A History in Film - BOT Top 50 Historical Fiction/Narrative Films - Counting Lists Now, Will Still Take A List Today

[The Panda]

5 Days or so until the deadline, get some lists together!

 

Excited for this list, because of all cinematic genres, I think this one quite possibly has the most depth in quality riches (as well as quite a bit of diversity in tones, styles, settings and periods).  

[The Panda]

Lists due in 3 Days!’

[The Panda]

2 hours ago, The Panda said:

Lists due in 3 Days!’

And some mass tagging.  Sorry if I miss somebody or tag somebody who isn't interested, just copied this mass tag from Jake's list.

 

@#ED @4815162342  @Plain Old Tele  @charlie Jatinder @tribefan695  @75Live @A Star is Orm @a2k @aabattery @ACSlater @AJG @Alpha @AndyLL @angeldelmito @Arlborn @Barnack @baumer @Biggestgeekever @Blaze Heatnix @boomboom234 @Boxofficerules @BoxOfficeFangrl @BoxOfficeZ @Brainbug @Captain Craig @CaptainJackSparrow @Catty @cdsacken @cax16 @Jedi Jat @chasmmi @ChD @Chewy @ChipMunky @CJohn @Claire of Themyscira @Cmasterclay @cookie @CoolioD1 @DAJK @darkelf @Darth Lehnsherr @Daxtreme @ddddeeee @DeeCee @Deja23 @EarlyDeadlinePredictions @Eevin @el sid @ElsaRoc @elcaballero @Empire @EmpireCity @Exxdee @Fancyarcher @FantasticBeasts @Films @Finnick @FlashMaster659 @franfar @Frozen @FrozenUnicorn @FrozenFan626 @Goffe @Gopher @grim22 @IceFire9yt @Inceptionzq @IronJimbo @Ithil @Jack Nevada @James @Jandrew @Jason @Jayhawk @JB33 @Jim Shorts @JimiQ @JJ-8 @justvision @K1stpierre @Kalderic @Kalo @kayumanggi @KeepItU25071906 @kitik @Krissykins @lilmac @Lion Roar @LonePirate @Lordmandeep @m3racer123 @Mattrek @MCKillswitch123 @Mekanos @Menor @Michael Gary Scott @Mike Hunt @misafeco @Morieris @MovieMan89 @Spaghetti @MrGlass2 @Ms Lady Hawk @Mulder @Napoleon @narniadis @Neo @Noctis @Nova @Olive @Ozymandias @peludo @Porthos @RandomCat @RealLyre @Rebeccas @reddevil18 @redfirebird2008 @RichWS @RobrtmanAStarWarsReference @Rorschach @rukaio101 @Sam @sfran43 @Shawn @Sheikh @ShouldIBeHere @SLAM! @Spidey Freak @TalismanRing @tawasal @terrestrial @Thanos Legion @That One Guy @The Fast and the Furiosa @ThiagoMaia @titanic2187 @TLK @TMP @Tower @tribefan695 @trifle @TwoMisfits @VanillaSkies @vc2002 @VenomXXR @ViewerAnon @Walt Disney @Water Bottle @Webslinger @Wrath @WrathOfHan @YourMother the Edgelord @ZeeSoh @Jake Gittes @Ethan Hunt @Cap @Eric

Edited May 1, 2020 by The Panda

[terrestrial]

@The Panda

 

I actually asked my son and husband today.

They named a few movies that got us discussing about how many years have to be between an event, or.... and the making of a film to count as historical? 

 

I guess bcs especially husband didn’t want to reduce some titles (of our private list here at home) he was for a 6-10y rule (even if he did kind of acknowledge that those are probably not really counting), as he loves some movies so much. I also think its because its so long ago for some of the movies he has seen (he grew up as at least some houses in Munich still were rubble after WWII), he feels about them time-wise in a not 100% realistic way.

 

What do you think privately?

 

[The Panda]

6 minutes ago, terrestrial said:

@The Panda

 

I actually asked my son and husband today.

They named a few movies that got us discussing about how many years have to be between an event, or.... and the making of a film to count as historical? 

 

I guess bcs especially husband didn’t want to reduce some titles (of our private list here at home) he was for a 6-10y rule (even if he did kind of acknowledge that those are probably not really counting), as he loves some movies so much. I also think its because its so long ago for some of the movies he has seen (he grew up as at least some houses in Munich still were rubble after WWII), he feels about them time-wise in a not 100% realistic way.

 

What do you think privately?

 

I mean the cut-off is fairly relative and arbitrary imo.  There should be some amount of distance but I’m not sure you could get a consensus on the exact distance required for a film to be considered “historical”.

 

We’re just going with the bare minimum distance of ~5 years or so from the central event of the film and the release date.  But it is definitely a fair point that 5 years could be much to close to truly be retrospective and fall in the realm of current events.  

[terrestrial]

3 minutes ago, The Panda said:

I mean the cut-off is fairly relative and arbitrary imo.  There should be some amount of distance but I’m not sure you could get a consensus on the exact distance required for a film to be considered “historical”.

 

We’re just going with the bare minimum distance of ~5 years or so from the central event of the film and the release date.  But it is definitely a fair point that 5 years could be much to close to truly be retrospective and fall in the realm of current events.  

 

To me its a generation or after a big change of perspective in a country, like if a movie was filmed in Germany only some years after WWII the way it shows the time during the war way more accurate, and how to judge the behavior of the characters will be a very much other one in comparison to propaganda filled German movies during WWII.

But if there was no big shift, like e.g. 1944 movie ‘The Seventh Cross’ wont show much difference to a movie made e.g. only 6 years later, it seems less right to add it on such a historical list.

 

[terrestrial]

FYC

 

1959 (in the US 1961), by Bernhard Wicki

 

 

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052654/

 

[The Panda]

2 minutes ago, terrestrial said:

 

To me its a generation or after a big change of perspective in a country, like if a movie was filmed in Germany only some years after WWII the way it shows the time during the war way more accurate, and how to judge the behavior of the characters will be a very much other one in comparison to propaganda filled German movies during WWII.

But if there was no big shift, like e.g. 1944 movie ‘The Seventh Cross’ wont show much difference to a movie made e.g. only 6 years later, it seems less right to add it on such a historical list.

 

This is another reason why the cut-off is fairly arbitrary.  All the President's Men for example is very close to its event but it portrays Watergate in accurate detail.  Where that cut off should be does seem like a case by case basis (and some movies like Casablanca which have historical power, such as its usage to try and convince Americans at that time to support the War Effort).  Id our relative 5 year distance cut off is just maintain some amount of minimal standard, and after that it can be the personal judgement of each user what they think should qualify for their list, and that should weed out many of the questionable cases by sheer fact that not enough people would vote for them (in theory).

[terrestrial]

1 hour ago, The Panda said:

This is another reason why the cut-off is fairly arbitrary.  All the President's Men for example is very close to its event but it portrays Watergate in accurate detail.  Where that cut off should be does seem like a case by case basis (and some movies like Casablanca which have historical power, such as its usage to try and convince Americans at that time to support the War Effort).  Id our relative 5 year distance cut off is just maintain some amount of minimal standard, and after that it can be the personal judgement of each user what they think should qualify for their list, and that should weed out many of the questionable cases by sheer fact that not enough people would vote for them (in theory).

 

Thank you 🥰

I do understand the way its handled here for the lists, it was only how I‘d handle it privately, how I’d handle it before or outside this list.

I added a few movies to my ‘collect titles to later try to rank them’ list that I’d usually would not include, but I find fascinating for one reason or the other. Including one that might not match, but I kinda like for the ‘fantasy it would be nice if something like that would have had happen’ (you’ll see)

 

[terrestrial]

Not ranked yet, I know I forgot some, already a few too many,... 

 

some might find the release years helpful

 

edit to add MASH

 

Quote

Spartacus (1960)

 

The Lion in Winter (1968)

 

Becket (1964)

 

MASH (1970)

 

The Man Who would be King (1975)

 

Zulu (1964)

 

The Third Man (1949)

 

Judgement at Nuremberg (1961)

 

The Duellists (1977)

 

Master and Commander (2003)

 

Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. (1951)

 

All Quiet at the Western Front (1930)

 

Laurence of Arabia (1962)

 

The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

 

Die Brücke (1959)

 

Das Boot (1981)

 

The Right Stuff (1983)

 

Cleopatra (1963)

 

The Guns of Navarone (1961)

 

Zodiac (2007)

 

Seven Samurai (1954)

 

Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

 

Waterloo (1970)

 

A Bridge Too Far (1977)

 

Schindler‘s List (1993)

 

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

 

Kingdom of Heaven (2005) (director’s cut)

 

The Longest Day (1962)

 

The Great Escape (1963)

 

Apollo 13 (1995)

 

Gandhi (1982)

 

Queen Christina (1933)

 

The Private Live of Henry VIII. (1933)

 

JFK (1991)

 

The Untouchables (1987)

 

Platoon (1986)

 

Salvador (1986)

 

The Doors (1991)

 

Cabaret (1972)

 

Les  Miserables (1935)

Les  Miserables (1998)

Les  Miserables (2012)

 

A Man for All Seasons (1966) (Thomas More)

 

Quo Vadis (1951)

 

Gladiator (2000)

 

Dances with Wolves (1990)

 

Last of the Mohicans (1992)

 

Last of the Dogmen (1995) (not the best film of the world, but I‘d love for a tribe to have escaped like e.g. that, kind of the fantastical hearty opposite of the Last of the Mohicans, or simple more  ‘current’ version of Dances with Wolves)

 

 

Troy (2004) (slightly above 55 Days....)

 

55 Days at Peking (Boxer Rebellion 1898-1900) (1963) (rating ~ middle ground)

 

The Hurt Locker (2008)

 

A Beautiful Mind (2001)

 

The King‘s Speech (2010)

 

Black Hawk Down (2001)

 

Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

Mutiny on the Bounty (1962)

Mutiny on the Bounty (1984)

 

Mask (1985)

 

The Big Red One (1980)

 

Where Eagles Dare (1968)  

 

Missing (1982) 

 

Inherit the Wind (1960) 

 

Frida (2002)

 

Throne of Blood (1957)

 

Honorable mentions:

All the President’s Men (1976) - because I show it in my Media subject to my pupils, and I feel like they get the time then a lot better than per history books or docus.

Z (1969) by Costa-Garvas sadly too time-near, but a probably good general snap-shot

 

Wrath of Gods (2006) = 42 minutes documentary about making a film where a lot of unplanned things happened, incl nature was a bit unpredictable. The exhaustion of the lead, who was too tired to stop speaking (yes, that can happen), the frustration,... to me interesting. Docu better than the film/movie.

 

(nearly) every Macbeth version I know, and yes, that includes the Kurosawa version listed (I am aware about the mixed source materials, but think it does reflect some interesting insight in past times) 

 

TV movies, mini-series, TV movie series:

Les Miserables (1978)

I, Claudius (1976) (Derek Jacobi as Claudius)

Sharpe movies (Sean Bean as Rifleman Richard Sharpe)

Horatio Hornblower movies (Ioan Gruffudd as HH)

Au nom de tous les miens (Michael York as Martin Gray, 40y old)

 

Edited May 2, 2020 by terrestrial
1978, and not 1078, also added dir. cut for KoH

[el sid]

That's fun!
But sometimes I'm not sure: Forrest Gump should be allowed then, no? And what about Gorky Park (1983) which like Doctor Zhivago draws a picture of an era but is also (maybe too much) a crime film/thriller?
And finally, is First Blood (1982) allowed? It has fictional figures but OTOH the Vietnam war is portrayed, better said the repercussions, e.g. the traumatisation and the problems to reintegrate into a normal life?

Edited May 2, 2020 by el sid

[terrestrial]

43 minutes ago, el sid said:

That's fun!
But sometimes I'm not sure: Forrest Gump should be allowed then, no? And what about Gorky Park (1983) which like Doctor Zhivago draws a picture of an era but is also (maybe too much) a crime film/thriller?
And finally, is First Blood (1982) allowed? It has fictional figures but OTOH the Vietnam war is portrayed, better said the repercussions, e.g. the traumatisation and the problems to reintegrate into a normal life?

Gorky Park, is that the one who had

Spoiler

snow plows

in it?

 

Title sounds very familiar, summary at IMDb does not ring the bell enough to remember

 

[el sid]

23 minutes ago, terrestrial said:

Gorky Park, is that the one who had

  Hide contents

snow plows

in it?

 

Title sounds very familiar, summary at IMDb does not ring the bell enough to remember

 

I don't remember snow plows but it shows a lot of snow .
It's based on a book of Martin Cruz Smith. The setting is (partly) in Moscow during the Soviet era and the police inspector Arkadi Renko has to deal with murders that make bigger circles than wished. Renko's love interest is a young woman, Irina, who is involved in the murder case and also has had her experiences with the regime. Maybe you remember some animals, sables at the end? 
The book is very good to read, picturesque and exciting. 

Edited May 2, 2020 by el sid

[terrestrial]

1 hour ago, el sid said:

I don't remember snow plows but it shows a lot of snow .
It's based on a book of Martin Cruz Smith. The setting is (partly) in Moscow during the Soviet era and the police inspector Arkadi Renko has to deal with murders that make bigger circles than wished. Renko's love interest is a young woman, Irina, who is involved in the murder case and also has had her experiences with the regime. Maybe you remember some animals, sables at the end? 
The book is very good to read, picturesque and exciting. 

I‘ve seen several movies with crimes, politic involved, snow and set in Russia, that is one of the reasons why I always get them mixed up. I am pretty sure I have seen Gorky Park, but not sure if it is the movie I first think about when hearing/reading the title (I am known to mix up titles, books and movies alike).

The scene I have in mind involves a snow plow as a murder weapon or a method to cover up a murder, like construing it looking like an accident, I forgot the details.

 

[el sid]

51 minutes ago, terrestrial said:

I‘ve seen several movies with crimes, politic involved, snow and set in Russia, that is one of the reasons why I always get them mixed up. I am pretty sure I have seen Gorky Park, but not sure if it is the movie I first think about when hearing/reading the title (I am known to mix up titles, books and movies alike).

The scene I have in mind involves a snow plow as a murder weapon or a method to cover up a murder, like construing it looking like an accident, I forgot the details.

 

Same here with the old cold war spy films. I always remember a bridge where they meet but do not know in which film it was .
Probably you have seen it once. Here the three victims at the beginning are intentionally unrecognizable and found because it thaws.

[The Panda]

3 hours ago, el sid said:

That's fun!
But sometimes I'm not sure: Forrest Gump should be allowed then, no? And what about Gorky Park (1983) which like Doctor Zhivago draws a picture of an era but is also (maybe too much) a crime film/thriller?
And finally, is First Blood (1982) allowed? It has fictional figures but OTOH the Vietnam war is portrayed, better said the repercussions, e.g. the traumatisation and the problems to reintegrate into a normal life?

Overall, just use your own judgement, but there’s plenty of guidelines listed throughout the thread you can reference!

[Fancyarcher]

My final list.

 

1. Lawrence of Arabia 
2. Doctor Zhivago
3. Schindler’s List
4. The Grapes of Wrath
5. Come and See 
6. Ran
7. Grave of The Fireflies
8. Goodfellas 
9. Seven Samurai 
10. The Right Stuff 
11. Amadeus 
12. Aguirre, The Wrath of God
13. Harakiri 
14. Letters From Iwo Jima
15. All Quiet on The Western Front
16. Life of Brian 
17. The Social Network
18. Ivan’s Childhood
19. The Age of Innocence 
20. Saving Private Ryan
21. Malcolm X
22. City of God 
23. Singin in The Rain 
24. Lincoln 
25. The Conformist 
26. 12 Years A Slave
27. Catch Me If You Can
28. Master and Commander: The Far-Side of the World 
29. Ugetsu 
30. Bridge of Spies 
31. Unforgiven 
32. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp 
33. Avalon
34. Raise The Red Lantern 
35. Sounder 
36. Throne of Blood 
37. Alexander Nevsky 
38. The Private Life of Henry VII
39. The Lion in Winter 

40. JFK
41. Gladiator 
42. Dunkirk 
43. Silence 
44. Ivan The Terrible 
45. 1776 
46. Hero
47. Kingdom of Heaven 
48. Spartacus
49. Tora! Tora! Tora!
50. The Gold Rush 

[The Panda]

9 minutes ago, Fancyarcher said:

My final list.

 

1. Lawrence of Arabia 
2. Doctor Zhivago
3. Schindler’s List
4. The Grapes of Wrath
5. Come and See 
6. Ran
7. Grave of The Fireflies
8. Goodfellas 
9. Seven Samurai 
10. The Right Stuff 
11. Amadeus 
12. Aguirre, The Wrath of God
13. Harakiri 
14. Letters From Iwo Jima
15. All Quiet on The Western Front
16. Life of Brian 
17. The Social Network
18. Ivan’s Childhood
19. The Age of Innocence 
20. Saving Private Ryan
21. Malcolm X
22. City of God 
23. Singin in The Rain 
24. Lincoln 
25. The Conformist 
26. 12 Years A Slave
27. Catch Me If You Can
28. Master and Commander: The Far-Side of the World 
29. Ugetsu 
30. Bridge of Spies 
31. Unforgiven 
32. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp 
33. Avalon
34. Raise The Red Lantern 
35. Sounder 
36. Throne of Blood 
37. Alexander Nevsky 
38. The Private Life of Henry VII
39. The Lion in Winter 

40. JFK
41. Gladiator 
42. Dunkirk 
43. Silence 
44. Ivan The Terrible 
45. 1776 
46. Hero
47. Kingdom of Heaven 
48. Spartacus
49. Tora! Tora! Tora!
50. The Gold Rush 

Could you also pm it to me?  Thanks!

[The Panda]

On 4/22/2020 at 4:05 PM, The Panda said:

My list!

 

1.       Schindler’s List

2.       Silence

3.       Lawrence of Arabia

4.       The Battle of Algiers

5.       Ran

6.       The Grapes of Wrath

7.       Apocalypse Now

8.       Aguirre, The Wrath of God

9.       The Lion in Winter (1968)

10.   The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

11.   Das Boot

12.   City of God

13.   All Quiet on the Western Front

14.   The Last Temptation of Christ

15.   Judgement at Nuremberg

16.   Pan’s Labyrinth

17.   Quest for Fire

18.   Kundun

19.   Doctor Zhivago

20.  The Sound of Music

21.   Life of Brian

22.   Seven Samurai

23.   The Last of the Mohicans

24.   Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

25.   The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

26.   12 Years a Slave

27.   Alexander Nevsky

28.   The Grave of the Fireflies

29.   Come and See

30.   The Last King of Scotland

31.   Letters from Iwo Jima

32.   Gladiator

33.   The Big Short

34.   The Madness of King George

35.   There Will Be Blood

36.   Barry Lyndon

37.   Lincoln

38.   Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India

39.   The Revenant

40.   The Immigrant

41.   The Message (1976)

42.   House of the Flying Daggers

43.   Dunkirk

44.   The Right Stuff

45.   BlacKkKlansman

46.   Amadeus

47.   Mongol (2007)

48.   Hero

49.   Hotel Rwanda

50.   Gandhi

Edited my list to add The Sound of Music

Edited May 2, 2020 by The Panda

[Fancyarcher]

28 minutes ago, The Panda said:

Could you also pm it to me?  Thanks!

Will do.