History 1, through 1606
These are movies based on historical, or pseudo-historical, events or people. Most are fictionalized historical dramas with some documentaries thrown in. The majority are probably only partially accurate, historically, at best.
Some period pieces, especially Oscar winners and classic works of literature when appropriate, are added as general cultural reference points for the time period.
List order is chronological by setting of the latest date in the film.
This list begins with the earliest pieces of recorded history through the Middle Ages and the beginning on the Enlightenment. Many of the first movies in this list are based on myth and/or literature, but they set the backdrop for later films from actual recorded history.
Some period pieces, especially Oscar winners and classic works of literature when appropriate, are added as general cultural reference points for the time period.
List order is chronological by setting of the latest date in the film.
This list begins with the earliest pieces of recorded history through the Middle Ages and the beginning on the Enlightenment. Many of the first movies in this list are based on myth and/or literature, but they set the backdrop for later films from actual recorded history.
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- DirectorJoseph DankhaStarsRavi BatistaJason BuhalisNouhara DankhaAs his one and only friend, Enkidu, dies in his arms, King Gilgamesh is faced with the ultimate truth that is his own mortality.Setting: approx 2,600 B.C. The oldest known piece of literature. May or may not be mythical.
Can be viewed on YouTube. There is also an 11 minute animated short on YouTube, which tells the actual story. - DirectorJonathan StampStarsAbdalla MahmoudHisham AbdullahMohamed AwadBased on the latest archaeological discoveries and combining dramatic reconstruction, location shooting and state-of-the-art CGI computer effects, this film travels back in time to reveal how the mighty structure of the Great Pyramid was built.Setting: 2,460 B.C.
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsRussell CroweJennifer ConnellyAnthony HopkinsNoah is chosen by God to undertake a momentous mission before an apocalyptic flood cleanses the world.Setting: 2,344 B.C.
- DirectorLouis LeterrierStarsSam WorthingtonLiam NeesonRalph FiennesPerseus, a demigod and the son of Zeus, battles the minions of Hades and the Underworld in order to stop them from conquering Olympus and Earth.Setting: 1,325 B.C.
- DirectorJonathan LiebesmanStarsSam WorthingtonLiam NeesonRosamund PikePerseus braves the treacherous underworld to rescue his father, Zeus, captured by his son, Ares, and brother Hades who unleash the ancient Titans upon the world.Setting: 1,315 B.C.
- DirectorCrispin ReeceStarsKeith DavidPaul KnopsDarcie RoseNoah endures God's wrath; Abraham reaches the Promised Land but still must prove his faith in God; Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt, and his faith in God is rewarded when the Red Sea parts to allow the Israelites to escape Pharaoh's chariots; Moses delivers his final message from God-the Ten Commandments.Up to Moses' Exodus
Setting: 1,300 B.C. - DirectorCrispin ReeceStarsKeith DavidJoe ForteShivaani GhaiWhile in exile, Moses is told by God at the Burning Bush that he will free the Israelites from slavery. Moses returns to Egypt and, with the help of ten devastating plagues and the miracle of the parting of the Red Sea, he leads the Israelites to freedom. At Mount Sinai, Moses receives laws from God that will prepare the Israelites for life in a new land.Setting: 1,300 B.C.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsChristian BaleJoel EdgertonBen KingsleyThe defiant leader Moses rises up against Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses II, setting six hundred thousand slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues.A much less hokey version of the Moses story. Yes, some of the portrayals of the plagues are hokey, but the film's overall symbolism is more obvious, thus believable as symbolism rather than as something to be taken literally.
Setting: 1,270 B.C. - DirectorRenny HarlinStarsKellan LutzGaia WeissScott AdkinsThe origin story of the mythical Greek hero. Betrayed by his stepfather, the King, and exiled and sold into slavery because of a forbidden love, Hercules must use his formidable powers to fight his way back to his rightful kingdom.Setting estimate: 1,234 B.C.
- DirectorBrett RatnerStarsDwayne JohnsonJohn HurtIan McShaneHaving endured his legendary twelve labors, Hercules, the Greek demigod, has his life as a sword-for-hire tested when the King of Thrace and his daughter seek his aid in defeating a tyrannical warlord.Most attempts to place Hercules' existence, or even legend, in time, suggest times far before the 358 B.C. period noted at the beginning of the movie. 1,234 B.C. is what I'm going with for the setting.
- DirectorTarsem SinghStarsHenry CavillMickey RourkeJohn HurtTheseus is a mortal man chosen by Zeus to lead the fight against the ruthless King Hyperion, who is on a rampage across Greece to obtain a weapon that can destroy humanity.Setting: 1,228 B.C.
- DirectorGiorgos TzavellasStarsIrene PapasManos KatrakisMaro KodouAntigone defies her uncle's decree that her traitorous brother should go unburied and therefore find no rest in the afterlife; however, her actions have tragic consequences.Setting: 1,210 B.C.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsBrad PittEric BanaOrlando BloomAn adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces.Setting: 1,184 B.C.
- DirectorMichael CacoyannisStarsIrene PapasKostas KazakosKostas KarrasTo appease offended gods before going to war, a commander must sacrifice his favorite daughter to them but does so under the pretext of marrying her off.Set at the start of the Trojan War, in 1,194 B.C., but mentions Helen leaving, so it makes some sense to see that story first ("Troy").
- DirectorMichael CacoyannisStarsKatharine HepburnVanessa RedgraveGeneviève BujoldThe women of Troy face enslavement after the fall of their city.Setting: 1,184 B.C.
- DirectorMichael CacoyannisStarsIrene PapasGiannis FertisAleka KatselliLiving in exile after their father's death, the children of an usurped and murdered king converge to exact eye-for-an-eye revenge.Setting: 1,183 B.C.
- StarsArmand AssanteGreta ScacchiIsabella RosselliniFollows Odysseus on his wanderings back to Ithaca following the Trojan War.Setting end: 1,174 B.C.
- DirectorTony MitchellStarsKeith DavidAndrew ScarboroughJalaal HartleyJoshua conquers Jericho; Delilah betrays Samson as the Israelites battle the Philistines; Samuel anoints David king, a move that could throw the nation into civil war; Saul is consumed with jealousy when David defeats Goliath; King David ushers in a golden age for Israel, but is soon seduced by power and lust for Bathsheba; God forgives David, and his son, Solomon, builds God's temple in Jerusalem.
- DirectorTony MitchellStarsKeith DavidFrancis MageeLaurie Paul CalvertKing Saul and the Israelite army face seemingly impossible odds against the Philistine army and their champion, Goliath. An unlikely here, the young David, defeats Goliath and goes on to lead the Israelites to victory against the Philistines. Saul fears that David means to steal his throne and so betrays his loyal warrior. This is Saul's undoing, and David becomes King and later captures Jerusalem for the Israelites.
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsPaulette GoddardGeorge NaderEduard FranzThe aging Ahab, king of Israel, comes under the influence of a young and beautiful but scheming pagan woman named Jezebel and, against the advice of his advisers and the prophet Elijah, marries her. Her plan to introduce her pagan idols to Israel angers God, who decides to wreak vengeance on Israel.Jezebel was the wife of King Ahab of northern Israel, c. 870 B.C. She got her husband to worship "false idols".
- DirectorMichael O. SajbelStarsTiffany DupontLuke GossJohn NobleIn Biblical times, a girl disguises her Jewish origins when the Persian king comes looking for a new bride among his subjects.Setting: 481 B.C.
- DirectorZack SnyderStarsGerard ButlerLena HeadeyDavid WenhamIn the ancient battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas and 300 Spartans fight against Xerxes and his massive Persian army.Setting: 480 B.C.
- DirectorNoam MurroStarsSullivan StapletonEva GreenLena HeadeyGreek general Themistocles of Athens leads the naval charge against invading Persian forces led by mortal-turned-god Xerxes and Artemisia, vengeful commander of the Persian navy.Setting: 480 B.C.
- DirectorDavid GrubinStarsRichard GereBlair BrownThe Dalai LamaAfter 400 BC, a new philosophy was born in South east Asia, generated from the ideas of Buddha, a mysterious Prince from Nepal who gained enlightenment while he sat under a large, shapely fig tree.
- DirectorRoberto RosselliniStarsJean SylvèreAnne CaprileGiuseppe MannajuoloA false accusation leads the philosopher Socrates to trial and condemnation in 4th century BC Athens.Setting: 399 B.C.