Shubhabrata Dutta
It is always fascinating to watch a film showcasing an event from humanity’s past, whether real or otherwise. Whether a war, an event, or a fictional story, they give us a taste of that particular time period and how things would have been back then. Through the plot, we get to know about the society and its religious, cultural, political, and all other kinds of norms that existed. At a subconscious level, we are carrying a part of that in ourselves, too. In other words, history is a part of us, and we are a part of it. Keeping that in mind, we bring you the list of best period movies available on HBO Max.
18. The Gathering Storm (2002)
Directed by Richard Loncraine, ‘The Gathering Storm’ is set in the 1930s and follows Winston Churchill during his pre-war years as he grapples with the wilderness years, both in his professional and personal life. On the one hand, there is his strained relationship with his wife Clementine and son Randolph; on the other hand, there is his inability to convince the House of Commons of the danger of appeasement with Nazi Germany. How he redeems himself from this situation, reconciles with his family, and takes on the command of the Royal Navy after England declares war on Germany are what we see in this film. The cast includes Albert Finney as Winston Churchill, Vanessa Redgrave as Clementine Churchill, and Tom Hiddleston as Randolph Churchill, along with Jim Broadbent, Linus Roache, Derek Jacobi, and Lena Headey. You can stream ‘The Gathering Storm’ here.
17. All the Way (2016)
This brilliant HBO biographical drama is based on the events surrounding the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson and is adapted from Robert Schenkkan’s 2012 play ‘All the Way.’ The film is directed by Jay Roach, and its events take place after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963 and how Johnson, who took the oath after Kennedy’s passing, navigated his newly-gained “accidental” powers to pass the Civil Rights Bill, win the 1964 presidential elections, and launch his War on Poverty. We also see his equation with his wife/personal advisor Lady Bird Johnson, Martin Luther King Jr., and Southern Democrat Richard Russell Jr.
The film stars Bryan Cranston as President Lyndon B. Johnson, Melissa Leo as First Lady Lady Bird Johnson, Anthony Mackie as Martin Luther King Jr., and Frank Langella as Richard B. Russell Jr. Nominated in four categories at the Primetime Emmy Awards, ‘All the Way’ had Steven Spielberg as one of its executive producers. You can watch the film here.
16. Iron Jawed Angels (2004)
Starring Hilary Swank, Frances O’Connor, Julia Ormond, Anjelica Huston, and Vera Farmiga, this Katja von Garnier directorial centers on the 1910s American women’s suffrage movement and follows a group of female suffrage activists that includes foremost authorities of the movement including Alice Paul, Lucy Burns, Inez Milholland and Carrie Chapman Catt. How the women paved the way for the feminist movement and ensured that women got the right to vote is showcased brilliantly. You can watch the film here.
15. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (2007)
Directed by Yves Simoneau, this Western historical flick is based on the 1970 book of the same name by Dee Brown. The story revolves around Charles Eastman né Ohiyesa, a prolific speaker on American Indian affairs and the first American Indian to be certified in Western medicine, Sitting Bull, leader of the Hunkpapa Lakota, who led the resistance against American policies that were aimed at compromising the Indian culture, U.S. Senator Henry L. Dawes who was the guy behind the Dawes Act of 1887 that regulated land rights on land belonging to the natives and Red Cloud, leader of the Oglala Lakota, who was ready to shake hands with the American government on the Dawes Act. A film that showcases a historical juncture in American history, ‘Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee’ is a must-watch. You can do so right here.
14. The Zone of Interest (2023)
Directed by Jonathan Glazer, this period drama is bound to stay with you for a long time. Set during World War II, the film explores the horrific and traumatic Auschwitz angle by centering on the family of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Hoss (a fictional version of the real man), who lives next to the Auschwitz concentration camp. The ‘Zone of Interest’ is a phrase used to refer to the area surrounding the Auschwitz concentration camp complex. The subtle yet hard-hitting ways in which the horrors that Rudolf and his family are subjected to transcend their Nazi-German ideologies and take a toll on their humane instincts. This makes ‘The Zone of Interest’ a true-to-form psychological drama. The film is based loosely on Martin Amis’s 2014 novel of the same name. Christian Friedel plays Rudolf Hoss, and Sandra Hüller plays Hedwig Hoss. You can watch the film here.
13. Gangs of New York (2002)
A film directed by Martin Scorsese, this film is based on the 1927 non-fiction novel ‘The Gangs of New York’ by Herbert Asbury. It is set in the 1860s and follows a guy named Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) who returns to Lower Manhattan, New York City, for revenge, 16 years after his father, Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson) was killed by William Cutting’s (Daniel Day-Lewis) men. Vallon and Cutting belonged to rival gangs, Irish Catholic Immigrants and Protestants, respectively. How Amsterdam avenges his father’s death is what we see in this signature Scorsese film. You can watch it here.
12. The Lighthouse (2019)
Starring Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe, ‘The Lighthouse’ is a black-and-white drama directed by Robert Eggers. Set in 19th-century New England, the film centers on two men: a lighthouse keeper and his supervising sailor. A horrifying take on the psychological effects of isolation, the film uses bizarre tropes to establish its connection with the metaphysical. It uses elements from different genres and thereby defies belonging to one and effectively so.
While the film incorporates the 1801 Smalls Lighthouse Tragedy, it has also borrowed from Edgar Allan Poe’s unfinished short story ‘The Light-House.’ It won the FIPRESCI Prize at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival and many other awards and accolades. You can watch the film here.
11. Judas and the Black Messiah (2021)
Directed by Shaka King, this brilliant film stars Daniel Kaluuya as Fred Hampton, chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party (BPP), and LaKeith Stanfield as FBI informant William “Bill” O’Neal. It follows the betrayal of Hampton by O’Neal after the latter was approached by the FBI, who offered to drop his charges in return for the betrayal. O’Neal successfully carried out the infiltration and betrayal, following which Hampton was killed on December 4, 1969, by a team of armed police team. You can watch the film here.
10. A Room with a View (1985)
Directed by James Ivory, ‘A Room with a View’ is an Academy-Award-winning movie adapted from E. M. Forster’s 1908 novel of the same name. It is set in Edwardian England and follows Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter), a young woman whose elite background is a bubble she wants to escape. The pin arrives in the form of a free-spirited guy named George Emerson (Julian Sands), who can even kiss her, but she wouldn’t be able to say anything. However, Lucy is soon married to Cecil Vyse (Daniel Day-Lewis), who finds his family much superior to hers, and it shows in his behavior despite the love he claims he has for her. Will this be her fate? Or is she willing to change it, knowing that she has a way out? The movie stars acting legends Maggie Smith, Simon Callow, Denholm Elliott, Judi Dench, and Rosemary Leach. You can watch it here.
9. Einstein and Eddington (2008)
Directed by Philip Martin, ‘Einstein and Eddington’ explores the respective researches by British scientist Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington (David Tennant) and German scientist Albert Einstein (Andy Serkis) and how Eddington found Einstein’s research on relativity correct, although he is required to prove it wrong and defend the research of Isaac Newton. Set against the backdrop of World War I, the film not only shows how the two scientists contributed to the discovery of perhaps one of the greatest theories of science but also their personal and professional lives. Both characters are portrayed brilliantly by the actors and offer an intriguing watch. You can stream ‘Einstein and Eddington’ here.
8. Invictus (2009)
Directed by Clint Eastwood, ‘Invictus’ shows how President Nelson Mandela supported the Springboks, the South African national rugby union team, during the 1995 Rugby World Cup in the aftermath of Apartheid. Based on John Carlin’s book ‘Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation,’ the film offers moving performances by Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as Springboks captain Francois Pienaar and is a soul-stirring true story told with conviction, something Eastwood is master at. You can watch the Academy-award-nominated drama right here.
7. Oslo (2021)
Directed by Bartlett Sher, ‘Oslo’ is based on American playwright J. T. Rogers’ play of the same name. It showcases the secret peace negotiations carried out between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). The first one (Oslo I Accord) was signed in Washington, DC, in 1993, and the second one (Oslo II Accord) was signed in 1995 in Taba, Egypt. The negotiations took place in Oslo, Norway, and the film follows the brave actions of diplomat Mona Juul (Ruth Wilson) of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and her husband Terje Rød-Larsen (Andrew Scott), director of the Fafo Foundation, an independent body, that conducts social research in Norway as well internationally. To find out how it all came to be and what happened at the peace talk, you can watch the film here.
6. Frost/Nixon (2008)
The recipient of five Academy Award nominations, Ron Howard’s ‘Frost/Nixon’ chronicles the series of interviews conducted by British journalist David Frost with former US President Richard Nixon in the aftermath of the 1972 Watergate scandal. With Michael Sheen as Frost and Frank Langella as Nixon, the film is a splendid and riveting re-telling of the words exchanged between the two people before the court of public opinion. If you are into films that deal with investigative journalism, ‘Frost/Nixon’ is a must-watch. It can be streamed here.
5. Europa Europa (1990)
This classic war drama is directed by Agnieszka Holland and is set during World War II. It is based on ‘Ich war Hitlerjunge Salomon’ (I Was Hitler Youth Salomon), the autobiography by German-Jewish Holocaust survivor Solomon Perel, and shows how thirteen-year-old Solomon “Solek” Perel managed to survive the Holocaust by pretending to be a Nazi and joining the youth organization of the Nazi party, i.e., the Hitler Youth. Winner of the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, ‘Europa Europa’ stars Marco Hofschneider as Solomon “Solek” Perel, along with Julie Delpy, Hanns Zischler, René Hofschneider and Piotr Kozlowski. You can watch the film here.
4. The Last Emperor (1987)
From director Bernardo Bertolucci comes a historical epic that follows the life of China’s final emperor, Puyi, who had to renounce his throne at the age of six in 1912. He became the emperor at the age of two. It was the Xinhai Revolution that brought an end to his rule and established the Republic of China. The cast includes Richard Vuu, Tijger Tsou, Wu Tao, and John Lone (all of whom play Puyi at different ages), along with Joan Chen and Peter O’Toole. You can watch the film here.
3. The Seventh Seal (1957)
Directed by Ingmar Bergman, ‘The Seventh Seal’ is considered a classic in world cinema. A Swedish historical fantasy, the events in the film occur during the Black Death period (1346-1353) in Sweden and show a medieval knight named Antonius Block (Max von Sydow) having a game of chess with Death (Bengt Ekerot) after the latter comes to take the former’s life. A commentary on the existence of God, ‘The Seventh Seal’ (which refers to a passage from the Book of Revelation) is a must-watch. You can watch it here.
2. Brooklyn (2015)
Starring Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, and Domhnall Gleeson, ‘Brooklyn’ is set in the titular borough in 1950s New York City. We follow Eilis Lacey, who leaves the warmth of her Irish hometown and arrives in New York for a better and perhaps prosperous life. While navigating the alien Brooklyn neighborhood, she meets a guy named Tony Fiorello, and romance blossoms, making her feel more at home. However, a tragedy brings her back to Ireland, but she will have to confront certain truths if she wants to get rid of the conflict regarding which place to call home. With stellar performances by the cast and a well-executed story adapted from Colm Tóibín’s eponymous Dublin-Literary-Award-shortlisted novel, ‘Brooklyn’ is a deeply personal portrait of a woman taking control of her life. You can watch it here.
1. Conspiracy (2001)
This film dramatizes the Wannsee Conference that took place on January 20, 1942, in Wannsee, Berlin. It follows the Nazi officials discussing the “Final Solution of the Jewish Question” during World War II. It was in this meeting that they decided to use concentration camps for the murder of millions of Jews. The meeting was chaired by SS-Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich (Kenneth Branagh), the Chief of the Reich Security Main Office. He was assisted by SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann (Stanley Tucci). But to greenlight the plan, they need to change the mind of Friedrich Wilhelm Kritzinger (David Threlfall), who believes that the meeting is of no use, thereby making it clear that killing Jews is not an option for him. To find out what really happened during the conference, as the Frank Pierson directorial is based on the meeting’s only surviving transcript, you can watch ‘Conspiracy’ here.
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