People often think learning history requires hours of reading but in fact there are lots of movies and exciting documentaries that can teach you about the past. Films can help bring stories to life and make the abstract seem real. Here is a breakdown of some of the best movies for bringing history to life and that might even inspire us to learn more.
The Imitation Game
This 2014 film starring Benedict Cumberbatch tells the story of Alan Turing. He famously helped crack encrypted messages in World War Two to help Britain’s war effort against Nazi Germany, and also made significant developments in the world of computer science among other academic disciplines. The film follows Turing during the war and his tragic post-war life, where he was mistreated by the British government despite his efforts due to his sexuality. The film received strong praise, including from some of Turing’s family. Despite some historical looseness, the film gives a real insight into a great mind of the 20th century, the nature of decryption in World War Two, and how genius individuals can help the world.
The Queen
The Queen is an Oscar and BAFTA award-winning movie from 2006. Helen Mirren played the titular role and, like the film itself, received lavish praise from both critics and the public. The film focuses on the death of Princess Diana, and the difficulty the Queen faced regarding the funeral especially if it should be private or public. A must-see for those interested in the British Royal Family. And if you want to learn more you can view a royal family documentary here.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
This movie was the biggest grossing video game adaptation when it was released in 2010, until it was beaten in 2016. This movie, which stars Hollywood stars Jake Gylenhaal, Gemma Arterton and Ben Kingsley, is of course entirely fictional and fantastical. Nonetheless, it takes place in Persia’s past, an oft-overlooked part of history for many western audiences, despite the fact it was a significantly powerful empire through the centuries.
300
Another movie involving Persia, this regarded action film from 2007, directed by Zack Snyder, brought to life the story of the Battle of Thermopylae. It is actually based on a 1989 comic re-telling of this story, written by Frank Miller. The film involves a star-studded cast, with Gerard Butler as lead, exciting special effects, and portrays a battle between 300 Spartans and thousands of Persians, as the former attempt to halt the Persian conquest of Greece. In reality, the battle was not quite as unbalanced as it involved 1,100 soldiers from other Greek City-states as well as Sparta, yet it is known as a major last stand of history, with the Spartans fighting until they were all defeated.
Centurion
This 2010 historical action movie, starring Michael Fassbender, takes place in Roman Britain. The film dives into the conflict between the Picts, a Celtic people who lived in what is southern Scotland, and the Roman Empire, who wished to expand over Scotland, before building Hadrian’s Wall as a boundary signifying the border of the empire. Within this conflict were the Ninth Legion, which the film is loosely based around. They were a Roman unit stationed in Britain who actually fought all over Europe, and disappeared according to records, with different theories about their fate.
