Historical Movies

[puppyskull]

I recently watched 'Marie Antoinette' (2006) on netflix and it was soooo good! I want to watch more historical movies and I was thinking we could make a list in chronological order. Like we could have movies about the middle ages, then movies about the 1800s, all the way to movies about the '50s! What do you think? 

[Triskelion]

Hi puppyskull,

I think that is a nice idea and with current technology, it is easy to make such lists.
I have asked Grok 3 the following 

Quote

I want to watch more historical movies like "Marie Antoinette (2006)" Can you make a list in chronological order and add a percentage how historical correct the movies are. Start with movies about prehistoric, middle ages, 1800s and all the way to movies about the '50s. Make it a top 100 in bullet points.

Here is the result, I hope this will help you a little in your quest for historical movies:
 

Prehistoric Era

 

• 1. 10,000 BC (2008)
  A young hunter embarks on a quest to save his love from raiders amidst mammoths and pyramids. Flashy but wildly speculative.
  Accuracy: 20% (Mammoths didn’t help build pyramids; timelines are jumbled.)
  
• 2. Quest for Fire (1981)
  A tribe of early humans searches for a new fire source. Gritty and grounded, with invented language.
  Accuracy: 70% (Reasonable depiction of prehistoric life, though speculative.)
  
• 3. The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986)
  A Cro-Magnon girl is raised by Neanderthals. Visually rich but leans on dramatic fiction.
  Accuracy: 50% (Some anthropology, but heavily fictionalized.)
  
• 4. Alpha (2018)
  A young man and a wolf bond during the Ice Age. Stunning visuals, loose on specifics.
  Accuracy: 60% (Plausible survival tale, but details are imagined.)
  
   

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Ancient History (Before 500 CE)

 

• 5. The Scorpion King (2002)
  A warrior rises against a tyrant in ancient Mesopotamia. Campy and action-packed.
  Accuracy: 30% (Inspired by myth, not history.)
  
• 6. 300 (2006)
  Spartans fight Persians at Thermopylae. Stylized and epic, but exaggerated.
  Accuracy: 40% (Core event real, details and aesthetics dramatized.)
  
• 7. Troy (2004)
  The Trojan War unfolds with romance and battles. Grand but myth-heavy.
  Accuracy: 50% (Based on Homer, not archaeology.)
  
• 8. Alexander (2004)
  Alexander the Great’s conquests and personal struggles. Ambitious but simplified.
  Accuracy: 65% (Broad strokes correct, some relationships speculative.)
  
• 9. Gladiator (2000)
  A Roman general seeks revenge in the arena. Gripping, but liberties taken.
  Accuracy: 60% (Roman culture captured, plot fictional.)
  
• 10. Cleopatra (1963)
  The Egyptian queen navigates love and power. Lavish, but romanticized.
  Accuracy: 55% (Key events real, details embellished.)
  
   

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Middle Ages (500–1500 CE)

 

• 11. The 13th Warrior (1999)
  An Arab poet joins Vikings against a mysterious foe. Moody and adventurous.
  Accuracy: 50% (Viking life decent, plot fictional.)
  
• 12. Braveheart (1995)
  William Wallace fights for Scottish freedom. Stirring but notoriously loose.
  Accuracy: 40% (Major events skewed, timelines off.)
  
• 13. Kingdom of Heaven (2005)
  A blacksmith joins the Crusades. Visually epic, selectively accurate.
  Accuracy: 60% (Crusade context solid, characters fictionalized.)
  
• 14. The Name of the Rose (1986)
  A monk investigates murders in a 14th-century abbey. Dark and detailed.
  Accuracy: 80% (Medieval life well-researched, story invented.)
  
• 15. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)
  Robin Hood battles the Sheriff of Nottingham. Fun but fanciful.
  Accuracy: 35% (Legend-based, not historical.)
  
• 16. A Knight’s Tale (2001)
  A peasant jousts his way to fame. Playful and anachronistic.
  Accuracy: 30% (Medieval vibe with modern twists.)
  
• 17. Excalibur (1981)
  The Arthurian legend in all its mythic glory. Poetic, not factual.
  Accuracy: 25% (Pure fantasy rooted in legend.)
  
• 18. The Lion in Winter (1968)
  Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine spar over succession. Witty and grounded.
  Accuracy: 75% (Dialogue imagined, politics accurate.)
  
• 19. Becket (1964)
  Thomas Becket’s clash with Henry II. Dramatic and well-costumed.
  Accuracy: 70% (Core conflict real, some details enhanced.)
  
• 20. Andrei Rublev (1966)
  A Russian icon painter navigates a brutal 15th century. Artistic and immersive.
  Accuracy: 85% (Cultural depiction strong, specifics speculative.)
  
   

---

Early Modern Period (1500–1800 CE)

 

• 21. Elizabeth (1998)
  Elizabeth I rises to power amid intrigue. Stylish and intense.
  Accuracy: 65% (Key events real, some drama added.)
  
• 22. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
  Shakespeare finds inspiration for Romeo and Juliet. Charming fiction.
  Accuracy: 40% (Creative take on sparse facts.)
  
• 23. The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
  Sisters vie for Henry VIII’s affection. Glossy but simplified.
  Accuracy: 50% (Broad strokes true, details fudged.)
  
• 24. The New World (2005)
  Pocahontas and John Smith’s story. Lyrical and reflective.
  Accuracy: 60% (Romanticized but researched.)
  
• 25. The Duelists (1977)
  Two officers feud during the Napoleonic Wars. Elegant and precise.
  Accuracy: 75% (Military life accurate, story fictional.)
  
• 26. Barry Lyndon (1975)
  An Irish rogue climbs 18th-century society. Visually meticulous.
  Accuracy: 80% (Period detail superb, plot invented.)
  
• 27. The Madness of King George (1994)
  George III’s mental decline unfolds. Witty and well-acted.
  Accuracy: 70% (Health issues real, some events dramatized.)
  
• 28. A Man for All Seasons (1966)
  Thomas More defies Henry VIII. Dignified and faithful.
  Accuracy: 85% (Strongly based on real events.)
  
• 29. The Mission (1986)
  Jesuits defend a South American mission. Haunting and researched.
  Accuracy: 75% (Historical context solid, specifics fictional.)
  
• 30. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
  A British captain pursues a French ship. Vivid and detailed.
  Accuracy: 85% (Naval life spot-on, story fictional.)
  
   

---

1800s

 

• 31. Marie Antoinette (2006)
  The young queen navigates Versailles before the Revolution. Stylish and subjective.
  Accuracy: 55% (Visuals strong, events selective.)
  
• 32. The Duchess (2008)
  Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, faces love and duty. Opulent and emotional.
  Accuracy: 65% (Life events real, some liberties taken.)
  
• 33. The Young Victoria (2009)
  Victoria’s early reign and romance. Romantic and regal.
  Accuracy: 70% (Key moments accurate, dialogue imagined.)
  
• 34. Pride and Prejudice (2005)
  Elizabeth Bennet finds love in Regency England. Lush adaptation.
  Accuracy: 75% (Austen’s world well-realized, fiction-based.)
  
• 35. Les Misérables (2012)
  A man seeks redemption amid revolution. Grand and theatrical.
  Accuracy: 60% (Historical backdrop solid, story fictional.)
  
• 36. Gangs of New York (2002)
  Rival gangs clash in 1860s New York. Gritty and exaggerated.
  Accuracy: 50% (Setting real, events dramatized.)
  
• 37. The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
  A frontiersman aids sisters during the French and Indian War. Sweeping romance.
  Accuracy: 55% (War context good, plot fictional.)
  
• 38. Amistad (1997)
  Enslaved Africans revolt on a ship. Powerful but simplified.
  Accuracy: 70% (Core story true, details adjusted.)
  
• 39. 12 Years a Slave (2013)
  A free man is enslaved in the antebellum South. Brutal and unflinching.
  Accuracy: 90% (Based on a memoir, highly accurate.)
  
• 40. Lincoln (2012)
  Lincoln pushes to abolish slavery. Detailed and focused.
  Accuracy: 85% (Events well-documented, some dialogue crafted.)
  
• 41. Gone with the Wind (1939)
  A Southern belle survives the Civil War. Epic but biased.
  Accuracy: 60% (Period feel strong, perspective romanticized.)
  
• 42. The Leopard (1963)
  A Sicilian noble faces a changing world. Sumptuous and reflective.
  Accuracy: 80% (Historical shift accurate, story fictional.)
  
• 43. The Age of Innocence (1993)
  A man wrestles with love in 1870s New York. Exquisite detail.
  Accuracy: 75% (Society portrayed well, fiction-based.)
  
• 44. The Piano (1993)
  A mute woman navigates colonial New Zealand. Haunting and unique.
  Accuracy: 70% (Cultural context good, story invented.)
  
• 45. The Prestige (2006)
  Rival magicians feud in Victorian London. Stylish and twisty.
  Accuracy: 60% (Period tech real, plot fictional.)
  
• 46. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
  The outlaw’s final days. Slow and atmospheric.
  Accuracy: 75% (Key events true, mood interpretive.)
  
• 47. The Alamo (2004)
  Texans defend against Mexico in 1836. Earnest but simplified.
  Accuracy: 65% (Battle real, characters enhanced.)
  
• 48. Cold Mountain (2003)
  A soldier deserts to reunite with his love. Poignant and gritty.
  Accuracy: 60% (War backdrop solid, story fictional.)
  
• 49. The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)
  A man seeks revenge after betrayal. Swashbuckling fun.
  Accuracy: 50% (Based on Dumas, not history.)
  
• 50. Waterloo (1970)
  Napoleon faces defeat in 1815. Grand and detailed.
  Accuracy: 80% (Battle well-recreated, some drama added.)
  
   

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Early 1900s (1900–1930s)

 

• 51. Titanic (1997)
  Love blooms aboard the doomed ship. Blockbuster with heart.
  Accuracy: 70% (Ship details strong, romance fictional.)
  
• 52. The King’s Speech (2010)
  George VI overcomes a stammer. Warm and inspiring.
  Accuracy: 85% (Events real, some moments condensed.)
  
• 53. The Great Gatsby (2013)
  Excess defines the Roaring Twenties. Flashy and tragic.
  Accuracy: 65% (Era captured, story fictional.)
  
• 54. Downton Abbey (2019)
  A royal visit stirs the estate. Polished and nostalgic.
  Accuracy: 75% (Class dynamics real, plot invented.)
  
• 55. The Artist (2011)
  A silent film star faces talkies. Charming and clever.
  Accuracy: 80% (Hollywood transition accurate, story fictional.)
  
• 56. Chicago (2002)
  Murderesses vie for fame in the 1920s. Sassy and stylized.
  Accuracy: 60% (Jazz Age vibe good, cases dramatized.)
  
• 57. Changeling (2008)
  A mother fights corruption in 1920s LA. Grim and true.
  Accuracy: 85% (Based on real events, well-researched.)
  
• 58. The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)
  Irish brothers face the War of Independence. Raw and poignant.
  Accuracy: 80% (Conflict accurate, characters fictional.)
  
• 59. A Room with a View (1985)
  A woman finds love in Edwardian England. Romantic and refined.
  Accuracy: 75% (Society well-shown, fiction-based.)
  
• 60. The English Patient (1996)
  A wartime romance unfolds in flashbacks. Lush and layered.
  Accuracy: 60% (War setting real, story fictional.)
  
   

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World War II (1930s–1940s)

 

• 61. The Imitation Game (2014)
  Alan Turing cracks Enigma. Tense and moving.
  Accuracy: 75% (Core true, personal life simplified.)
  
• 62. Schindler’s List (1993)
  Oskar Schindler saves Jews during the Holocaust. Devastating and real.
  Accuracy: 90% (Highly factual, deeply researched.)
  
• 63. Dunkirk (2017)
  Soldiers escape a WWII beach. Visceral and immersive.
  Accuracy: 85% (Events accurate, characters composite.)
  
• 64. The Pianist (2002)
  A Jewish musician survives the Warsaw Ghetto. Harrowing and true.
  Accuracy: 90% (Based on a memoir, very accurate.)
  
• 65. Downfall (2004)
  Hitler’s final days in the bunker. Intense and detailed.
  Accuracy: 90% (Based on eyewitness accounts.)
  
• 66. Life Is Beautiful (1997)
  A father shields his son in a concentration camp. Heartbreakingly whimsical.
  Accuracy: 60% (Holocaust real, story fictional.)
  
• 67. Atonement (2007)
  A lie alters lives during WWII. Elegant and tragic.
  Accuracy: 70% (War backdrop solid, plot invented.)
  
• 68. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008)
  A boy befriends a camp prisoner. Poignant but simplified.
  Accuracy: 50% (Holocaust setting real, story unlikely.)
  
• 69. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
  Jews and soldiers plot against Nazis. Wild and revisionist.
  Accuracy: 30% (Alternate history, fun but false.)
  
• 70. Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)
  Japanese soldiers defend the island. Somber and respectful.
  Accuracy: 85% (Battle details strong, characters real-inspired.)
  
• 71. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
  Soldiers search for a paratrooper post-D-Day. Brutal and iconic.
  Accuracy: 80% (D-Day realistic, mission fictional.)
  
• 72. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
  POWs build a bridge for the Japanese. Classic and tense.
  Accuracy: 65% (Inspired by real events, dramatized.)
  
• 73. Casablanca (1942)
  Love and sacrifice in wartime Morocco. Timeless romance.
  Accuracy: 70% (WWII vibe accurate, story fictional.)
  
• 74. The Sound of Music (1965)
  A nun becomes a governess fleeing Nazis. Joyful and sentimental.
  Accuracy: 60% (Trapp family real, details altered.)
  
• 75. Empire of the Sun (1987)
  A boy survives Japanese occupation in China. Epic and moving.
  Accuracy: 75% (Based on a memoir, some liberties.)
  
   

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1950s

 

• 76. The Crown (2016 – Season 1)
  Elizabeth II’s early reign. Polished and intimate. (Note: TV series, but included for its film-like quality.)
  Accuracy: 80% (Events real, dialogue imagined.)
  
• 77. The Iron Lady (2011)
  Margaret Thatcher’s rise, with flashbacks to the 1950s. Reflective and strong.
  Accuracy: 70% (Career path true, framing dramatized.)
  
• 78. Far from Heaven (2002)
  A housewife faces secrets in 1950s suburbia. Stylized and poignant.
  Accuracy: 75% (Social norms accurate, story fictional.)
  
• 79. Revolutionary Road (2008)
  A couple unravels in 1950s America. Bleak and beautiful.
  Accuracy: 70% (Era captured, fiction-based.)
  
• 80. Hidden Figures (2016)
  Black women mathematicians aid NASA. Uplifting and true.
  Accuracy: 85% (Real figures, some events condensed.)
  
• 81. The Help (2011)
  A writer exposes racism in 1960s Mississippi (late 1950s overlap). Warm and sharp.
  Accuracy: 70% (Social context real, story fictional.)
  
• 82. Pleasantville (1998)
  Teens enter a 1950s TV world. Satirical and colorful.
  Accuracy: 60% (1950s tropes spot-on, fantastical plot.)
  
• 83. Quiz Show (1994)
  A 1950s TV scandal unfolds. Smart and meticulous.
  Accuracy: 85% (Based on real events, well-researched.)
  
• 84. Good Night, and Good Luck (2005)
  Edward R. Murrow battles McCarthyism. Crisp and authentic.
  Accuracy: 90% (Highly factual, dialogue crafted.)
  
• 85. The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (1956)
  A veteran adjusts to postwar life. Subtle and period-specific.
  Accuracy: 80% (1950s culture real, story fictional.)
  
• 86. Carol (2015)
  Two women fall in love in 1950s New York. Tender and evocative.
  Accuracy: 75% (Social mores accurate, fiction-based.)
  
• 87. Brooklyn (2015)
  An Irish immigrant navigates 1950s America. Heartfelt and detailed.
  Accuracy: 80% (Immigration experience real, story fictional.)
  
• 88. On the Waterfront (1954)
  A dockworker fights corruption. Gritty and timeless.
  Accuracy: 75% (Labor issues real, plot inspired.)
  
• 89. Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
  A teen rebels in 1950s suburbia. Iconic and angsty.
  Accuracy: 70% (Youth culture real, drama heightened.)
  
• 90. The Quiet American (2002)
  A love triangle in 1950s Vietnam. Tense and atmospheric.
  Accuracy: 80% (Colonial context strong, fiction-based.)
  
   

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Bonus Picks (Mixed Eras, High Marie Antoinette Vibes)

 

• 91. The Favourite (2018)
  Queen Anne’s court sees rivalry and excess. Darkly funny and ornate.
  Accuracy: 60% (Court life stylized, events loosely real.)
  
• 92. A Little Chaos (2014)
  A gardener designs for Louis XIV. Romantic and lush.
  Accuracy: 50% (Versailles vibe good, story fictional.)
  
• 93. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
  Love and art collide in 1890s Paris. Extravagant and musical.
  Accuracy: 40% (Bohemian spirit real, plot fantastical.)
  
• 94. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
  A concierge navigates 1930s Europe. Whimsical and ornate.
  Accuracy: 50% (Era-inspired, fully fictional.)
  
• 95. Gosford Park (2001)
  A 1930s manor hides secrets. Witty and layered.
  Accuracy: 75% (Class system real, mystery invented.)
  
• 96. Anna Karenina (2012)
  A Russian noblewoman defies society. Theatrical and lavish.
  Accuracy: 65% (Tolstoy’s world adapted, stylized.)
  
• 97. Becoming Jane (2007)
  Jane Austen’s early life and loves. Romantic and speculative.
  Accuracy: 55% (Austen’s era good, romance guessed.)
  
• 98. The Hours (2002)
  Three women across decades, including 1950s. Poetic and linked.
  Accuracy: 70% (Periods distinct, stories fictional.)
  
• 99. Out of Africa (1985)
  A Danish woman runs a plantation in 1910s Kenya. Sweeping and nostalgic.
  Accuracy: 75% (Memoir-based, some liberties.)
  
• 100. The Painted Veil (2006)
  A doctor and wife face cholera in 1920s China. Quietly stunning.
  Accuracy: 70% (Setting real, fiction-inspired.)