100 best history movies

Newly elected President Nelson Mandela knows his nation remains racially and economically divided in the wake of apartheid. Believing he can bring his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela rallies South Africa's rugby team as they make their historic run to the 1995 Rugby World Cup Championship match.

Two best friends, So-yool and Yeon-hee, dream of becoming the top artists in Seoul together. But their friendship doesn't last long as Yoon-woo, So-yool's first love and songwriter, falls in love with Yeon-hee and her voice. So-yool's feeling of jealousy and inferiority towards Yeon-hee grows by the day, and she eventually makes a drastic decision to bring the two lovers down.

In the year 180, the death of emperor Marcus Aurelius throws the Roman Empire into chaos. Maximus is one of the Roman army's most capable and trusted generals and a key advisor to the emperor. As Marcus' devious son Commodus ascends to the throne, Maximus is set to be executed. He escapes, but is captured by slave traders. Renamed Spaniard and forced to become a gladiator, Maximus must battle to the death with other men for the amusement of paying audiences.

King Charles VI declares that Knight Jean de Carrouges settle his dispute with his squire, Jacques Le Gris, by challenging him to a duel.

In 1987 Korea, under an oppressive military regime, a college student gets killed during a police interrogation involving torture. Government of officials are quick to cover up the death and order the body to be cremated. A prosecutor who is supposed to sign the cremation release, raises questions about a 21-year-old kid dying of a heart attack, and he begins looking into the case for truth. Despite a systematic attempt to silence everyone involved in the case, the truth gets out, causing an eruption of public outrage.

Haunted by his mysterious past, a devoted high school football coach leads a scrawny team of orphans to the state championship during the Great Depression and inspires a broken nation along the way.

May, 1980. Man-seob is a taxi driver in Seoul who lives from hand to mouth, raising his young daughter alone. One day, he hears that there is a foreigner who will pay big money for a drive down to Gwangju city. Not knowing that he’s a German journalist with a hidden agenda, Man-seob takes the job.

Ancient Korea, 17th century. The powerful Khan of the Jurchen tribe of Manchuria, who fights the Ming dinasty to gain China, becomes the first ruler of the Qing dinasty and demands from King In-jo of Joseon to bow before him; but he refuses, being loyal to the Mings. On December 14th, 1636, the Qing horde invades Joseon, so King In-jo and his court shelter in the mountain fortress of Namhan and prepare to defend the kingdom.

In 1957 Pierre Duran, a graduate of the École Normale, comes to Moscow on a university exchange. Here he gets acquainted with the ballerina of the Bolshoi Theatre, Kira Galkina, and the photographer Valeri Uspensky. Thanks to this acquaintance, Pierre plunges into the cultural life of the capital, not only official but also underground culture. He starts an affair with Kira. But his studies and his acquaintance with Soviet life are not Pierre’s only aim. He is searching for his father, the White officer Tatischev, who was arrested in the late 1930s. Their meeting is the film’s climax. During his year in Moscow Pierre lives a whole life, absolutely unlike everything that he knew before. When Pierre returns to Paris, he hopes to see Kira again some time. In the pocket of his jacket he has a microfilm with the issue of the underground journal “Gramota”.

In 1897, an army of 21 Sikhs battles 10,000 Afghans to prevent the Saragarhi Fort from being taken down.

Fall of 1941. Freshly graduated from school, Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya volunteers for a partisan unit. During an assignment, her comrades are ambushed, and she is captured by the Nazis. She endures hours of grueling interrogations and horrendous torture, but defiantly refuses to divulge any information that would compromise other units’ partisan missions. She doesn’t even tell her captors her real name. Zoya’s sacrifice was not in vain; it ignited fire in the hearts of millions of people and became the symbol of selfless heroism during WWII. She is one of the most celebrated heroes of that time.

Mexico City, November 1901. The police raid a private home where a secret party is being held. Among those attending is the son-in-law of President Porfirio Díaz.

The story of Joseon's tyrant king Yeonsan who exploits the populace for his own carnal pleasures, his seemingly loyal retainer who controls him and all court dealings, and a woman who seeks vengeance.

Enraged at the slaughter of Murron, his new bride and childhood love, Scottish warrior William Wallace slays a platoon of the local English lord's soldiers. This leads the village to revolt and, eventually, the entire country to rise up against English rule.

Diplomats from the North and South Korean embassies in Somalia attempt a daring joint escape from Mogadishu when the outbreak of civil war leaves them stranded.

In the year of 754 AD, during a time of epic battles and bloodshed, the legend of the pagan warrior king, Rebad, is born, but so is a new weapon against his people: Christianity. Redbad must ultimately unite a Viking army powerful enough to defeat the seemingly invincible Franks.

Set in the late 1920s, The Age of Shadows follows the cat-and-mouse game that unfolds between a group of resistance fighters trying to bring in explosives from Shanghai to destroy key Japanese facilities in Seoul, and Japanese agents trying to stop them.

Forced into exile by the English after being crowned King of Scotland, legendary warrior Robert the Bruce fights to reclaim the throne.

The story is set at the times of Peter the Great’s reforms. At those times when an emerging empire was wreaking havoc on provincial medievalism. The times were the melting pot of everything – of beliefs and of nations. The history of Russian Asia was made by captive Swedes, outlanders, Bokharan merchants, civil servants and officers, convicts, architects and chroniclers, Chinese smugglers, shamans and escaped dissenters, Orthodox missionaries and warlike steppe-dwellers Jungars.

Tae-yeul, a swordsman in his thirties goes out to find his only daughter after losing one of his eyes. Min Seung-ho, the Joseon dynasty's best swordsman chooses an ordinary simple life after perceiving the transient nature of power. Gurutai, the best swordsman in Qing dynasty aspires to become the best even in the Joseon dynasty.

Set during the Silla dynasty, Sam Maekjong is the son of the fallen king and present queen regent, Jiso, but he has been kept in hiding for protection ever since he was a young boy, when his father was murdered. Over the years the powerful nobles have tried and failed to usurp power from Jiso, causing her to grow wary and later even reluctant to hand the throne over. As her son comes of age, she creates the Hwarang, an elite group of male youth who train in fighting and education. Their existence cuts across the existing power factions and Sam Maekjong is amidst their ranks under the false name Kim Ji-Dwi, unbeknownst to other Hwarang members.

The true story of 7 oddly dressed fearless men of ottoman army fight against cruel Vlad.

Russian troops occupied Paris. Russia became the first power in the world. Now everything seems possible. Young winners, guards officers, are sure that equality and freedom will come - here and now. For this they are ready to sacrifice everything - position, wealth, love, life ... and the country itself.

Rebellious Ki-soo from North Korea is mesmerized by tap dance in prison camps. Ki-soo joins as a team member of a dance team named ‘Swing Kids’. Yet suddenly, their dreams about dancing in prison camps are put in danger.

The story of the "Hutsul Robin Hood" Oleksa Dovbush, an 18th century Carpathian Mountains outlaw who's a popular figure of Ukrainian legend.

During the 16th century, as Thailand contends with both a civil war and Burmese invasion, a beautiful princess rises up to help protect the glory of the Kingdom of Ayothaya. Based on the life of Queen Suriyothai.

In 1980, the United States Ice Hockey team's coach, Herb Brooks, put a ragtag squad of college kids up against the legendary juggernaut from the Soviet Union at the Olympic Games. Despite the long odds, Team USA carried the pride of a nation yearning for a distraction from world events. With the world watching, the team rose to the occasion, prompting broadcaster Al Michaels' now famous question to the millions viewing at home: "Do you believe in miracles?" Yes!

Perm, Siberia, 1918. the central Siberian White guard corps under the command of a young general Anatoliy Pepelyaev have taken the city. the army is exhausted and running short on supplies. the General tasks the Permian merchants with collecting the money needed for the survival of the army much to their dismay. madame chagina, a rich widow answers the call and presents general with a massive diamond... only to have it mysteriously disappear the next day. recently sentenced to death red Army investigator Andrei murzin is brought in to nd the precious contribution. murzin must nd the diamond in exchange for a chance to save his life.

A story about the life of Sergey Pavlovich Korolyov, the lead Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer.

A story of three couples and their intertwining love stories set in 1940s Taiwan and Shanghai, centered around the 1949 sinking of Taiping.

An epic, untold story that brings to life the inspiring saga of the World Cup and the three determined men who created it. Driven by their vision and passion, three men, overcame their doubts and fought obstacles and scandals to make the World Cup a reality. Spanning the tumultuous 20th Century, this timeless saga celebrates the event that became the most popular sporting event in the world.

The early Middle Ages. A time of heavy swords and dark blood law. The ruling clan is in discord. The guilt for the accidental death of the brother has fallen on the Grand Duke. According to the law, revenge must be taken by the younger brother, a bastard. For the refusal to kill, he has to pay with eve- rything he had, because “for peace you need more swords than for a war”...

Set in 1398. Kim Min-Jae (Shin Ha-Kyun) is the supreme commander of the Joseon Dynasty. He falls in love for the first time and for that woman he takes risks. Yi Bang-Won (Jang Hyuk) is the King’s son. He helped his father setup the Joseon Dynasty era, but he was not picked as the Crown Prince. He still holds ambitions of becoming the King one day. Jin (Kang Ha-Neul) is Kim Min-Jae’s son and the King’s son-in-law. Due to his position as the King's son-in-law, he is unable to take part in politics and only seeks out pleasure.

It is the word "horde" that had meant, for many countries and nations, bloody raids and being under humilating contribution for centuries - a strange and scary world with its own rules and customs. To be or not to be for Rus (Ruthenia), that is the price of the one-man mission as he is departing to this world to accomplish a feat. The film tells the story of how Saint Alexius, the Metropolitan of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia, healed the Tatar Queen Taidula, Jani-Beg's mother, from blindness, in 1357

The story of two warring generals fighting for control of China at the end of the Qin Dynasty.

A story of a legendary battle, where seventeen fearless warriors defend their land against an army of thousands well-trained soldiers. In 13th-century Mongol warrior hordes and their leader, Batu Khan, control most of the known world. As the Mongols move towards Europe they invade the last Russian principality standing in their way. Little do they know, their plans are about to be ruined by a small detachment of heroic strong men led by a mysterious brave warrior. This is a story about courage, endurance and self-sacrifice for the sake of one's country. This is the story of Evpaty the Furious.

During the Chinese Revolution in 1949, three couples flee from China to an island of Taiwan.

In the 11th year of Kwang Hae-gun, Jo-seon soldiers go to war with China after an invasion. In the middle of Manchu, three people who have barely survived are being cornered by the Chinese forces, and begin a bloody battle not with their enemies but with their friends.

Set towards the end of the 19th century, when coffee was first introduced to Korea, Russian sharpshooter Illichi and Joseon's first barista Danya are manipulated by Japanese officer Sadako into an elaborate plan to assassinate King Gojong.

Kelu is a warrior in 16th century Kerala whose father was killed by Vasco da Gama and his troops. Kelu vows to avenge his father's death with the assistance of Vavvali and Ayesha, a warrior princess.