Best Of...
All cinema: History
Il Gattopardo (1963)
Luchino Visconti
In the 1860s, Sicily is in the vanguard of huge social and political changes that are sweeping across a fragmented Italy, changes that will result in the country's eventual unification after much loss of blood...
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Luchino Visconti
Indigènes (2006)
Rachid Bouchareb
In 1943, at the height of the Second World War, around 200 thousand natives from French colonial Africa are recruited into the French First Army of the Free French Forces...
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Rachid Bouchareb
Intolerance (1916)
D.W. Griffith
Four interwoven stories spanning mankind's turbulent history show how hatred and intolerance have battled against love and charity across the ages...
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D.W. Griffith
Ivan the Terrible, Part I (1944)
Sergei M. Eisenstein
In 1547, the young archduke Ivan IV is crowned Tsar of Russia. He pledges to build a strong and unified country, by reforming the church and the army, and by recovering lands that have been lost to foreign powers...
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Sergei M. Eisenstein
Jeanne la Pucelle I - Les Batailles (1994)
Jacques Rivette
Upon hearing a message from God, a young French maid, Jeanne, feels compelled to leave her home in Domremy. She finally manages to get an audience with Charles, the dauphin of France, and she persuades him that it is her destiny to lead the French to victory against the English...
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Jacques Rivette
Jeanne la Pucelle II - Les prisons (1994)
Jacques Rivette
After her victory at Orleans, Joan of Arc is emboldened to continue her assault against the English armies. Despite the ambivalence of the Dauphin and his advisers, she galvanises her troops and victory follows victory... [More...]
Jacques Rivette
After her victory at Orleans, Joan of Arc is emboldened to continue her assault against the English armies. Despite the ambivalence of the Dauphin and his advisers, she galvanises her troops and victory follows victory... [More...]
La Jeune folle (1952)
Yves Allégret
Ireland 1922. A nationalist uprising against England has claimed its first victims. As she performs her domestic chores at a Dublin convent, orphan Catherine thinks only of her brother Kevin, a Republican who is on the run from the government forces... [More...]
Yves Allégret
Ireland 1922. A nationalist uprising against England has claimed its first victims. As she performs her domestic chores at a Dublin convent, orphan Catherine thinks only of her brother Kevin, a Republican who is on the run from the government forces... [More...]
Le Joueur d'échecs (1927)
Raymond Bernard
The year is 1776. Under Catherine the Great, Russia has annexed Poland, Lithuania and Prussia. Polish nobleman Boleslas Vorowski is the leader of a secret resistance movement that intends to free Poland from the yoke of imperialist Russia... [More...]
Raymond Bernard
The year is 1776. Under Catherine the Great, Russia has annexed Poland, Lithuania and Prussia. Polish nobleman Boleslas Vorowski is the leader of a secret resistance movement that intends to free Poland from the yoke of imperialist Russia... [More...]
Le Juge et l'assassin (1976)
Bertrand Tavernier
France, 1893. When the young woman he is infatuated with rejects him, Joseph Bouvier, a sergeant in the French army, shoots her and then turns the gun on himself... [More...]
Bertrand Tavernier
France, 1893. When the young woman he is infatuated with rejects him, Joseph Bouvier, a sergeant in the French army, shoots her and then turns the gun on himself... [More...]
Le Jugement de Dieu (1952)
Raymond Bernard
In the 15th century, Prince Albert of Bavria must marry the far from attractive Bertha de Wurtemberg for political reasons... [More...]
Raymond Bernard
In the 15th century, Prince Albert of Bavria must marry the far from attractive Bertha de Wurtemberg for political reasons... [More...]
La Kermesse héroïque (1935)
Jacques Feyder
1616. In the small Flemish village of Boom, the burgomaster is preparing a banquet for his daughter's wedding to the local butcher... [More...]
Jacques Feyder
1616. In the small Flemish village of Boom, the burgomaster is preparing a banquet for his daughter's wedding to the local butcher... [More...]
La Kermesse rouge (1947)
Paul Mesnier
Paris in the 1890s. When Agnès Bonnardet falls in love with a struggling Montmartre painter, Claude Sironi, her aristocratic relatives waste no time in acting to thwart a mésalliance that will bring disgrace on the family... [More...]
Paul Mesnier
Paris in the 1890s. When Agnès Bonnardet falls in love with a struggling Montmartre painter, Claude Sironi, her aristocratic relatives waste no time in acting to thwart a mésalliance that will bring disgrace on the family... [More...]
Lancelot du Lac (1974)
Robert Bresson
Their number reduced through countless skirmishes in their quest for the Holy Grail, the knights of the Round Table return to Camelot, weary and defeated... [More...]
Robert Bresson
Their number reduced through countless skirmishes in their quest for the Holy Grail, the knights of the Round Table return to Camelot, weary and defeated... [More...]
The Last of the Mohicans (1920)
Maurice Tourneur
By 1757, the Seven Years' War that is ravaging the continent of Europe has reached the colonies in the Americas. A British stronghold in New York, Fort William Henry, is threatened by French armies and their Huron Indian allies... [More...]
Maurice Tourneur
By 1757, the Seven Years' War that is ravaging the continent of Europe has reached the colonies in the Americas. A British stronghold in New York, Fort William Henry, is threatened by French armies and their Huron Indian allies... [More...]
Life of Brian (1979)
Terry Jones
Judea 33 AD. Brian is an idealistic young Jew, a nice lad who, like many of his fellow Judeans, is somewhat miffed by the Roman occupation of his country... [More...]
Terry Jones
Judea 33 AD. Brian is an idealistic young Jew, a nice lad who, like many of his fellow Judeans, is somewhat miffed by the Roman occupation of his country... [More...]
The Lion in Winter (1968)
Anthony Harvey
Christmas, 1183. King Henry II of England summons his estranged wife Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine and their three sons, Richard, John and Geoffrey, to Chinon Castle to resolve the matter of his inheritance... [More...]
Anthony Harvey
Christmas, 1183. King Henry II of England summons his estranged wife Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine and their three sons, Richard, John and Geoffrey, to Chinon Castle to resolve the matter of his inheritance... [More...]
The Longest Day (1962)
Ken Annakin
June, 1944. Thousands of Allied troops assembled in the south of England impatiently await the go-ahead for a full-scale invasion of France, the one military manoeuvre that will decisively crush the resolve of the Axis powers and hasten the end of the war... [More...]
Ken Annakin
June, 1944. Thousands of Allied troops assembled in the south of England impatiently await the go-ahead for a full-scale invasion of France, the one military manoeuvre that will decisively crush the resolve of the Axis powers and hasten the end of the war... [More...]
Lorna Doone (1922)
Maurice Tourneur
In the late 1600s, a region of rural Devonshire in England is menaced by a lawless gang of highwaymen and cut-throats, the Doones... [More...]
Maurice Tourneur
In the late 1600s, a region of rural Devonshire in England is menaced by a lawless gang of highwaymen and cut-throats, the Doones... [More...]
Love and Death (1975)
Woody Allen
A condemned man, about to be executed for a crime he did not commit, Boris Grushenko looks back on his short life, conscious that Death is even now beating a path in his direction... [More...]
Woody Allen
A condemned man, about to be executed for a crime he did not commit, Boris Grushenko looks back on his short life, conscious that Death is even now beating a path in his direction... [More...]
Lucie Aubrac (1997)
Claude Berri
Lyon, 1943. In Nazi occupied France, Raymond Aubrac is a leading member of the French Resistance. Shortly after blowing up a German supply train, he is arrested, ostensibly for blackmarketeering... [More...]
Claude Berri
Lyon, 1943. In Nazi occupied France, Raymond Aubrac is a leading member of the French Resistance. Shortly after blowing up a German supply train, he is arrested, ostensibly for blackmarketeering... [More...]
Ludwig (1972)
Luchino Visconti
Ludwig II is a mere youth of nineteen when he ascends to the throne of Bavaria in 1864. A sensitive and idealistic young man, he shows far more interest in the arts and architecture than he does in matters of state... [More...]
Luchino Visconti
Ludwig II is a mere youth of nineteen when he ascends to the throne of Bavaria in 1864. A sensitive and idealistic young man, he shows far more interest in the arts and architecture than he does in matters of state... [More...]
Macbeth (1948)
Orson Welles
Triumphant in battle, warriors Macbeth and Banquo return to their home in Scotland and are greeted by three strange hags who offer them prophecies of future glory... [More...]
Orson Welles
Triumphant in battle, warriors Macbeth and Banquo return to their home in Scotland and are greeted by three strange hags who offer them prophecies of future glory... [More...]
Mademoiselle de Joncquières (2018)
Emmanuel Mouret
France, in the mid-1700s. After the death of her husband, Madame de La Pommeraye lives a secluded life at her large country estate... [More...]
Emmanuel Mouret
France, in the mid-1700s. After the death of her husband, Madame de La Pommeraye lives a secluded life at her large country estate... [More...]
The Madness of King George (1994)
Nicholas Hytner
In 1788, King George III of Great Britain is almost 30 years into his reign but those closest to him have noticed a sudden deterioration in his state of mind... [More...]
Nicholas Hytner
In 1788, King George III of Great Britain is almost 30 years into his reign but those closest to him have noticed a sudden deterioration in his state of mind... [More...]
The Man in Grey (1943)
Leslie Arliss
In Regency England, Hesther Shaw is welcomed by Miss Patchett to her school for young ladies in Bath. Hesther's straitened circumstances makes her resentful of the kindnesses shown to her by Miss Patchett and her pupils but she soon buries her grievances and makes friends with the universally popular Clarissa Marr... [More...]
Leslie Arliss
In Regency England, Hesther Shaw is welcomed by Miss Patchett to her school for young ladies in Bath. Hesther's straitened circumstances makes her resentful of the kindnesses shown to her by Miss Patchett and her pupils but she soon buries her grievances and makes friends with the universally popular Clarissa Marr... [More...]
The Man Who Laughs (1928)
Paul Leni
England, 1690. King James II is so offended by the rebellious nobleman Lord Clancharlie that he orders his execution. Before he dies, Clancharlie learns that his infant son Gwynplaine has been sold by the king's jester Barkilphedro to a gypsy surgeon, Dr Hardquannone, who has so disfigured the boy's face to give him a permanent clown-like smile... [More...]
Paul Leni
England, 1690. King James II is so offended by the rebellious nobleman Lord Clancharlie that he orders his execution. Before he dies, Clancharlie learns that his infant son Gwynplaine has been sold by the king's jester Barkilphedro to a gypsy surgeon, Dr Hardquannone, who has so disfigured the boy's face to give him a permanent clown-like smile... [More...]
La Marcia su Roma (1963)
Dino Risi
In 1922, Domenico Rochetti, an unemployed First World War veteran living in Milan, enlists in the newly formed Fascist party, at the advice of his former captain... [More...]
Dino Risi
In 1922, Domenico Rochetti, an unemployed First World War veteran living in Milan, enlists in the newly formed Fascist party, at the advice of his former captain... [More...]
La Marseillaise (1938)
Jean Renoir
On 14th July 1789, the Duke of Rochefoucauld informs King Louis XVI of France that the Bastille has fallen to a Parisian mob... [More...]
Jean Renoir
On 14th July 1789, the Duke of Rochefoucauld informs King Louis XVI of France that the Bastille has fallen to a Parisian mob... [More...]
Mary of Scotland (1936)
John Ford
In 1561, Mary Stuart, the widow of Francis II of France, makes herself two dangerous enemies when she opts to return to Scotland... [More...]
John Ford
In 1561, Mary Stuart, the widow of Francis II of France, makes herself two dangerous enemies when she opts to return to Scotland... [More...]
Mauprat (1926)
Jean Epstein
Hubert de Mauprat is an ageing French nobleman who leads a quiet life at his castle of Saint Sévère in the company of his daughter Edmée... [More...]
Jean Epstein
Hubert de Mauprat is an ageing French nobleman who leads a quiet life at his castle of Saint Sévère in the company of his daughter Edmée... [More...]