Movies are not the best source of information about historical events. Indeed, each screenwriter and director, for the sake of fashion and entertainment, offers his own version of what happened centuries or even millennia ago. However, regardless of the credibility, some films are recognized masterpieces, and they are definitely worth a look. We bring to your attention the top 10 best historical films.
"Spartacus"
This work of the famous director Stanley Kubrick is a classic of the peplum genre and, of course, is worthy of being included in the top of the best historical films.
The picture "Spartak", released in 1960, and today looks in one breath. This is a great merit of such great actors as Kirk Douglas, Gene Simmons, Lawrence Olivier, Peter Ustinov and others. She also received recognition from film critics, becoming the winner of the Golden Globe as the best film of the year, as well as 4 Oscars .
The film tells about the events that took place in Ancient Rome 73 years before the birth of Christ. A captured Thracian warrior named Spartacus enters a school for gladiators. There he meets the slave Varin. Once, the consul Mark Licinius Crassus comes to visit the owner of Spartak. He orders a fatal fight and kills one of its participants. After the fight, Spartacus learns that Crassus bought Varia and took it with him. Wanting to avenge the murdered comrade and return his beloved, the gladiator raises a riot and escapes with other slaves to Vesuvius. Once Varinia comes to him, who managed to escape from Crassus. The news of the revolt of the gladiators reaches all corners of the empire. Runaway slaves join Spartacus, and he leads his army against Rome. After the defeat of the rebels, Crassus orders the crucifixion of Spartacus, but Varinia and their baby manage to escape.
"War and Peace"
Composing the top of the best historical films, one cannot fail to take in it one of the places of honor to the most famous painting of Sergei Bondarchuk. This cinema epic, consisting of 4 parts, is the most detailed adaptation of the novel of the same name by Leo Tolstoy.
Soviet movie stars Lyudmila Savelyeva, Sergey Bondarchuk, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Irina Skobtseva, Anastasia Vertinskaya, Oleg Efremov, Vladislav Strzhelchik, Vasily Lanovoi and others starred in it.
The main task posed by Goskino to the director Bondarchuk was to prove to the whole world that Soviet cinema is not inferior to Western cinema, and the filmmakers coped with it with honor. This is evidenced by the Oscar, which in 1968 this film work was awarded in the nomination "Best Film in a Foreign Language".
Cleopatra
Peplum, filmed by director Joseph Mankevich in 1963, went down in history as one of the most expensive. His decoration was an acting trio: Richard Burton, Rex Harrison and Elizabeth Taylor. The picture received 4 Oscars, but became one of the most notorious rolling failures in the history of cinema. Be that as it may, she is worthy of entering the top 10 best historical films.
The picture tells how Caesar, who arrived in Alexandria to destroy the commander Pompey, is involved in a dynastic conflict. Co-ruler of Egypt Cleopatra manages to enlist the support of the Roman. She becomes his mistress and gives birth to his son. Caesar returns to Rome and invites Cleopatra to come there. The Egyptian queen arrives in the capital of the empire, arranging her arrival with such splendor that it causes indignation at the Senate. When the conspirators kill Caesar, Cleopatra and Caesarion return to Egypt, fearing for the boy’s life.
After some time, Mark Anthony arrives there. He concludes a political and love affair with the queen. Consul Octavian demands that Anthony break with Cleopatra. He refuses and engages in an armed struggle with Rome. After the defeat, he, deciding that Cleopatra escaped, stabs himself with a sword. The Queen meets Octavian and sees his son’s ring. Realizing that Caesarion was killed, and learning about the death of Mark Anthony, Cleopatra dies, putting his hand in the basket with a poisonous snake.
"Joan of Arc"
Another picture without which one cannot imagine the top of the best historical films is the large-scale drama of Luc Besson with Mila Jovovich in the title role.
The film takes place in the 15th century in France, whose population suffers from the hardships of the Hundred Years War. 19-year-old peasant Jeanne sees the sign of God and goes to Dauphin Karl to ask for an army to expel the British. At the head of the army, she fights with the enemy and saves Orleans. Karl becomes king, but instead of thanking Jeanne, he orders to close the gate in front of her. So because of the betrayal of the monarch, the girl is captured by the British. She is accused of heresy and burned at the stake.
"Alexander"
In 2004, director Oliver Stone shot a picture that immediately entered the top of the best historical films of recent decades. The film “Alexander”, in which the main roles were played by Colleen Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins, Val Kilmer and other Hollywood stars, tells about the short life of the greatest commander of all time.
The narration is conducted on behalf of a friend of the protagonist - Ptolemy, who settled in Egypt. He tells about how Alexander grew up and was husband, how he created his immense empire and how he was overtaken by death during the last battle in India.
"Elizabeth"
The top best historical films usually include the work of British director Shekhar Kapoor with Australian actress Cate Blanchett as one of the most famous queens of the Middle Ages. The picture received one Oscar, several BAFTA and Golden Globe awards. In addition to the Cate Blanchett, the movie was played by Joseph Fiennes, Richard Attenborough, Jeffrey Rush, Fanny Ardan and other famous actors.
"Gone With the Wind"
This picture simply cannot but enter the top of the best historical films of all time.
Gone With the Wind is a gorgeous adaptation of Margaret Mitchell’s novel of the same name, telling about the touching fate of the brave, cheerful Cheerleader against the backdrop of the American Civil War. The picture became the winner of 10 Oscars and earned worldwide recognition.
"Battleship Potemkin"
This "silent" picture of Sergei Eisenstein, shot in 1925, has been repeatedly recognized as the best film of all time. And to this day, it is studied in most universities around the world, where they teach directorial skills.
A. Antonov, V. Barsky, G. Alexandrov and I. Bobrov starred in the film, which is worthy to head any of the top 100 best historical films.
This work of Soviet filmmakers won a prize at the 1926 World's Fair in Paris. It is noteworthy that the musical accompaniment for the film was written by Edmund Meisel and Dmitry Shostakovich.
"Andrei Rublev"
The famous work of Andrei Tarkovsky tells about the life of the people of Russia in the 15th century. It consists of short stories, which are cases witnessed by the icon painter Andrei Rublev.
The film starred I. Lapikov, N. Burlyaev and N. Grinko.
The film is notable for the fact that it displayed the theme of Orthodoxy, which was a very bold step for the Soviet period.
"Kingdom of heaven"
This picture of Ridley Scott tells about the events that took place in Jerusalem and its environs at the end of the 12th century. O. Bloom, E. Green, L. Neeson, J. Irons, E. Norton starred in the film.
According to the plot of the picture, Baron Gottfried tells the blacksmith Balian that he is his father. He calls his son to his place in Palestine, where the Crusader Knights founded their kingdom. Gottfried dies on the way to Jerusalem, but declares Balian his heir and knight. In Palestine, the newly minted baron meets Queen Sibylla. He has to constantly make a choice between his desires and the requirements of knightly honor. Meanwhile, a conflict erupts between the crusaders and the Sultan of Egypt, Salah ad-Din, in which Balian has an important role to play.
Top best historical films of 2016 and 2017
In the past two years, several films have been released that tell about events that took place centuries or decades ago. The best ones are movies:
- "Anthropoid" by Sean Ellis about the Nazi criminal Reinhard Heydrich.
- "The Birth of a Nation" by Nate Parker, who talks about one of the uprisings of African slaves in the United States in the early 19th century.
- “Operation Chromite,” about General Douglas MacArthur.
- "Paradise", directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, about a Russian immigrant who during the war became a member of the French Resistance movement.
- “King's Choice” is a film about how the King of Norway, who all his life performed only the symbolic role of the head of the nation, has to face the need to decide whether to capitulate or not to fascist Germany.