# The best historical movies: 9 films about real events in world history

> Nine of the best historical movies, from The Battle of Algiers, Das Boot and Schindler's List to Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, The Pianist, Downfall, 12 Years a Slave and Dunkirk.

Source: https://rankiew.app/blog/best-historical-movies
Published: 2026-07-28 · Updated: 2026-11-11
Author: Rankiew
Tags: lists, history, drama

Cinema can bring history to life. This list gathers nine films set during real historical events, in release order, with posters, the directors and the main cast.

For each film we explain the real events it shows, how it was made and what to watch for. Several of these films deal with war, genocide and slavery, so we also say which ones are especially hard to watch.

# How to watch history on film

A historical film is not a lesson but an interpretation. To tell a story in two or three hours, filmmakers compress years into days, combine several real people into one character and invent private conversations nobody recorded. The best films stay true to the spirit and the main facts of the events even when the details change.

Many of these films are based on memoirs, novels by witnesses or interviews with survivors. That gives them a strong point of view, often from a single person inside the events. Knowing whose eyes we are seeing through helps us understand what the film shows and what it leaves out.

Historical films also say something about the time when they were made. A war film from the sixties, the nineties or today shows the same past in different ways. Watching them with that in mind, and reading a little about the real events afterward, makes the experience much richer.

# How we chose

We chose films built around real historical events, such as wars, genocide and slavery, by critical reception and impact. Films dramatize and simplify, so this is not a numbered ranking and not a history textbook.

We chose films that are widely praised by critics and historians for how they bring real events to life, and that had a lasting influence on how people remember those events. We wanted different periods and places, from the Middle Ages to the Second World War and colonial Africa.

The films are in release order. Under each one you will find the history behind the story, how the film was made and what makes it stand out, so you can choose based on the period or subject that interests you.

## The Battle of Algiers (1966)

::film[The Battle of Algiers|1966]

Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo. Starring Jean Martin.

**The history behind it:** The Battle of Algiers shows the struggle for independence in Algeria against French rule, focusing on the years 1954 to 1957 in the old Casbah of Algiers. Gillo Pontecorvo filmed it in the real streets of the city, with many non-professional actors, and Saadi Yacef, a leader of the independence movement, helped produce it and played a role based on himself.

![Scene from The Battle of Algiers (1966)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/1.jpg)

Notice the black and white images, shot to look like newsreel footage, and how the film shows violence on both sides without heroes or simple villains. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and the music by Ennio Morricone and Pontecorvo adds a sense of urgency.

It was banned in France for years and is still studied by filmmakers and military schools. It is ideal for viewers interested in political cinema and the history of colonialism.

## Das Boot (1981)

::film[Das Boot|1981]

Directed by Wolfgang Petersen. Starring Jürgen Prochnow.

**The history behind it:** Das Boot follows the crew of a German submarine in the Battle of the Atlantic during the Second World War. It is based on the novel by Lothar-Günther Buchheim, who sailed on a submarine as a war correspondent, and Wolfgang Petersen built a full-size replica of the vessel to film it.

![Scene from Das Boot (1981)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/2.jpg)

Watch how the camera runs through the narrow corridors and hatches, making you feel the cramped space, the heat and the fear during depth charge attacks. The film shows young sailors exhausted by a war they do not understand, rather than heroes.

It earned six Oscar nominations, including Best Director, an exceptional result for a German film. It is ideal for viewers who want an intense war film from an unusual point of view, and the longer director's cut is worth the time.

## Schindler's List (1993)

::film[Schindler's List|1993]

Directed by Steven Spielberg. Starring Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes.

**The history behind it:** Schindler's List tells the story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved more than a thousand Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his factories. Steven Spielberg filmed it in Kraków, in Poland, with Liam Neeson as Schindler, Ben Kingsley as his accountant and Ralph Fiennes as a cruel camp commander.

![Scene from Schindler's List (1993)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/3.jpg)

Notice the black and white photography and the small girl in a red coat, one of the few touches of color, which turns the horror into something personal. The score by John Williams, with Itzhak Perlman on violin, became one of the most famous film themes.

It won seven Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, and led Spielberg to create a foundation that records the testimonies of survivors. It is very hard to watch, but it is one of the most important films about the Holocaust.

## Braveheart (1995)

::film[Braveheart|1995]

Directed by Mel Gibson. Starring Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau.

**The history behind it:** Braveheart tells the story of William Wallace, who led a Scottish rebellion against the English king at the end of the thirteenth century. Mel Gibson directed it and played Wallace, with huge battle scenes filmed with thousands of extras in Ireland.

![Scene from Braveheart (1995)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/4.jpg)

Watch the battles, filmed with brutal realism, and the famous speech before the fight. It is also the film on this list that takes the most liberties with history: the kilts did not exist at the time, the Battle of Stirling Bridge is shown without the bridge, and the romance with the French princess Isabella could not have happened.

It won five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, and revived interest in Scottish history. It is ideal for viewers who want an epic adventure, as long as they treat it more as a legend than a history lesson.

## Saving Private Ryan (1998)

::film[Saving Private Ryan|1998]

Directed by Steven Spielberg. Starring Tom Hanks, Matt Damon.

**The history behind it:** Saving Private Ryan follows a group of American soldiers who, after the Normandy landings of June 1944, are sent to find a paratrooper whose brothers have all been killed. Steven Spielberg directed it with Tom Hanks as the captain leading the mission and Matt Damon as Ryan.

![Scene from Saving Private Ryan (1998)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/5.jpg)

The opening, about twenty-five minutes on Omaha Beach, is one of the most famous war scenes ever filmed, with shaky handheld cameras and faded colors. Many veterans said it was the closest a film had come to the real experience of combat.

Spielberg won the Oscar for Best Director, and the film won five Oscars in all. It changed the way war films were made, and it is ideal for viewers who want to understand the cost of the Second World War on the people who fought it.

## The Pianist (2002)

::film[The Pianist|2002]

Directed by Roman Polanski. Starring Adrien Brody.

**The history behind it:** The Pianist is based on the memoir of Władysław Szpilman, a Polish Jewish pianist who survived the Second World War hiding in Warsaw. Roman Polanski, who himself survived the Kraków ghetto as a child, directed it with Adrien Brody as Szpilman.

![Scene from The Pianist (2002)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/6.jpg)

Watch how the film shows the destruction of the Warsaw ghetto through the eyes of a man who can only watch and hide. Brody lost a lot of weight and learned to play Chopin for the role, and the scene in which he plays for a German officer is unforgettable.

It won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and three Oscars, including Best Director and Best Actor, making Brody the youngest winner in that category at the time. It is ideal for viewers who want an intimate, personal story of survival.

## Downfall (2004)

::film[Downfall|2004]

Directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel. Starring Bruno Ganz.

**The history behind it:** Downfall shows the last days of Adolf Hitler in his bunker in Berlin in April 1945, as the Soviet army surrounds the city. Oliver Hirschbiegel based the film on the memoir of Traudl Junge, Hitler's young secretary, and on the work of historians, with Bruno Ganz as Hitler.

![Scene from Downfall (2004)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/7.jpg)

Ganz's performance shows Hitler as a real person, sometimes calm and sometimes furious, which caused a debate in Germany about whether the film made him too human. A scene of his rage later became one of the most parodied clips on the internet, but the film itself is serious and chilling.

It was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. It is ideal for viewers interested in how the Nazi regime collapsed and how ordinary people around Hitler stayed loyal until the end.

## 12 Years a Slave (2013)

::film[12 Years a Slave|2013]

Directed by Steve McQueen. Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor.

**The history behind it:** 12 Years a Slave is based on the memoir of Solomon Northup, a free Black man from New York who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery in Louisiana. Steve McQueen directed it with Chiwetel Ejiofor as Northup, Michael Fassbender as a brutal plantation owner and Lupita Nyong'o as Patsey.

![Scene from 12 Years a Slave (2013)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/8.jpg)

Notice the long shots that do not cut away from the violence, forcing the viewer to see what slavery really meant. Nyong'o won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in her first feature film role.

It won three Oscars, including Best Picture, and McQueen became the first Black filmmaker to receive the Best Picture Oscar as a producer. It is very hard to watch, but it is one of the most powerful films about slavery in the United States.

## Dunkirk (2017)

::film[Dunkirk|2017]

Directed by Christopher Nolan. Starring Fionn Whitehead, Tom Hardy.

**The history behind it:** Dunkirk shows the evacuation of more than three hundred thousand British and French soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk, in France, in 1940. Christopher Nolan filmed on the real beaches, with Fionn Whitehead as a young soldier, Tom Hardy as a fighter pilot and Mark Rylance as a civilian sailor.

![Scene from Dunkirk (2017)](/blog/scenes/best-historical-movies/9.jpg)

Watch how the film tells three stories with different durations: one week on land, one day at sea and one hour in the air, which cross at the end. There is little dialogue, and the music by Hans Zimmer, inspired by the ticking of a clock, keeps the tension constant.

It won three Oscars, for editing and sound, and was filmed largely with IMAX cameras. It is ideal for viewers who want a tense, almost wordless experience, best seen on the largest possible screen.

# Where to start

Choose by the period or subject that interests you most:

- **The Second World War in combat:** *Saving Private Ryan*, *Dunkirk* or *Das Boot*.
- **The Holocaust:** *Schindler's List* or *The Pianist*.
- **The end of the Nazi regime:** *Downfall*.
- **Slavery in the United States:** *12 Years a Slave*.
- **Colonialism and independence:** *The Battle of Algiers*.
- **A medieval epic:** *Braveheart*.

Most of these films contain strong violence and very painful scenes, so check the age ratings, especially for Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan and 12 Years a Slave. Dunkirk is the most accessible, with tension more than graphic violence.

After watching, it is worth reading a little about the real events or watching a documentary on the same subject. Comparing the film with the history shows what the filmmakers chose to change and why.

# Frequently asked questions

## What are the best historical movies?

Among the most praised are Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, The Pianist, 12 Years a Slave and Das Boot.

## Are historical movies accurate?

Not fully. Films compress timelines, merge characters and invent scenes, so treat them as a starting point and read about the real events.

## Which historical movie should I watch first?

Start with *Schindler's List* for drama, *Dunkirk* for tension or *Das Boot* for a war film told from the German side.

## Which of these historical movies won the Oscar for Best Picture?

Schindler's List, Braveheart and 12 Years a Slave all won the Oscar for Best Picture.

## Which of these films is the least historically accurate?

Braveheart takes the most liberties, with anachronistic kilts, a battle shown without its famous bridge and a romance that could not have happened.

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*Sources: official studio releases, filmographies and public records.*