Your Favourite and Worst Historical Movies

[Ginnie]

What are you're favourite historical movies?
Mine:
Lawrence of Arabia
Spectacular. Got most of their facts right and captured T.E.'s enigmatic personality. Great camera work, script and acting. Perfect in every way. Great acting by O'Toole, Quinn, Shariff and Guinness - all worthy of Oscars.

Spartacus
A little bit Hollywoodish and over dramatic but overall a very entertaining film. Such a sad ending.

Braveheart
Mel Gibson threw away the history book but still entertains with a good story and battle scenes.

Jesus of Nazareth
I'm actually thinking of the mini-series by Franco Zeffireli. Robert Powell even looked like Jesus. ;D

Kingdom of Heaven
This movie surprised me. I wasn't expecting much after reading a review that basically said that Orlando Bloom isn't good enough an actor to carry a film, but I have to disagree with that. A lot of the facts are pretty close to the truth, although in reality, both sides were even more brutal than portrayed in the film, if you can believe it.

Gladiator
Once again, plays loose with the facts but manages to bring that part of history to life. The only thing that bugs me about the DVD is that I can't watch the movie through with the deleted scenes included. They would make the movie even better.

Lust for Life
Another Hollywood treatment - a little too dramatic, and with an interfering score. Kirk Douglas IS Van Gogh, and Anthony Quinn IS Paul Gaugin.

I, Claudius
I know this is a TV series, but it was just so excellent that I have to include it.

I'll think of others later...

Now, some of the worst:

Alexander
Just awful in almost every way except for cinematography.

The Bible
What needs to be said?

There were many very bad historical epics made in the fifties, I'll try to get to them.

I'll post more on this later...

AND JUST TO ADD A BIT MORE:
Are there any historical epics/dramas that you would like to see, that either haven't been made or haven't been made right?
I'd like to see a sensible big budget Alfred the Great movie. There was a British movie made years ago with David Hemmings that was not too bad...
An accurate movie about the life of Marcus Aurelius would be great too see...
Or how about a really good movie about the life of Picasso? Even if it covered his life only up to 1940...
Also I'd like to see a film about Amenhotep IV, also know as Akhenaten.

[gillianren]

What I found interesting was how great Elizabeth was and how much lesser Elizabeth: The Golden Age was. Then again, they'd managed to take away one of the most important figures of the latter film in their (incorrect) ending of the first one.

I just saw Becket; excellent performances by Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton.

The Other Boleyn Girl made me sad. Why can't we ever get a Henry VIII with red hair? I like everything else about the show The Tudors, but they get such an obvious thing wrong. It really bothers me, but it's still better than The Other Boleyn Girl's portrayal of the same thing.

I'll go into more detail later, but I'm on my way out the door. And no, Ginnie, I haven't seen Rome; on this side of the border, it's on HBO, which I don't get, and I can never seem to track it down on our local CBC station, which doesn't seem to play a lot of the things the CBC regularly does, though I'm not sure how or why or even if I'm right.

[Ginnie]

Apr 20, 2008 14:54:54 GMT -4 gillianren said:

What I found interesting was how great Elizabeth was and how much lesser Elizabeth: The Golden Age was. Then again, they'd managed to take away one of the most important figures of the latter film in their (incorrect) ending of the first one.

I just saw Becket; excellent performances by Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton.

The Other Boleyn Girl made me sad. Why can't we ever get a Henry VIII with red hair? I like everything else about the show The Tudors, but they get such an obvious thing wrong. It really bothers me, but it's still better than The Other Boleyn Girl's portrayal of the same thing.

I'll go into more detail later, but I'm on my way out the door. And no, Ginnie, I haven't seen Rome; on this side of the border, it's on HBO, which I don't get, and I can never seem to track it down on our local CBC station, which doesn't seem to play a lot of the things the CBC regularly does, though I'm not sure how or why or even if I'm right.

I'd add to my list of favourites The Lion in Winter , Gandhi and A Man For All Seasons.

I watch Rome on the History Channel here in Canada. I think they re-run older episodes that have already been aired on HBO.

[LunarOrbit]

Apr 20, 2008 14:54:54 GMT -4 gillianren said:

And no, Ginnie, I haven't seen Rome; on this side of the border, it's on HBO, which I don't get, and I can never seem to track it down on our local CBC station, which doesn't seem to play a lot of the things the CBC regularly does, though I'm not sure how or why or even if I'm right.

Rome is great. Check to see if Blockbusters is renting the DVDs.

CBC isn't playing it here. It's on our History Channel, but it's not affiliated with the US version.

[Jason]

Lawrence of Arabia is pretty good. I liked Ghandi too. If Ginnie can say Jesus of Nazareth then I can say The Ten Commandments, I guess.
The only DVDs of historical movies (or movies that are more or less based on true stories) I own are:
The Ten Commandments
Tora! Tora! Tora!
The Last Samurai
Apollo 13
The Untouchables

Some of those obviously aren't very accurate.

[Ginnie]

Apr 20, 2008 17:31:33 GMT -4 Jason said:

Lawrence of Arabia is pretty good. I liked Ghandi too. If Ginnie can say Jesus of Nazareth then I can say The Ten Commandments, I guess.
The only DVDs of historical movies (or movies that are more or less based on true stories) I own are:
The Ten Commandments
Tora! Tora! Tora!
The Last Samurai
Apollo 13
The Untouchables

Some of those obviously aren't very accurate.

I remember going to see Tora!Tora!Tora! at the theatres when I was a kid. It was kind of long for a twelve year old to sit through,
I like Ben Hur better than The Ten Commandments.

Some war movies I watched at the theatre in the sixties:
The Bridge at Remagan (?)
Kelly's Heroes (Hilarious!)
Iron Eagle (or was it called Iron Cross?) with George Peppard
The Dirty Dozen
Patton (1970 I think)

As an aside, there is a British TV series that I've seen a couple of times that I have no idea what it is called. Its about an actor, his agent and his misadventures. I've only seen it twice, part way through, but it was very funny. What is it?

[Al Johnston]

Might need a few more clues than that, old bean ;D

Did it feature this chap by any chance?

[Ginnie]

No. He's not in it.

A few more details:
In the show, the actor is presently working on a TV show.
His agent is always trying to get him better jobs, but keeps screwing up.
He visits a boy in the Hospital on Monday nights.
He's kind of chubby.

[LunarOrbit]

That sounds like Extras starring Ricky Gervais as the actor and Stephen Merchant as the agent. They are also the people behind the original British version of "The Office".

[Ginnie]

Hey, that's right.
Funny show.

[waynewitt]

For as bad a movie as "Pearl Harbor" was, I did enjoy the flying and action sequences, despite many of the glaring inaccuracies within.

"Memphis Belle" was enjoyable, and I like the fact that it made more people aware of what the boys in the bombers endured. However, from an accuracy perspective, it was dreadful.

I actually enjoyed "Titanic." I went into the theater opening weekend not realizing it was a love story, excited for the historical aspects of it. Despite some of the sappy stuff in the movie, the historical details were actually numerous and impressive. I really have to give them credit for it.

[lionking]

I didn't like Hitler's movie. Iwatched a series of Zaher Beibers, I think he was a Mamluki king. It was nice. They depicted his life since he was a slave and how he rised to power. I wish I could watch Lawrence of Arabia bcz I heard a lot about it.

[Kiwi]

The one movie I've watched more than any other is Al Reinert's fabulous "For All Mankind," which is a must-see for all Apollo nuts. If you don't own it, buy it. To help increase your enjoyment, I can supply heaps of pages -- free, of course -- of transcripts of the soundtrack and commentaries, and an index of scenes including the names of personnel where known. PM me if you'd like them.

Others I've watched three or more times are: "Amadeus," "American Graffiti," "Apollo 13," "The Buddy Holly Story," "The Dish," "Great Balls of Fire!" "La Bamba," and "The Right Stuff."

I can't think of any particularly bad historical movies I've seen, although "Pearl Harbor" scored "lousy in places" and I loathed the sickening, graphic violence in "Braveheart," which could have been left out and would have made a better movie.

I still remember some impressive historical movies I saw as a kid in the late 50s and early 60s: "Carve Her Name With Pride," "Ben Hur," "Spartacus," "Cleopatra," "A Night to Remember," "Reach for the Sky," "The Bridge on the River Kwai," and some of the Biblical epics.

One comment. There's quite a difference between computer-generated "people" mincing around mechanically on the decks of the Titanic with absolutely no weight on their feet, and the sight of a real locomotive coming off the rails, tipping over, and ploughing side-on into real sand, as in "Lawrence of Arabia."

Historical DVDs I considered worth owning follow -- a few I haven't yet watched. Some are close to the facts, others, such as "Back to the Future" and "Forrest Gump" are only loosely based on the times involved.

Space and Rocketry
Apollo 13
The Dish
For All Mankind
October Sky
The Right Stuff
All of NASA's Apollo and some Mercury and Gemini documentaries.

50s Rock 'n' Roll
American Graffiti
Back to the Future
The Buddy Holly Story
The Music of Buddy Holly and The Crickets
A Tribute to Buddy Holly and The Crickets
Expresso Bongo
Great Balls of Fire!
La Bamba
Peggy Sue Got Married

US Civil War (A Great-Great-Uncle served in the 8th Ohio regiment and was one of the 20% who survived)
Cold Mountain
Gettysburg
Glory
Gods and Generals

World War 1
Flyboys
Gallipoli
Lawrence of Arabia

World War 2
The Longest Day
The One That Got Away
Patton
Saving Private Ryan
Tora! Tora! Tora!

Various
Almost Famous
Amadeus
The Aviator
Bonnie and Clyde
Bound For Glory
Breaker Morant
Catch Me If You Can
Chariots of Fire
Cleopatra (TV programme)
Conquest of Everest - Revisited 1953 - 2003
Doctor Zhivago
El Cid
Elizabeth
The Fall of the Roman Empire
Finding Neverland
Forrest Gump
Full Metal Jacket
Gandhi
Gladiator
The Godfather
The Godfather Part II
JFK
Master and Commander - The Far Side of the World
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
One Million Years B.C.
Pride and Prejudice
Sense and Sensibility
Seven Years in Tibet
Shakespeare In Love
Sirens
St Helens
The Sting
Tea With Mussolini
That Thing You Do!
Titanic
Tom Jones
Trinity and Beyond / Atomic Filmmakers
Troy
The Untouchables
Woodstock - Three Days of Peace and Music
Zulu

New Zealand
Bad Blood
Heavenly Creatures
King Kong
The Last Samurai
The Piano
River Queen
The Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior
Sleeping Dogs
Utu
The World's Fastest Indian
Waiting for "Beyond Reasonable Doubt" (Arthur Allan Thomas and the Crewe murders) to come down in price.

[Edited to place "Lawrence of Arabia" under WW1 instead of WW2.]

[Jason]

I guess I might raise the question "what is meant by 'historical' here?" Does it mean something supposedly based on true events, like Lawrence of Arabia or just set in a historical period, like Master and Commander with a fictional story?

[tedward]

There are a few that spring to mind for me in my top whatever but many in the dire pile.
Top side, "Das Boot" and "Dam busters" are up there. I notice "Zulu" in the above list but it is full of errors. Good film though. "In which we serve" and "above us the waves" and a few others of that era.

A lot of the period, eg "Henry V", open to interpretation of Shakespeare and his interpretation of the facts but both versions I like. I think one million years BC had a few bad eggs in as well.

Recently "Troy". Well. Personally I thought it was awful. "U571", entertaining for one viewing but so far off the mark.

Thinking cap on for the rest,