Best Films Based on Historical Events of the 20th Century
by Cinematte | created - 22 Jul 2013 | updated - 25 Jul 2014 | PublicI tried to form this list about people who lost their lives because of taken decisions containing benefits of the opposite side.
I hope -having conscience while making a decision- can prevent all these events ended up with a great tragedy. Not to forget what happened may be another way of preventing.
I chose one film for each event had happened in history.When there is more than one movie related about one event, i preferred the anti-violence one. For example, because of its being an anti-war film, Full Metal Jacket(1987) is preferred than Apocalypse Now(1979) for the event of Vietnam War.
I also added movies about notable persons that led (their) nations on the way of gaining their independence.
The films are listed in chronological order had occurred in history.The time period of the events are shown under the each movie.
My other lists:
Best Drama Films: Based(Inspired) On a True Story From Each Country:
Most Rewatchable Movies:
Most Beautiful Actresses:
Best Thriller/Horror Movies since 1990:
Less Known Most Amazing Films:
Must See Movies Before You Die with Selected Quotes:
Best Actors::
All your Comments & 'Likes' are much appreciated!
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1. Paths of Glory (1957)
Approved | 88 min | Drama, War
After a failed attack on a German position, a general orders three soldiers, chosen at random, court-martialed for cowardice and their commanding officer must defend them.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker, Adolphe Menjou, George Macready
Votes: 212,473
1914-1918
2. The Lark Farm (2007)
Not Rated | 122 min | Drama, History
A stirring and stunning story of an aristocratic family who is unexpectedly swept into the ravages of World War I and a forbidden passion that may be the family's only hope.
Directors: Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani | Stars: Paz Vega, Moritz Bleibtreu, Alessandro Preziosi, Ángela Molina
Votes: 2,327
1915
3. Michael Collins (1996)
R | 133 min | Biography, Drama, Thriller
Neil Jordan's historical biopic of Irish revolutionary Michael Collins, the man who led a guerrilla war against the UK, helped negotiate the creation of the Irish Free State, and led the National Army during the Irish Civil War.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Julia Roberts, Ian Hart
Votes: 33,777 | Gross: $11.09M
1920
4. The Flowers of War (2011)
R | 146 min | Drama, History, Romance
An American finds refuge during the 1937 Japanese invasion of Nanking in a church with a group of women. Posing as a priest, he attempts to lead the women to safety.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang, Tianyuan Huang
Votes: 55,746 | Gross: $0.01M
1937 Related about the same event, The Children of Huang Shi (2008) is also recommendable!
5. The Pianist (2002)
R | 150 min | Biography, Drama, Music
During WWII, acclaimed Polish musician Wladyslaw faces various struggles as he loses contact with his family. As the situation worsens, he hides in the ruins of Warsaw in order to survive.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Emilia Fox
Votes: 913,356 | Gross: $32.57M
1939-1945
6. Downfall (2004)
R | 156 min | Biography, Drama, History
Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel | Stars: Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara, Ulrich Matthes, Juliane Köhler
Votes: 375,471 | Gross: $5.51M
1939-1945
7. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013)
PG-13 | 141 min | Biography, Drama, History
A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.
Director: Justin Chadwick | Stars: Idris Elba, Naomie Harris, Terry Pheto, Robert Hobbs
Votes: 29,202 | Gross: $8.32M
1946
8. Gandhi (1982)
PG | 191 min | Biography, Drama, History
The life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest.
Director: Richard Attenborough | Stars: Ben Kingsley, John Gielgud, Rohini Hattangadi, Roshan Seth
Votes: 240,270 | Gross: $52.77M
1947
9. Seven Years in Tibet (1997)
PG-13 | 136 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
Heinrich Harrer, an Austrian climber, breaks out of prison and travels to the holy city of Lhasa. He is employed as an instructor to the 14th Dalai Lama and soon becomes his close confidante.
Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud | Stars: Brad Pitt, David Thewlis, BD Wong, Mako
Votes: 156,072 | Gross: $37.96M
1950
10. 71: Into the Fire (2010)
Not Rated | 120 min | Action, Drama, War
The story of student-soldiers trying to protect a middle school during the early days of the Korean War.
Director: John H. Lee | Stars: Cha Seung-won, Kwon Sang-woo, Choi Seung-hyun, Kim Seung-woo
Votes: 5,818
1950-1953
11. Che: Part One (2008)
Not Rated | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1956, Ernesto 'Che' Guevara and a band of Castro-led Cuban exiles mobilize an army to topple the regime of dictator Fulgencio Batista.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Julia Ormond, Benicio Del Toro, Oscar Isaac, Pablo Guevara
Votes: 47,970 | Gross: $1.80M
1959
12. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
R | 116 min | Drama, War
A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Matthew Modine, R. Lee Ermey, Vincent D'Onofrio, Adam Baldwin
Votes: 791,019 | Gross: $46.36M
1963-1973
13. The Killing Fields (1984)
R | 141 min | Biography, Drama, History
A journalist is trapped in Cambodia during tyrant Pol Pot's bloody 'Year Zero' cleansing campaign, which claimed the lives of two million 'undesirable' civilians.
Director: Roland Joffé | Stars: Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor, John Malkovich, Julian Sands
Votes: 59,277 | Gross: $34.70M
1975-1979
14. Jarhead (2005)
R | 125 min | Biography, Drama, War
A psychological study of Marine's state of mind during the Gulf War. Told through the eyes of a U.S. Marine sniper who struggles to cope with boredom, a sense of isolation, and other issues back home.
Director: Sam Mendes | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx, Lucas Black, Scott MacDonald
Votes: 206,758 | Gross: $62.66M
1990-1991
15. No Man's Land (I) (2001)
R | 98 min | Comedy, Drama, War
Bosnia and Herzegovina during 1993 at the time of the heaviest fighting between the two warring sides. Two soldiers from opposing sides in the conflict, Nino and Ciki, become trapped in no man's land, whilst a third soldier becomes a living booby trap.
Director: Danis Tanovic | Stars: Branko Djuric, Rene Bitorajac, Filip Sovagovic, Georges Siatidis
Votes: 48,842 | Gross: $1.06M
1992-1995
16. The Whistleblower (2010)
R | 112 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A drama based on the experiences of Kathryn Bolkovac, a Nebraska cop who served as a peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia and outed the U.N. for covering up a sex trafficking scandal.
Director: Larysa Kondracki | Stars: Rachel Weisz, Monica Bellucci, Vanessa Redgrave, David Strathairn
Votes: 35,758 | Gross: $1.12M
in the 1990s
17. Hotel Rwanda (2004)
PG-13 | 121 min | Biography, Drama, History
Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager, houses over a thousand Tutsi refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda, Africa.
Director: Terry George | Stars: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Joaquin Phoenix, Xolani Mali
Votes: 372,425 | Gross: $23.53M
1994
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