camus (1984)
One of the best testimonies of post-war Spain, The Holy Innocents makes an x-ray of Spanish rural society after the Civil War The film is based on the work of the same name by Miguel Delibes and perfectly shows the hunger, suffering and humiliation of humble people, subjected to the whims of the landowners.
18. The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen)by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (2006)
Excellent film that revolves around a spy for the Stasi, the Ministry for State Security of the defunct German Democratic Republic. The man must spy on a famous intellectual, and we see how, as the film progresses, his way of seeing the mission that has been entrusted to him evolves. In addition to being a beautiful human story, the film is a good testimony of the psychosis and horror with which the citizens lived.
19. Gandhiby Richard Attenborough (1982)
The story of Mahatma Gandhi, the pacifist leader of Indian independence. The film is a good way to delve not only into the biography of the leader, but also into the situation of colonial India immediately before independence
twenty. Hotel Rwandaby Terry George (2004)
Set during the Rwandan Civil War, the film reflects the ancient conflict between the Hutu ethnic group, which dominates the country, and the Tutsi. The film focuses on the story of businessman Paul Rusesabagina, who used his influence to save thousands of people, both Tutsis and Hutus, from the massacres that broke out in the country.
