Historically accurate movies and TV shows

The list contains the best, new and most relevant historically accurate movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out historically accurate, period drama, realistic, serious, dramatic and epic films and TV shows about / with sacrifice, culture clash, biopic, runaway, dialogue, betrayal, mentor, storytelling, historical event and greed plots mostly in Drama, History and Biography genres shot in USA, UK, France and other countries.
historically accurate movies
83
TOP 10 movies tagged as historically accurate: The Mission (1986), The Lion in Winter (1968), Gandhi (1982), The Last Emperor (1987), Glory (1989), Black Robe (1991), Apollo 13 (1995), Lincoln (2012), Spotlight (2015), Sandburg's Lincoln (1974).

List of historically accurate movies

 7.4
 70K
The Mission (1986)
Genre: Adventure, Drama, History
Country: UK, France, USA
Duration: 125 min.
Story: When a Spanish Jesuit goes into the South American wilderness to build a mission in the hope of converting the Indians of the region, a slave hunter is converted and joins his mission. When Spain sells the colony to Portugal, they are forced to ...
Style: epic, christian film, thought provoking, breathtaking, visually stunning ...
Plot: jungle, slavery, clergy, redemption, colonialism, missionary, massacre, river, native american, jesuit, genocide, religion ...
Time: 18th century, ancient times, year 1986
Place: south america, portugal, argentina, brazil, latin america ...
Is relevant?
The Lion in Winter (1968)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 134 min.
Story: 1183 AD: King Henry II's three sons all want to inherit the throne, but he won't commit to a choice. They and his wife variously plot to force him.
Style: costume drama, suspense, political, factual, atmospheric ...
Plot: power struggle, political intrigue, king, christmas, british history, dysfunctional family, royalty, medieval, infidelity, monarch, british royal family, monarchy ...
Time: middle ages, medieval times, 12th century, year 1968, 20th century
Place: england, france, britain
Is relevant?
 8.0
 247K
Gandhi (1982)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK, India
Duration: 191 min.
Story: In the early years of the 20th century, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a British-trained lawyer, forsakes all worldly possessions to take up the cause of Indian independence. Faced with armed resistance from the British government, Gandhi adopts a policy of ...
Style: spiritual, epic, political, inspirational, breathtaking ...
Audience: kids, teens
Plot: protest, idealism, biopic, freedom, politics, life philosophy, independence, british empire, leadership, religious intolerance, assassination, indian history ...
Time: 1930s, 1920s, year 1948, 19th century, victorian era ...
Place: india, south africa, britain, los angeles, new delhi ...
Is relevant?
The Last Emperor (1987)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: China, Italy, UK, France
Duration: 163 min.
Story: A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation ...
Style: epic, breathtaking, political, visually appealing, visually stunning ...
Plot: childhood, chinese history, world war two, biopic, revolution, emperor, politics, prison, eunuch, drug addiction, communism, symbolism ...
Time: 1950s, 1930s, 1920s, 1940s, 1900s ...
Place: china, beijing china, asia, japan, east asia
Is relevant?
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 7.8
 153K
Glory (1989)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min.
Story: Robert Gould Shaw leads the US Civil War's first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices of both his own Union army and the Confederates.
Style: epic, inspirational, period piece, suspense, emotional ...
Plot: american civil war, battles, civil war, military, slavery, prejudice, racism, war, black history, u.s. civil war, human spirit, african american ...
Time: 19th century, year 1989, 1800s, 1860s, 20th century ...
Place: massachusetts, america, south carolina, georgia, africa ...
Is relevant?
 7.1
 8K
Black Robe (1991)
Genre: Adventure, Drama, War
Country: Canada, Australia
Duration: 101 min.
Story: In the 17th century a Jesuit priest and a young companion are escorted through the wilderness of Quebec by Algonquin Indians to find a distant mission in the dead of winter. The Jesuit experiences a spiritual journey while his young companion falls ...
Style: period piece, realistic, bleak, historically accurate, sad ...
Plot: native american, shaman, wilderness, indians, christian, religion, christianity, american indian, jesuit, nature, church, snow ...
Time: 17th century, year 1991
Place: canada, quebec, america, india, france
Is relevant?
 7.7
 334K
Apollo 13 (1995)
Genre: Adventure, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 140 min.
Story: The true story of technical troubles that scuttle the Apollo 13 lunar mission in 1971, risking the lives of astronaut Jim Lovell and his crew, with the failed journey turning into a thrilling saga of heroism. Drifting more than 200,000 miles from ...
Style: factual, realistic, inspirational, suspense, breathtaking ...
Audience: teens, family outing, kids, boys' night
Plot: astronaut, nasa, survival, space travel, moon, disaster, rescue, space program, space exploration, race against time, trapped in space, against the odds ...
Time: 70s, year 1970, 20th century, year 1969, 60s ...
Place: houston texas, usa, north america, texas, pacific ocean ...
Is relevant?
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, War
Country: USA
Duration: 138 min.
Story: After an abrupt and violent encounter with a French warship inflicts severe damage upon his ship, a captain of the British Royal Navy begins a chase over two oceans to capture or destroy the enemy, though he must weigh his commitment to duty and ...
Style: exciting, tense, period piece, epic, costume drama ...
Audience: teens
Plot: ship, napoleonic wars, navy, naval battle, sea battle, battles, sailing, warship, heroic mission, royal navy, british navy, sea ...
Time: 18th century, 19th century, 1800s, year 2003, ancient times ...
Place: britain, england, america, brazil, europe ...
Is relevant?
 7.3
 283K
Lincoln (2012)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA, India
Duration: 150 min.
Story: A revealing drama that focuses on the 16th President's tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish ...
Style: political, period piece, thought provoking, costume drama, factual ...
Audience: teens
Plot: president, politics, civil war, american civil war, american history, idealism, historical character, slavery, politician, racism, head of state, abraham lincoln ...
Time: 19th century, 1860s, ancient times, 1800s, victorian era ...
Place: washington d.c., usa, america, california
Is relevant?
 8.1
 531K
Spotlight (2015)
Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 129 min.
Story: In 2001, editor Marty Baron of The Boston Globe assigns a team of journalists to investigate allegations against John Geoghan, an unfrocked priest accused of molesting more than 80 boys. Led by editor Walter "Robby" Robinson, reporters ...
Style: factual, tense, suspense, clever, cerebral ...
Audience: chick flick, adult
Plot: journalism, investigative journalism, conspiracy, newspaper, lawyer, investigation, sexual abuse, catholic church, cover up, child abuse, journalist, expose ...
Time: year 2001, year 2015, year 2016, 70s, 2000s ...
Place: boston, massachusetts, new england, nova scotia, florida
Is relevant?
Sandburg's Lincoln (1974)
Genre: Drama, War
Country: USA
TV show
Story: A miniseries about President Abraham Lincoln.
Style: serious, educational, reflective, historically accurate, epic ...
Plot: civil war, american civil war, abraham lincoln, president, leadership, emancipation, biopic, slavery, character study, politics, bravery, grief ...
Time: 19th century
Place: illinois, washington d.c.
Is relevant?
Atatürk 1881-1919 (2024)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: Turkey
Duration: 50 min.
TV show
Story: ATATÜRK 1st Movie, "A Mehmet Ada Öztekin movie", which tells the story of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk from his childhood years to the War of Independence, will be in cinemas on November 3rd ????
Style: historical drama, inspirational, heroic, period piece, historically accurate ...
Plot: biopic, leadership, patriotism, revolution, character study, nationalism, military history, sacrifice, realism, ideology, coming of age, power struggle ...
Time: 1910s
Place: ottoman empire, istanbul turkey, turkey, gallipoli
Is relevant?
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Moulin (2026)
Genre: Biography, History, War
Country: France
Story: The story of Jean Moulin, a French civil servant and resistant who succeeded in unifying the main networks of the French Resistance in World War II, and who served as the first President of the National Council of the Resistance during the German ...
Style: tense, bleak, poignant, educational, suspenseful ...
Plot: heroism, biopic, resistance movement, nazi germany, world war two, sacrifice, occupation, french resistance, patriotism, leadership, martyrdom, interrogation ...
Time: 1940s
Place: france, paris france
Is relevant?
Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years (1981)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years is an 8-part 1981 drama serial based on the life of Winston Churchill, and particularly his years in enforced exile from political position during the 1920s and 30s. It was written and directed by Ferdinand ...
Style: historical drama, period piece, serious, reflective, melancholic ...
Plot: winston churchill, exile, british politics, world war two, biopic, leadership, character study, resilience, mature, rise to power, isolation, conservative ...
Time: 1930s, 1920s
Place: london
Is relevant?
 6.2
 57
I, Mattoni (2016)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: Czech Republic
TV show
Story: Biographical series about Heinrich Mattoni, capitalist of the early period of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, founder of the world-famous mineral water bottling company, a man of a dynamic and controversial fate.
Style: family saga, semi autobiographical, psychological, captivating, disturbing ...
Audience: adult
Plot: family business, self made man, husband wife relationship, flashback, ambition, biopic, capitalism, entrepreneurship, mogul, ambitious man, businessman, male female relationship ...
Time: 19th century, turn of the century
Place: central europe, czech republic
Is relevant?
 6.9
 210
St. Francis (2002)
Genre: Drama
Country: Italy
Duration: 192 min.
Story: The life of Saint Francis, a saint who was born rich, in the medieval Tuscany, and abandoned all his goods to live closer to the population and is nowadays remembered as the saint protector of Italy.
Style: psychological, captivating, thrilling, contemplative, educational ...
Plot: saint, medieval, faith, franciscan, loyalty, spiritual journey, religious, biopic, catholicism, lifestyle, rich, religious faith ...
Time: 13th century
Place: tuscany, italy
Is relevant?
 3.3
 2K
731 (2025)
Genre: Drama, History, Horror, Thriller, War
Country: China
Duration: 125 min.
Story: Based on true events set during WWII in Northeast China, an ordinary man is thrust into a turbulent fate against the backdrop of the inhumane bacterial experiments conducted by the Japanese Imperial Army's notorious Unit 731.
Style: medical horror, disturbing, historical drama, bleak, tense ...
Plot: world war two, war crime, biological warfare, human experiment, atrocity, trauma, survival, prisoner, dehumanization, cover up, graphic violence, ethical dilemma ...
Is relevant?
The Battle of Algiers (1966)
Genre: Drama, War
Country: Italy, Algeria
Duration: 121 min.
Story: Tracing the struggle of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale to gain freedom from French colonial rule as seen through the eyes of Ali from his start as a petty thief to his rise to prominence in the organisation and capture by the French in ...
Style: black and white, political, philosophical, art house, cerebral ...
Plot: revolution, colonialism, protest, torture, military, muslim, french algerian war, politics, terrorism, insurrection, independence, revolutionary ...
Time: year 1957, 20th century, 50s, year 1954, year 1966 ...
Place: africa, algeria, middle east, france, north africa ...
Is relevant?
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 8.0
 60K
Andrei Rublev (1966)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 189 min.
Story: An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev. Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk eventually gains a reputation for his art. But after Rublev witnesses ...
Style: breathtaking, atmospheric, philosophical, black and white, art house ...
Audience: family friendly
Plot: painter, artist, art, religion, monk, biopic, medieval, human spirit, christianity, painting, hunger, saint ...
Time: 15th century, middle ages, medieval times, ancient times, year 1966 ...
Place: russia, soviet union, ussr, moscow russia
Is relevant?
For Love and Gold (1966)
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, History
Country: Italy, France, Spain
Duration: 120 min.
Story: A group of rogues steal a scroll granting its bearer the property of the land of Aurocastro in Apulia (south of Italy). They elect a shaggy knight, Brancaleone from Norcia, as their leader, and decide to get possession of this supposedly wealthy ...
Style: humorous, historically accurate, cult classic, not serious, parody ...
Plot: medieval, ancient, crusade, politics, circus, kingdom, cavalry, disorder, escapades, obsessive quest, misfit, goofy hero ...
Time: medieval times, middle ages, year 1966, 11th century
Place: italy
Is relevant?
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)
Genre: Comedy, Musical
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 99 min.
Story: A wily slave must unite a virgin courtesan and his young smitten master to earn his freedom.
Style: funny, humorous, talky, melancholic, light ...
Audience: kids, adult
Plot: ancient rome, chase, broadway, slavery, culture clash, fighting the system, love triangle, farce, ancient, husband wife relationship, transformation, justice ...
Time: 1st century, year 1966, 70s, 60s
Place: rome italy, italy, europe
Is relevant?
A Man for All Seasons (1966)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 120 min.
Story: A Man for All Seasons is the filmed version of the life of Thomas More. An English man comes to Sir Thomas More to ask if he can divorce his wife since King Henry VIII has made it illegal. Sir Thomas More stands up in opposition to the King even ...
Style: period piece, political, costume drama, inspirational, spiritual ...
Audience: family outing
Plot: catholic, renaissance, historical event, politics, royalty, lawyer, courtroom drama, courtroom, saint, monarch, british history, idealism ...
Time: 16th century, middle ages, ancient times, medieval times, year 1966
Place: england, britain, persia, europe, london ...
Is relevant?
The Rise of Louis XIV (1966)
Genre: Biography, History
Country: France
Duration: 90 min.
Story: Cardinal Mazarin dies, leaving a power vacuum in which the young Louis asserts his intention to govern as well as rule. Mazarin's fiscal advisor, Colbert, warns against Fouquet, the Superintendant who has been systematically looting the ...
Style: political, epic, historical drama, historically accurate, baroque ...
Plot: king of france, french history, royalty, fashion, royal family, royal court, musketeer, colonialism, dialogue, french royalty, peplum, time machine ...
Time: 17th century, year 1966
Place: france, versailles
Is relevant?
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Too Late the Hero (1970)
Genre: Action, Drama, War
Country: USA
Duration: 145 min.
Story: A WWII film set on a Pacific island. Japanese and allied forces occupy different parts of the island. When a group of British soldiers are sent on a mission behind enemy lines, things don't go exactly to plan. This film differs in that some of ...
Style: suspenseful, tense, suspense, realistic, psychological ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: world war two, jungle, war, survival, military, british army, anti war, danger, rivalry, soldier, rescue, combat ...
Time: year 1942, 70s
Place: the philippines, japan, tokyo, england
Is relevant?
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
Genre: Action, Drama, History, War
Country: Japan, USA
Duration: 144 min.
Story: In the summer of 1941, the United States and Japan seem on the brink of war after constant embargos and failed diplomacy come to no end. "Tora! Tora! Tora!", named after the code words use by the lead Japanese pilot to indicate they had ...
Style: epic, factual, talky, intense, serious ...
Audience: family outing
Plot: world war two, war, navy, fighter plane, u.s. navy, japanese military, aviation, battles, warship, aerial combat, military life, world war ...
Time: year 1970, 1940s, year 1941, 20th century, 70s
Place: hawaii, pearl harbor, japan, washington d.c., asia ...
Is relevant?
 7.3
 14K
Waterloo (1970)
Genre: Action, Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: Italy, Soviet Union
Duration: 123 min.
Story: After defeating France and imprisoning Napoleon on Elba, ending two decades of war, Europe is shocked to find Napoleon has escaped and has caused the French Army to defect from the King back to him. The best of the British generals, the Duke of ...
Style: epic, serious, exciting, emotional, stylized ...
Plot: napoleonic wars, napoleon bonaparte, battles, british army, war, military, medieval, state affairs, politics, military life, tragic hero, betrayal ...
Time: 19th century, victorian era, 1800s, 18th century, 1810s ...
Place: europe, belgium, britain, soviet union, france ...
Is relevant?
Hester Street (1975)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min.
Story: Steven Keats plays a Russian emigre who prides himself on the way he's molded himself into a real Yankee in the USA, though the world he lives in, New York's Lower East Side in the late 19th century, is almost exclusively populated by ...
Style: black and white, independent film, romantic, historically accurate, aesthetic ...
Plot: culture clash, rabbi, infidelity, immigrant, immigration, woman, marriage, u.s. constitution, street life, women's rights, machismo, jewish history ...
Time: 1890s, 19th century, year 1975, 1900s, 20th century
Place: manhattan new york city, lower east side manhattan new york city, new york, usa, egypt ...
Is relevant?
 7.8
 15K
Breaker Morant (1980)
Genre: Drama, History, War
Country: Australia
Duration: 107 min.
Story: During the Boer War, three Australian lieutenants are on trial for shooting Boer prisoners. Though they acted under orders, they are being used as scapegoats by the General Staff, who hopes to distance themselves from the irregular practices of the ...
Style: tense, thought provoking, factual, witty, intense ...
Plot: politics, lawyer, courtroom, war, military, murder, court, military life, tragedy, world politics, soldier, colonialism ...
Time: 1900s, 19th century, year 1980, edwardian era, 20th century ...
Place: south africa, australia, africa, south australia, new zealand ...
Is relevant?
 8.7
 1.4M
Goodfellas (1990)
Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 145 min.
Story: The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.
Style: rough, homoerotic, realistic, epic, inspirational ...
Audience: boys' night, adult
Plot: organized crime, mafia, gangster, rise and fall, violence, mentor, mobster, drug traffic, cosa nostra, italian mafia, murder, psychopath ...
Time: 50s, 70s, 90s, year 1990, year 1980 ...
Place: brooklyn new york city, new york, florida, italy, usa ...
Is relevant?
 7.6
 29K
Conspiracy (2001)
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 96 min.
Story: The historical recreation of the 1942 Wannsee Conference, in which Nazi and SS leaders gathered in a Berlin suburb to discuss the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question". Lead by SS-General Reinhard Heydrich, this group of high ranking ...
Style: factual, political, disturbing, bleak, atmospheric ...
Plot: holocaust, genocide, nazi, politics, world war two, conspiracy, third reich, ss officer, shoah, war crime, brutality, racism ...
Time: 1940s, 20th century, year 1942, post world war two, 1930s
Place: berlin germany, germany, europe, poland
Is relevant?