The best and worst of historic films

[Llopin]

So, in your opinion, what films portray better the history? I mean, if you had to choose one film for each period of time (for example, WW2, Roman Empire, etc), which ones would you choose? Being based of course on their proximity to that time. Here are some that I thought about:

WW1: Paths of Glory
WW2: Patton
Ancient Japan: Rashomon
Vietnam: Apocalypse Now
Civil War: Glory

[WaffenSS]

WW1: All quiet on the Western Front
WW2: Das Boot, The Eagle Has Landed
Vietnam: Full Metal Jacket, Apacolypse Now, Platoon
Recent Conflicts: Black Hawk Down

This is off the top of my head, I will change it if I remember any good films for an ERa.

[PrtVeela]

Civil War: Glory
Gettysburg

Vietnam: Platoon

(will think of more....hopefully)

[Llopin]

Vietnam has got many good films, bu the best one in my opinion is Apocalypse Now. This one showed the real confusion and horror of that war. Platoon is a close second, as it has also got memorable moments (the battle at the end is just excellent). But there are also other great films like Full Metal Jacket or Deer Hunter.

[snitchseeker86]

Although it's not completely accurate, I love Braveheart. And The Patriot is incredible. And, of course, Patton is a classic.

[Sherlock Holmes]

Rome: Not especially accurate, but Gladiator was an excellent movie.

Medieval: Braveheart is fun, but no, not especially accurate.

Revolution: Ditto for Patriot

U.S. Civil War: Gettysburg, Glory

World War I: Lost Battalion, shoot...one about an American sharpshooter who won the Medal of Honor. Can't think of the title...

World War II: So many... Saving Private Ryan, Midway, Tora, Tora, Tora, Pearl Harbor (minus the romance and the Doolittle raid), Ike has some good parts, Patton, The Battle of Britain.

Vietnam: We Were Soldiers...haven't seen most of the others.

Recent wars: Yeah, Black Hawk Down is good. Chilling, really...

[Student of Socrates]

Medieval: Henry V

Civil War: Most definately Glory :bigtu:

WWI probably the trench, the lost platoon

WWII, The Longest Day, Dam Busters, Enemy at the Gates,Stalingrad. The List is endless.

Vietnam: for effect definately Apocalypse Now, But for sheer entertaiment value Good Morning Vietnam



Although this topic seems to commenting on war films, I feel that one film must be mentioned Schindler's List IMO probably the best film ever made.

[Llopin]

Actually I think that the war that has got more films is WW2. Here are my favourites: Patton, A Bridge Too Far, Saving Private Ryan, The Longest Day, The Great Escape, Das Boot, Tora! Tora! Tora!, The bridge over the River Kwai, and a long etc.

Glory is the ultimate Civil War film. Gettysburg is good but lacks the excitement of the other film (in my opinion). I haven't seen any other movie concerning this war.

[Auror Williamson]

God's and Generals... I read the book three years before it came out.

Gettysburg... Read the book (Killer Angels)

Braveheart

Saving Private Ryan

The Lost Battalion

Band of Brothers

[Morgoth]

WW1:
- All Quiet on the Western Front
- The Dawn Patrol

WW2:
- They Were Expendable,
- The Colditz Story
- Black Rain
- Das Boot
- Tora! Tora! Tora!
- Saving Private Ryan (watch The Fighting Sullivans to see where Spielberg got his inspiration for 'Ryan)
- Schindler's List
- Enemy at the Gates
- The Guns of Navarone
- The Dirty Dozen

Korea
- Retreat, Hell
- MacArthur

Vietnam
- The Deer Hunter
- Apocalypse Now
- The Killing Fields
- Full Metal Jacket
- Good Morning, Vietnam
- We Were Soldiers

Recent
- Black Hawk Down

[praisequeenfreddie]

I am going to have to go with "Tora, Tora, Tora", "Patton", "Schindler's List" , "Its a Beautiful Life" and "Glory."

"Its a Beautiful Life" is not really a War Movie but was still powerful in my mind. It was more of a family relationships movie and most of what the father did would not have been allowed but I still think the movie was one of the most moving movies I have ever seen based on a historical time or event. It was worth it to read the sub-titles for a couple hours. I still think you would have gotten the general idea if you skipped the sub-titles.:'( :clappy:

[Llopin]

Well there are some Historic films that aren't totally war films. Good examples would be Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful, The Pianist, etc. Remember I asked Historic films, not only war films.

Good choices Morgoth

[Crashcatto]

Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful, and Glory are all awesome movies. It funny though, I've seen them all in school.

When you say historical, are you talking about films based on fact or would period films count, like Gladiator?(which I didn't like, just using it for an example)

[Llopin]

Well, I meant films that portrayed a period of time in a convincent way, but not that they happened really. Gladiator is a good example of this type.

[Mad Macca]

Gallipoli was a good war movie, it was accurate with the battle at the Nec.
There is meant to be a really good mini-series on Vietnam from Australia's perspective lying in the video cupboard which I have yet to finish. And Black Hawk Down was great.

[Sherlock Holmes]

To add to my previous list, the Horatio Hornblower movies from A&E are very good, set in the Napoleonic Wars. So are the Sharp movies (Sharp's Rangers, Sharp's etc etc etc.... There's a dozen or more.), which are set in the Hundred Days.

[Bhodi]

Originally posted by Llopin (original post)
Well there are some Historic films that aren't totally war films. Good examples would be Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful, The Pianist, etc. Remember I asked Historic films, not only war films.

Good choices Morgoth

How about Amadeus as a period film? Or Amistad? A Man for All Seasons? Apollo13 (a slice of recent history)? Eight Men Out and Brian's Song (if we're including sports history)? The Untouchables? Guilty by Suspicion? Awakenings? Lawrence of Arabia (yes, a war film, but interesting look at the middle east entering the modern period)? The Last Emperor? The Last Temptation of Christ (for an interesting and rather controversial interpretation of his life)? Ghandi? Ben Hur? Citizen Kane (true, he's a fictional character, but he was patterned after WR Hearst)? The Spirit of St. Louis? All the President's Men? Dances With Wolves (not a true story, but gives a nice depiction of the lives of Plains Indians prior to the Indian wars and their removal to reservations)? Gone With the Wind (again, fiction, but classic period film)? Rob Roy? The Diary of Anne Frank?

Doggone it! I could probably do this all day... There's just too many good historical/period films...

[Llopin]

All those are indeed historic films, although some of them weren't real - but they're still period movies.

[Mr Ollivander 382]

''Ghandi'' .... learn a bit about the gratist Indian ever lived

''Lawrance Of Arabia'' .... learn about the Arab revolt against the Othomans in WWI

''Elizabeth'' .... learn how England became a Protestant nation

''Stalin'' .... learn how a maniac killed the dream of a noble revolution .

''JFK'' .... learn some interesting facts about what happened in Dalas 1963

''Cromwell'' ... learn about the English civil war , and how England became briefly a republic

''To Kill a King'' ... also about the English civil war and the events leading to King Charls I execution

''Waterloo'' ... learn how Napoleon was finally stopped in 1815 by Wellington

''The maddness of King George'' ... learn how a England coped with a crazy king for 10 months

''Kundun'' ... learn more about Tibet and the life story of the 14th Dalai Lama , beautiful scenery .


well , I might come back with more ...........


.

[Weatherby]

I thought The Killing Fields was an interesting look at the Cambodian civil war and The Truce for right after WW2 when the Auschwitz victims were released. They had a hard time getting people to believe it really happened.