Ultimate World History
The most historically accurate and critically renowned Films, TV shows, and Documentaries recounting history from 80,000 B.C. to November 2018.
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- DirectorJean-Jacques AnnaudStarsEverett McGillRon PerlmanNicholas KadiThis story takes place in prehistoric time when three tribesmen search for a new fire source.80,000 BC
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsMichael ParksUlla BergrydRichard HarrisExtravagant production of the first part of the book of Genesis. Its main highlights are the Garden of Eden, the first brothers, Noah and his family obeying God to build an ark for the Flood and Abraham's attempted sacrifice of Isaac.5500-1800 BC
- StarsKeith DavidRobert PowellJake CanusoA religious dramatic miniseries about God's creation and physical landmark events leading up to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.5500 BC - AD 33
- StarsRichard HarrisBarbara HersheyMaximilian SchellAbram a tribal leader denies all the local deities and finds the true God. Through many trials and tribulations he strengthens his faith.1800 BC
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsCharlton HestonYul BrynnerAnne BaxterMoses, raised as a prince of Egypt in the Pharaoh's household, learns of his true heritage as a Hebrew and his divine mission as the deliverer of his people from slavery.1275 BC
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsBrad PittEric BanaOrlando BloomAn adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.1250 BC
- DirectorOliver StoneStarsColin FarrellAnthony HopkinsRosario DawsonAlexander, the King of Macedonia and one of the greatest army leaders in the history of warfare, conquers much of the known world.356 - 323 BC
- DirectorStanley KubrickAnthony MannStarsKirk DouglasLaurence OlivierJean SimmonsThe slave Spartacus survives brutal training as a gladiator and leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman Republic, as the ambitious Crassus seeks to gain power by crushing the uprising.85-71 BC
- CreatorBruno HellerWilliam J. MacDonaldJohn MiliusStarsKevin McKiddRay StevensonPolly WalkerA down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.49-30 BC
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczRouben MamoulianStarsElizabeth TaylorRichard BurtonRex HarrisonQueen Cleopatra VII of Egypt experiences both triumph and tragedy as she attempts to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome.48 BC - 30 BC
- DirectorPier Paolo PasoliniStarsEnrique IrazoquiMargherita CarusoSusanna PasoliniThe life of Jesus Christ according to the Gospel of Matthew. Pasolini shows Christ as a Marxist avant-la-lettre and therefore uses half of the text of Matthew.AD 33
- StarsDerek JacobiJohn HurtSiân PhillipsThe personal and governmental affairs of the Julio-Claudian dynasty at the beginning of the Roman Empire, as recalled by one of its rulers.24 BC - 54 AD — Roman Empire
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsJim CaviezelMonica BellucciMaia MorgensternDepicts the final twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, on the day of his crucifixion in Jerusalem.AD 33
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsWillem DafoeHarvey KeitelBarbara HersheyThe life of Jesus Christ, his journey through life as he faces the struggles all humans do, and his final temptation on the cross.AD 33
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsSophia LorenStephen BoydAlec GuinnessThe death of Marcus Aurelius leads to a succession crisis, in which the deceased emperor's son, Commodus, demonstrates that he is unwilling to let anything undermine his claim to the Roman Empire.180 - 192 AD — Marcus Aurelius to Commodus
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweJoaquin PhoenixConnie NielsenA former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.AD 180 - 192
- DirectorJohn WooStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiTakeshi KaneshiroFengyi ZhangThe first chapter of a two-part story centered on a battle fought in China's Three Kingdoms period (220-280 A.D.).AD 220-280
- DirectorAlejandro AmenábarStarsRachel WeiszMax MinghellaOscar IsaacA historical drama set in Roman Egypt, concerning a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hope of pursuing freedom while falling in love with his mistress, the philosophy and mathematics professor Hypatia of Alexandria.381 AD; Roman Egypt during the dying days of the Roman Empire
- StarsAlexander DreymonEliza ButterworthArnas FedaraviciusAs Alfred the Great defends his kingdom from Norse invaders, Uhtred--born a Saxon but raised by Vikings--seeks to claim his ancestral birthright.800-900 A.D.
- DirectorSergei BodrovStarsTadanobu AsanoAmadu MamadakovKhulan ChuluunThe story recounts the early life of Genghis Khan who was a slave before going on to conquer half the world in 1206.1162-1227
- DirectorAnthony HarveyStarsPeter O'TooleKatharine HepburnAnthony Hopkins1183 A.D.: King Henry II's three sons all want to inherit the throne, but he won't commit to a choice. When he allows his imprisoned wife Eleanor of Aquitaine out for a Christmas visit, they all variously plot to force him into a decision.1183
- CreatorJohn FuscoStarsLorenzo RichelmyBenedict WongJoan ChenIn a world replete with greed, betrayal, sexual intrigue and rivalry, "Marco Polo" is based on the famed explorer's adventures in Kublai Khan's court in 13th century Mongolia.1254-1325
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsOrlando BloomEva GreenLiam NeesonBalian of Ibelin travels to Jerusalem during the Crusades of the 12th century, and there he finds himself as the defender of the city and its people.1185-1191
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsMel GibsonSophie MarceauPatrick McGoohanScottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.1296-1306
- DirectorDavid MichôdStarsTom Glynn-CarneyGábor CzapTom FisherYoung Henry V encounters deceit, war and treachery after becoming King of England in the 15th century, in the aftermath of his brother's death.1413-1415 - King Henry V
- DirectorKenneth BranaghStarsKenneth BranaghDerek JacobiSimon ShepherdIn the midst of the Hundred Years War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France in 1415.1415
- DirectorCarl Theodor DreyerStarsMaria FalconettiEugene SilvainAndré BerleyIn 1431, Jeanne d'Arc is placed on trial on charges of heresy. The ecclesiastical jurists attempt to force Jeanne to recant her claims of holy visions.1431
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsGerardo TaracenaRaoul Max TrujilloDalia HernándezAs the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, a young man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression.1510-1519
- DirectorShekhar KapurStarsCate BlanchettLiz GilesRod CulbertsonThe early years of the reign of Elizabeth I of England and her difficult task of learning what is necessary to be a monarch.1558-1603
- DirectorJosie RourkeStarsSaoirse RonanMargot RobbieJack LowdenMary Stuart's (Saoirse Ronan's) attempt to overthrow her cousin Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie), Queen of England, finds her condemned to years of imprisonment before facing execution.1542-1567
- DirectorTerrence MalickStarsColin FarrellQ'orianka KilcherChristopher PlummerThe story of the English exploration of Virginia, and of the changing world and loves of Pocahontas.1607-1617
- DirectorKen HughesStarsRichard HarrisAlec GuinnessRobert MorleyPuritan statesman Oliver Cromwell leads England in a civil war against the absolutist and Catholic-sympathetic King Charles I.1653-1658
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsAndrew GarfieldAdam DriverLiam NeesonIn the 17th century, two Portuguese Jesuit priests travel to Japan in an attempt to locate their mentor, who is rumored to have committed apostasy, and to propagate Catholicism.1609-1633
- CreatorSimon MirrenDavid WolstencroftStarsGeorge BlagdenAlexander VlahosTygh RunyanIn 1667, 28-year-old all-powerful king of France, Louis XIV, decides to build the greatest palace in the world - Versailles. But drained budget, affairs and political intrigues complicate things.1667 France with King Louis XIV
- DirectorAleksandr SokurovStarsSergey DreydenMariya KuznetsovaLeonid MozgovoyA 19th century French aristocrat, notorious for his scathing memoirs about life in Russia, travels through the Russian State Hermitage Museum and encounters historical figures from the last 200+ years.1682-1945; An artistic look into Russian history from Peter the Great to the Siege of Leningrad in World War II
- DirectorNicholas HytnerStarsDaniel Day-LewisWinona RyderPaul ScofieldA Salem resident attempts to frame her ex-lover's wife for being a witch in the middle of the 1692 witchcraft trials.1692-1693
- DirectorMichael MannStarsDaniel Day-LewisMadeleine StoweRussell MeansThree trappers protect the daughters of a British Colonel in the midst of the French and Indian War.1754-1763
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsRyan O'NealMarisa BerensonPatrick MageeAn Irish rogue wins the heart of a rich widow and assumes her dead husband's aristocratic position in 18th-century England.1755-1789
- StarsPaul GiamattiLaura LinneyJohn DossettThe life of one of the USA's Founding Fathers, its second President, and his role in the nation's first 50 years.1770-1826
- DirectorRobert HarmonStarsJeff DanielsRoger ReesSebastian RochéA dramatization of George Washington's perilous gamble of crossing the Delaware River and attacking the Hessian forces at Trenton.1776
- StarsGwyneth PaltrowSam WaterstonMichael PottsA biographical film about The United States' influential and profoundly enigmatic Founding Father.1770-1826
- DirectorNick MurphyStarsRob BrydonRichard McCabeTom BurkeThe little known story of how Napoleon Bonaparte first emerged from obscurity and entered the national consciousness. A life and death struggle both on and off off the battlefield.1780-1793; Napoelon’s rise to prominence, culminating in his shocking victory at Toulon
- DirectorNicholas HytnerStarsNigel HawthorneHelen MirrenRupert GravesWhen King George III goes mad, his Lieutenants try to adjust the rules to run the country without his participation.1788-1789
- DirectorRobert EnricoRichard T. HeffronStarsKlaus Maria BrandauerJane SeymourFrançois CluzetA chronicle of the French Revolution from the calling of the Etats General in 1789 until the end of the Jacobin Terror in 1794.1789-1794
- DirectorBenoît JacquotStarsLéa SeydouxDiane KrugerVirginie LedoyenA look at the platonic relationship between Marie Antoinette and one of her female readers during the first days of the French Revolution.1789
- DirectorPierre SchoellerStarsGaspard UllielAdèle HaenelOlivier GourmetThe intertwining fates of the historical figures, the men and the women of the 1789 French revolution, as they meet at the newly established Assemblée Nationale.1789
- StarsHelen MirrenJason ClarkeGina McKeeThe life and times of the woman who reformed the Russian empire.1790-1796
- DirectorAndrzej WajdaStarsGérard DepardieuWojciech PszoniakAnne AlvaroIn 1793, as the Terror begins in France, Georges Danton, a champion-of-the-people, returns to clash against Maximilien Robespierre and his extremist party.1793
- StarsChristian ClavierIsabella RosselliniGérard DepardieuA masterful soldier, tactician, and statesmen, Napoleon Bonaparte, with courage and love for his country, rises from an unpaid general consumed with ambition to the most powerful man in Europe. But his life ends with a fall and exile.1795-1821
- DirectorKen BurnsStarsHal HolbrookAdam ArkinJohn Logan AllenThe story of the most important American exploration expedition in American history and the participants in it.1804-1806
- DirectorPeter WeirStarsRussell CrowePaul BettanyBilly BoydDuring the Napoleonic Wars, a brash British captain pushes his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a formidable French war vessel around South America.1805; Napoleonic Wars
- StarsPaul DanoJames NortonLily JamesAs the Russian conflict with Napoleon reaches its peak, five aristocratic families face the possibility of their lives being changed forever.1805-1812; Napoleonic Wars
- DirectorSergey BondarchukStarsLyudmila SavelevaVyacheslav TikhonovSergey BondarchukThe Russian aristocracy prepares for the French invasion on the eve of 1812.1805-1812; Napoleonic Era and French Invasion of Russia
- DirectorTom CleggStarsSean BeanAssumpta SernaBrian CoxIn the Peninsular War, a British sergeant is field promoted to a lieutenant in charge of a disrespectful rifle company.1809; Napoleonic Wars; Sharpe and his band of chosen men through Spain after they survive an ambush by French cavalry.
- DirectorDiane GareyLawrence R. HottStarsChristopher KozakJoe MantegnaCraig WilliamsFor two and a half years, Americans fought Against the British, Canadian colonists, and native nations. In the years to come, the War of 1812 would be celebrated in some places and essentially forgotten in others. But it is a war worth remembering-a struggle that threatened the existence of Canada, then divided the United States so deeply that the nation almost broke apart. Some of its battles and heroes became legendary, yet its blunders and cowards were just as prominent. The film shows how the glories of war became enshrined in history - how failures are quickly forgotten - how inconvenient truths are ignored forever. With stunning re-enactments, evocative animation and the incisive commentary of key experts, The War of 1812 presents the conflict that forged the destiny of a continent.1812
- DirectorSergey BondarchukStarsRod SteigerChristopher PlummerOrson WellesFacing the decline of everything he has worked to obtain, conqueror Napoleon Bonaparte and his army confront the British at the Battle of Waterloo.1815; Napoleonic Wars
- DirectorTom HooperStarsHugh JackmanRussell CroweAnne HathawayIn 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after breaking parole, agrees to care for a factory worker's daughter. The decision changes their lives forever.1815-1832; Following the fall of Napoleon and the Battle of Waterloo, the Bourbon monarchy was reinstated with Louis XVIII and then Charles X. After Charles X was overthrown in 1830 during the July Revolution, Louis Philippe — his cousin — replaced him. The film climaxes in the unsuccessful June Rebellion two years later. Philippe was later overthrown in 1848.
- DirectorNate ParkerStarsNate ParkerArmie HammerPenelope Ann MillerNat Turner, a literate slave and preacher in the antebellum South, orchestrates an uprising.1831 — Nat Turner’s Rebellion
- DirectorJohn Lee HancockStarsDennis QuaidBilly Bob ThorntonEmilio EchevarríaBased on the 1836 standoff between a group of Texan and Tejano men, led by Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie, and Mexican dictator Santa Anna's forces at the Alamo in San Antonio Texas.1836
- DirectorJean-Marc ValléeStarsEmily BluntRupert FriendPaul BettanyA dramatization of the turbulent first years of Queen Victoria's rule, and her enduring romance with Prince Albert.1837
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsChiwetel EjioforMichael Kenneth WilliamsMichael FassbenderIn the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free Black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.1841-1853
- CreatorDaisy GoodwinStarsJenna ColemanAdrian SchillerTommy KnightThe early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of 18 to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.1837-1851
- DirectorKasi LemmonsStarsCynthia ErivoJanelle MonáeLeslie Odom Jr.The extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into one of America's greatest heroes, whose courage, ingenuity, and tenacity freed hundreds of slaves and changed the course of history.1849–1859
- DirectorVictor FlemingGeorge CukorSam WoodStarsClark GableVivien LeighThomas MitchellA sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.1861-1877
- StarsDavid McCulloughSam WaterstonJulie HarrisA comprehensive survey of the American Civil War.1861-1865
- DirectorEdward ZwickStarsMatthew BroderickDenzel WashingtonCary ElwesRobert Gould Shaw leads the U.S. Civil War's first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices from both his own Union Army, and the Confederates.1862-1863
- DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerMary McDonnellGraham GreeneLieutenant John Dunbar, assigned to a remote western Civil War outpost, finds himself engaging with a neighbouring Sioux settlement, causing him to question his own purpose.1863
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioCameron DiazDaniel Day-LewisIn 1862, Amsterdam Vallon returns to the Five Points area of New York City seeking revenge against Bill the Butcher, his father's killer.1862-1863
- DirectorAnthony MinghellaStarsJude LawNicole KidmanRenée ZellwegerIn the waning days of the American Civil War, a wounded soldier embarks on a perilous journey back home to Cold Mountain, North Carolina to reunite with his sweetheart.1865
- DirectorRon MaxwellStarsTom BerengerMartin SheenStephen LangIn 1863, the Northern and Southern forces fight at Gettysburg in the decisive battle of the American Civil War.1863
- StarsMartha S. JonesAndia WinslowHenry Louis Gates Jr.A comprehensive and compelling history of the United States immediately following the Civil War.1865-Jim Crow Era
- DirectorYves SimoneauStarsAidan QuinnAdam BeachAugust SchellenbergA historic chronicle based on the book by Dee Brown explains how Native Americans were displaced as the United States expanded west.1860s - 1870s
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDaniel Day-LewisSally FieldDavid StrathairnAs the Civil War rages on, U.S President Abraham Lincoln struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on his decision to emancipate the slaves.1865
- DirectorCy EndfieldStarsStanley BakerJack HawkinsUlla JacobssonOutnumbered British soldiers do battle with Zulu warriors at Rorke's Drift.1879 South Africa in colonization by the British
- DirectorAndrew DominikStarsBrad PittCasey AffleckSam ShepardRobert Ford, who has idolized Jesse James since childhood, tries hard to join the resurgent gang of the Missouri outlaw, but gradually becomes resentful of the bandit leader.1880-1881
- DirectorRichard AttenboroughStarsBen KingsleyJohn GielgudRohini HattangadiThe life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest.1893-1943
- DirectorBernardo BertolucciStarsRobert De NiroGérard DepardieuDominique SandaThe epic tale of a class struggle in twentieth-century Italy as seen through the eyes of two childhood friends on opposing sides.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsDaniel Day-LewisPaul DanoCiarán HindsA story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness, focusing on a turn-of-the-century prospector in the early days of the business.1898-1927
- DirectorFranklin J. SchaffnerStarsMichael JaystonJanet SuzmanRoderic NobleTsar Nicholas II, the inept last monarch of Russia, insensitive to the needs of his people, is overthrown and exiled to Siberia with his family.1904 - 1918 — Last ruling Russian monarch, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia
- DirectorNicholas RayGuy GreenAndrew MartonStarsCharlton HestonAva GardnerDavid NivenDuring the 1900 Boxer Rebellion, U.S. marine, Maj. Matt Lewis, along with British consul, Sir Arthur Robertson, develop a plan to keep the rebels at bay until an international military relief force can arrive.1900
- DirectorGeorge Roy HillArthur HillerStarsJulie AndrewsMax von SydowRichard HarrisAn American missionary and his wife travel to the exotic island kingdom of Hawaii, intent on converting the natives. But the clash between the two cultures is too great and instead of understanding there comes tragedy.1898
- DirectorJohn MiliusStarsSean ConneryCandice BergenBrian KeithA Berber chieftain triggers an international incident, drawing the involvement of Theodore Roosevelt, when he kidnaps an American widow and her children in 1900s Morocco.1904
- CreatorJulian FellowesStarsHugh BonnevillePhyllis LoganElizabeth McGovernA chronicle of the lives of the British aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in the early twentieth century.1912-1920
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDanny GloverWhoopi GoldbergOprah WinfreyA tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry.1910-1940
- DirectorJames CameronStarsLeonardo DiCaprioKate WinsletBilly ZaneA seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.1912
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsJeremy IrvineEmily WatsonDavid ThewlisA young farm boy enlists to serve in World War I after his beloved horse is sold to the cavalry. His hopeful journey takes him out of England and onto the front lines as the war rages on.1912-1918
- DirectorKatja von GarnierStarsHilary SwankMargo MartindaleAnjelica HustonA little known, yet integral piece of American history: based on the lives of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, two young radical women who were instrumental in getting women the right to vote in America.1912-1914
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsThomas AdlamWilliam ArgentJohn AshbyA documentary about World War I with never-before-seen footage to commemorate the centennial of the end of the war.1914-1918
- DirectorStanley KubrickStarsKirk DouglasRalph MeekerAdolphe MenjouAfter a failed attack on a German position, a general orders three soldiers, chosen at random, court-martialed for cowardice and their commanding officer must defend them.1916
- DirectorWarren BeattyStarsWarren BeattyDiane KeatonEdward HerrmannA radical American journalist becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia, and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States.1915-1920; Bolshevik Revolution
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsPeter O'TooleAlec GuinnessAnthony QuinnThe story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks.1916-1918
- DirectorLewis MilestoneStarsLew AyresLouis WolheimJohn WrayA German youth eagerly enters World War I, but his enthusiasm wanes as he gets a firsthand view of the horror.1917-1918
- DirectorSam MendesStarsDean-Charles ChapmanGeorge MacKayDaniel MaysApril 6th, 1917. As an infantry battalion assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly trap.1917
- DirectorRussell MulcahyStarsRicky SchroderPhil McKeeJamie HarrisFact-based war drama about an American battalion of over 500 men which gets trapped behind enemy lines in the Argonne Forest in October 1918 France during the closing weeks of World War I.1918
- DirectorBaz LuhrmannStarsLeonardo DiCaprioCarey MulliganJoel EdgertonA writer and wall street trader, Nick Carraway, finds himself drawn to the past and lifestyle of his mysterious millionaire neighbor, Jay Gatsby, amid the riotous parties of the Jazz Age.1922-1929
- DirectorArthur PennStarsWarren BeattyFaye DunawayMichael J. PollardBored waitress Bonnie Parker falls in love with an ex-con named Clyde Barrow and together they start a violent crime spree through the country, stealing cars and robbing banks.
- DirectorStanley KramerStarsSpencer TracyFredric MarchGene KellyBased on a real-life case in 1925; two great lawyers argue the case for, and against, a Tennessee science teacher accused of the crime of teaching Darwin's theory of evolution.1925
- DirectorRon HowardStarsRussell CroweRenée ZellwegerCraig BierkoThe true story of James J. Braddock, a supposedly washed-up boxer, who returned to the spotlight to win the heavyweight championship of the world.1929-1935
- StarsDorothy WilliamsonDonald WorsterTimothy EganA documentary about the 1930s drought of North American prairie farm land, and its consequences during the great depression.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsHenry FondaJane DarwellJohn CarradineAn Oklahoma family, driven off their farm by the poverty and hopelessness of the Dust Bowl, joins the westward migration to California, suffering the misfortunes of the homeless in the Great Depression.1931-1936