From Apollo 13 To Braveheart, Discover 55 Of The Best Historical Movies

Take a trip into the past with these incredible historical movies, from wartime epics to period romances to biopics.

While documentaries may be the most accurate way to understand history through film, often the best way to capture the true emotional weight of historical events is to portray them dramatically.

Since time immemorial, humans have been setting dramatic performances in the past to show people how past events shape their lives in the present. And, from the dramas of Shakespeare to the best historical movies of the modern era, most of us feel truly connected to the past by immersing ourselves in dramatized stories more so than straightforward factual reports.

Today, many movies about history become major blockbusters and favorites of film critics. Whether they depict real historical figures and events or showcase fictional stories set against the backdrop of famous historical moments, these movies speak to audiences the world over like few others.

You’ll find some of the best historical movies ever made in the gallery below.

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Hidden Figures tells the powerful story of three Black female mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.

These pioneering mathematicians were Mary Jackson (played by Janelle Monae, left), Katherine Johnson (played by Taraji P. Henson, center), and Dorothy Vaughan (played by Octavia Spencer, right).20th Century Studios

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Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone, and tells the story of the brutal Osage Indian Murders of the 1920s.Paramount Pictures/AppleTV+

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The Zone of Interest is a bleak, harrowing film about the commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife, Hedwig, as they strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden right next to the horrific concentration camp.A24 Films

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Based on the 1853 memoir of the same name, 12 Years A Slave tells the story of Solomon Northup, a Black American who was born free in New York before being abducted by kidnappers who sold him into slavery in the Deep South, after which he spent 12 years in bondage before eventually gaining his freedom via the legal system. Fox Searchlight

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Set during the Holocaust, Schindler's List tells the story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who used his wealth and connections to save 1,200 Jews from Nazi concentration camps. Universal Pictures

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A haunting look at a fictional Holocaust survivor, Sophie's Choice recounts the tale of a woman trying to move on with her life after being forced to choose which of her two children would live and which would die at a Nazi concentration camp.Universal Pictures

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Christopher Nolan's epic film Oppenheimer recounts the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the creation of the atomic bomb through the Manhattan Project.Universal Pictures

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Braveheart tells the story of William Wallace, a Scottish knight who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence. Though the movie has been criticized for its several historical inaccuracies, it does include many factual elements, no matter how unbelievably brutal they may seem, including a scene showing the practice of defenestration, a real Medieval punishment. Paramount Pictures

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Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan consistently ranks as one of the best historical movies. The story follows a group of U.S. World War II servicemen who land on Normandy beach and must then rescue Private Ryan, a paratrooper whose three brothers have already died in the war, causing authorities in the U.S. Army to mandate his return home. DreamWorks Pictures

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Rather than attempt to tell his entire story, Lincoln focuses on the final four months of the life of President Abraham Lincoln, including his efforts to pass the Thirteenth Amendment in order to abolish slavery.20th Century Fox

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The French film Joyeux Noel depicts the World War I Christmas truce through the eyes of French, British, and German soldiers. The film shows how on Christmas Day 1914, opposing troops along the Western front were able to create informal truces where they left their trenches to interact with enemy soldiers for one peaceful day amidst the madness of war. Sony Pictures Classics

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The Messenger tells the heroic yet brutal story of Joan of Arc, from her childhood through her wartime years until her death at the hands of the English in 1431.Gaumont

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All the President's Men tells the true story of journalists Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, reporters working at The Washington Post who helped break the Watergate scandal that brought down President Richard Nixon in the mid-1970s. Warner Bros.

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The Joaquin Phoenix-led Napoleon is an epic film that recounts the life of Napoleon Bonaparte, viewed from the perspective of his relationship with his wife Joséphine.Columbia Pictures/AppleTV+

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1967's Bonnie and Clyde recounts the lives of 1930s gangsters Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, who, as a couple, traveled the central U.S. during the Great Depression, robbing people and killing when confronted, until they were shot to death by the police.Warner Bros. Pictures/Seven Arts

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Frida is a revealing biopic that depicts both the personal and creative struggles and the triumphs of celebrated Mexican surrealist painter Frida Kahlo.Miramax Films

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Society of the Snow is a bleak, dark film that recounts the story of Nando Parrado, his Andes plane crash, and the awful lengths it took for him to survive. Netflix

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Glory recounts the history of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, the first African American regiment organized in the Northern states during the American Civil War. The film is based on the correspondence of Robert Gould Shaw, a white officer who led the unit. TriStar Pictures

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1993's Tombstone tells the story of Wyatt Earp and his brothers Morgan and Virgil as they attempt to live a quiet life in Tombstone, Arizona. Ultimately, however, trouble finds them again, leading to the infamous gunfight at the O.K. Corral.Buena Vista Pictures

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Apollo 13 tells the story of NASA's Apollo 13 mission in 1970, which sought to land men on the Moon. But when an oxygen tank exploded two days into the journey, crew members had to forget about the Moon and instead figure out a way to survive and make it back home safely.Universal Pictures

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The Imitation Game tells the story of Alan Turing and the mission to crack Nazi codes during World War II — including Enigma, which was thought to be unbreakable. Black Bear Pictures

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Set in New York City in 1863, Gangs Of New York follows the fictional Amsterdam Vallon, the son of the fictional Priest Vallon, leader of the actual Irish Catholic “Dead Rabbits” gang, in his journey to avenge his father’s death at the hands of a fictionalized version of William "Bill the Butcher" Poole, the leader of an actual Nativist gang. Miramax Films

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Based on the early years of the titular English monarch's reign, Elizabeth presents the story of Queen Elizabeth I's rise to power and her defense of her country from threats both foreign and domestic.Gramercy Pictures

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All Quiet on the Western Front follows a group of German soldiers after they enlisted in World War I, highlighting the stark difference between the ideal they fought for and the harsh realities of trench warfare.Netflix

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In 1839, a group of African slaves successfully staged a revolt aboard their transport ship La Amistad. The movie Amistad follows the court case during which, after this vessel landed on American soil, those who'd staged the revolt had to defend themselves from charges of piracy and argue to be recognized as free men.DreamWorks Pictures

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The Christopher Nolan film Dunkirk tells the story of the epic Dunkirk evacuation during World War II, which saw more than 330,000 Allied troops rescued from approaching Nazi forces.Warner Bros. Pictures

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Gladiator tells the story of the fictional Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is enslaved and made to fight as a gladiator thanks to the murderous treachery of the real Roman emperor Commodus. Meridius must then work his way up the ranks of the gladiators to eventually take revenge on Commodus.DreamWorks Pictures

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As the name suggests, Gandhi explores the life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in his struggle against the British colonial rule of his home country, India. Gandhi virtually tells the man's entire story, from the defining moment when he was thrown off of a South African train for being in a whites-only compartment in 1893, to his assassination in 1948. Columbia Pictures

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Darkest Hour sees Gary Oldman portraying British Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the early years of World War II as he struggles to decide how he should handle Adolf Hitler's increasingly violent nature.Focus Features

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The Great Debaters is based on the true story of the debate team led by Melvin B. Tolson at the historically Black Wiley College that, in the 1930s, challenged, and beat, the largest and most prominent white colleges’ debate teams during the height of the Jim Crow era. The Weinstein Company

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The classic 1959 blockbuster epic Ben-Hur tells the story of the fictional Judah Ben-Hur, a Jewish prince who becomes a chariot racer when he is enslaved by the Romans. Ben-Hur’s tale of betrayal, conviction, and redemption is set alongside the story of the Biblical Jesus, and the two even meet at a critical juncture in the film. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

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Patton tells the story of larger-than-life U.S. General George S. Patton, who made his mark on history with his leadership during World War II.20th Century Fox

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Featuring a combination of both fictional characters and fictionalized versions of real people, Suffragette lays bare the struggle that several brave activists endured in their quest to win British women the right to vote in the 1910s.Pathé

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Black Hawk Down chronicles the events of a 1993 raid in war-torn Mogadishu, Somalia by the U.S. military that intended to capture armed militia faction leader Mohamed Farrah Aidid.Columbia Pictures

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Born on the Fourth of July tells the true story of Ron Kovic’s time serving as a soldier in the Vietnam War, as well as his tumultuous return to American society after his service.Universal Pictures

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Set during the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, Hotel Rwanda tells the true story of hotelier Paul Rusesabagina, who hid and protected 1,268 vulnerable Hutu and Tutsi refugees from violent militias.United Artists/Lionsgate

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This modern Western, The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, set in the late 1800s, details the relationship between Robert Ford and Jesse James. Ford, who's idolized Jesse James, a famed Missouri outlaw, since childhood, tries hard to join James’ reformed gang, but gradually becomes resentful of the bandit leader. Warner Bros.

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JFK tells the story of New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison, who filed charges alleging that New Orleans businessman Clay Shaw was behind the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Through this court case, the film delves into the mysteries surrounding the assassination. Warner Bros.

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Lawrence of Arabia is a classic epic that tells the tale of T.E. Lawrence, a British military officer and diplomat stationed across the Middle East, in Egypt, Syria, and Iraq, during World War I. Lawrence helped create the Arab National Council, a group of Arab tribes that banded together to successfully rebel against the Ottoman Empire, which had ruled their lands for more than 400 years. Columbia Pictures

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Letters From Iwo Jima is a joint Japanese and American film that shows the Battle of Iwo Jima from the perspective of the members of the Imperial Japanese Army who fought the American military there during World War II. The film is a companion piece to Flags of Our Fathers, another film depicting the battle from the American perspective.Warner Bros.

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Milk tells the story of Harvey Milk, a politician who became the first openly gay elected official in the history of California when he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. The movie follows the life of this iconic figure of LGBT history.Focus Features

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Focusing on the days after her husband's assassination in 1963, the film Jackie shows how former first lady Jackie Kennedy managed to move on in the wake of the tragedy.Fox Searchlight

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The crime thriller Mississippi Burning tells a fictionalized version of the FBI’s investigation into the murders of Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner, three civil rights activists who were killed in Neshoba County, Mississippi in 1964. In their investigation, authorities must contend with hostility and a backlash from the town's residents, local police, and the Ku Klux Klan.Orion Pictures

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After a Palestinian terrorist group killed 11 Israeli athletes during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, the Israeli government launched a covert operation to retaliate against those who perpetrated the attacks. Munich tells that harrowing story.Universal Pictures

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James Cameron's Titanic tells the fictional story of Jack and Rose, two star-crossed lovers who meet aboard the historical vessel the RMS Titanic before it fatefully hits an iceberg.Paramount Pictures

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Spartacus tells the story of the historical titular figure, a Thracian gladiator who led a group of slave-gladiators to rebel against their masters in the Third Servile War, the last in a series of major slave rebellions in ancient Rome. Universal International

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Kingdom Of Heaven portrays a fictionalized version of the life of Balian of Ibelin, a noble from the Western-occupied Crusader nation, the Kingdom of Jerusalem. When the Ayyubid Sultanate, led by the Sultan Saladin, sought to retake Jerusalem through a siege, Balian led the occupying force to hold out for three days before ultimately surrendering. 20th Century Fox

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The King's Speech recounts the efforts of King George VI to rectify his stutter after becoming king in 1936. This speech therapy eventually allowed George VI to deliver rousing radio addresses during World War II, which broke out just a few years after his coronation. Momentum Pictures

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The Iron Lady is an unflinching portrayal of the life and career of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, tracing the controversial ruler's rise to power and her struggles at the top.The Weinstein Company

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In The Patriot, fictional farmer Benjamin Martin is driven to lead the Colonial Militia during the American Revolution when a sadistic British officer murders his son. The film then follows Martin’s wartime career, eventually culminating in his pivotal role in winning the actual Battle of Cowpens in South Carolina. Columbia Pictures

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The award-winning German film Das Boot delves into the claustrophobic world of life aboard a World War II German U-boat, exploring the boredom, filth, and sheer terror experienced by its crew. Neue Constantin Film

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Set during the American Civil War, Cold Mountain follows the fictional W.P. Inman, a wounded deserter from the Confederate Army near the end of the war who walks for months to return to Ada Monroe, the love of his life, in North Carolina. Miramax Films

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Set during the Napoleonic Wars, Master And Commander focuses on the fictional Jack Aubrey, a brash British captain who pushes his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a formidable French war vessel around South America.20th Century Fox

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Adapted from a popular play, Amadeus is a film about the purported rivalry between Italian composer Antonio Salieri and his younger nemesis, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.Orion Pictures

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Set during the French and Indian War in Colonial America, The Last Of The Mohicans tells the story of three trappers, one British, one a white man adopted by the Native American Mohican tribe, and the last a Mohican, who must protect a British colonel's daughter and bring her to her father in the Adirondack Mountains.20th Century Fox

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From Apollo 13 To Braveheart, Discover 55 Of The Best Historical Movies

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The True Story Behind Schindler's List, One Of The Best Historical Movies Of All Time

Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List is widely considered one of the most impactful history movies ever created. Starring Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes, the 1993 film tells the story of a German industrialist named Oskar Schindler — and how he saved 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust.

Initially moving to Poland to profit from World War II, Schindler was a member of the Nazi Party and sought to exploit cheap Jewish labor for his enamelware factory. Initially, Schindler's allegiance with the Nazi Party and his hiring of Jewish workers was simply a practical maneuver. That changed, however, when the Nazis began exterminating Jews en masse.

"I hated the brutality, the sadism, and the insanity of Nazism," Schindler later said. "I just couldn't stand by and see people destroyed."

Wikimedia CommonsOskar Schindler's heroic — yet complicated — life led to the creation of one of the best historical movies of all time.

The industrialist used his wealth, connections within the Nazi Party, and sheer ingenuity to shield his Jewish workers from deportation and death. He eventually compiled a list of over 1,200 men, women, and children, all of whom he deemed essential to his factory's operations.

As seen in the historical movie, Schindler's list effectively saved his Jewish employees and their families from the gas chambers of Auschwitz and other death camps. Meanwhile, Schindler spent vast sums of money bribing Nazi officials like Amon Goeth to keep his workers safe and ensured the safety of additional Jewish people by adding them to his list.

By the war's end, Schindler had exhausted his fortune on bribes and the care of his Jewish workers. The Jews he saved, in turn, never forgot his altruism. After the war, the near-penniless Schindler was supported by grateful survivors and honored for his humanitarian efforts.

He was later recognized by Yad Vashem in Israel as one of the Righteous Among the Nations, an honorific used to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis.

The Manhattan Project And The Inspiration Behind Oppenheimer

Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer is a more recently produced history movie that took home seven Academy Awards in 2024. Inspired by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin's American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the film recounts the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project, and the creation of the atomic bomb.

J. Robert Oppenheimer was a theoretical physicist, now often called the "father of the atomic bomb" for his role in the Manhattan Project — the United States' World War II endeavor to develop the first atomic weapons.

Wikimedia CommonsJ. Robert Oppenheimer, the "father of the atomic bomb," inspired one of the best historical movies in recent memory.

During World War II, with the threat of Nazi Germany developing its own nuclear weapons, the U.S. government initiated the Manhattan Project, and Oppenheimer was appointed as the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico. There, he oversaw the development of the atomic bomb.

Under Oppenheimer's leadership, the project successfully tested the first nuclear weapon — in a detonation called "Trinity" — in July 1945.

The ethical and moral implications of this monumental achievement weighed heavily on Oppenheimer. Despite his crucial role in developing the atomic bomb, he became a vocal opponent of nuclear weapons in the post-war years. He advocated for international control of nuclear power and opposed the development of the even more destructive hydrogen bomb.

Eventually, during the Cold War, his past associations and outspoken political views led to the U.S. government becoming suspicious of his loyalty.

In 1954, during the height of anti-Communist sentiment in the United States, Oppenheimer's security clearance was revoked in a highly publicized hearing, effectively ending his government advisory career.

The Real Lawrence Of Arabia Who Inspired One Of The Best Historical Movies

Lawrence of Arabia is a classic history movie based on the life of T.E. Lawrence, a British Army officer whose experiences during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire (which took place during World War I) were popularized in his own autobiographical account, Seven Pillars of Wisdom.

Lawrence played a significant role in supporting the Arab tribes in their rebellion against the Ottoman Empire from 1916 to 1918. Fluent in Arabic and deeply versed in the local culture of modern-day Saudi Arabia, Lawrence acted as a liaison between the Arab tribes and the British government.

Wikimedia CommonsT.E. Lawrence standing next to an early Hittite carving near Aleppo.

Lawrence's strategy primarily included the introduction of unconventional guerrilla warfare tactics, which proved to be highly effective against the much more conventional Ottoman forces. He also helped organize the Arab tribes and coordinate attacks on the Ottoman supply lines.

Despite his successes on the battlefield, Lawrence was deeply troubled by the post-war political arrangements, especially since British promises made to the Arab leaders regarding their independence were not fully honored.

Lawrence's life was ultimately marked by his extraordinary achievements during the war — and his subsequent disillusionment with the aftermath.

After this look at the best historical movies, check out these fantastic behind-the-scenes photos from some of the world's most iconic films. Then, learn the true story of Wladyslaw Szpilman.