Historical Event backdrop

Historical Event movies

Stories centered on a specific real-world event or crisis, tracking cause, consequence, and human cost.

Katyn

1. Katyn

Drama History War Historical Event World War II
7.0
20072h 2min

Overview

On September 1st, 1939, Nazi Germany invades Poland, unleashing World War II. On September 17th, the Soviet Red Army crosses the border. The Polish army, unable to fight on two fronts, is defeated. Thousands of Polish men, both military and government officials, are captured by the invaders. Their fate will only be known several years later.

Themes

Loyalty under occupation, Memory through testimony, State oppression and loyalty, Propaganda vs memory, Wartime displacement and loss

Available on

Amazon Video
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

In the Valley of Elah

2. In the Valley of Elah

History Drama Thriller Crime Mystery
7.1
20072h 4min

Overview

A career officer and his wife work with a police detective to uncover the truth behind their son's disappearance following his return from a tour of duty in Iraq.

Themes

Duty vs loyalty, Military civilian divide, Institutional bias, Trauma and coping, Investigative deception, Parental determination

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Apocalypto

3. Apocalypto

Action Drama History Epic Action Historical Drama
7.8
20062h 19min

Overview

Set in the Mayan civilization, when a man's idyllic presence is brutally disrupted by a violent invading force, he is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression where a harrowing end awaits him. Through a twist of fate and spurred by the power of his love for his woman and his family he will make a desperate break to return home and to ultimately save his way of life.

Themes

Survival under invasion, Fear and resilience, Omens and ritual power, Slavery and captivity, Civilizational clash, Family protection under threat

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Flags of Our Fathers

4. Flags of Our Fathers

War Drama History World War II Historical Drama
7.1
20062h 15min

Overview

There were five Marines and one Navy Corpsman photographed raising the U.S. flag on Mt. Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. This is the story of three of the six surviving servicemen - John 'Doc' Bradley, Pvt. Rene Gagnon and Pvt. Ira Hayes - who fought in the battle to take Iwo Jima from the Japanese.

Themes

Racial discrimination, Propaganda and memory, Identity misidentification, Survivor guilt, Postwar reintegration, Public attention burden

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Days of Glory

5. Days of Glory

Drama History War Historical Drama Historical Event
7.0
20062h 8min

Overview

1943. They have never stepped foot on French soil but because France was at war, Said, Abdelkader, Messaoud and Yassir enlist in the French Army, along with 130,000 other “indigenous” soldiers, to liberate the “fatherland” from the Nazi enemy. Heroes that history has forgotten…

Themes

Institutional discrimination, Equality demands, Colonial soldiers in imperial army, Racial segregation, Loyalty under prejudice, Camaraderie under strain, Military hierarchy neglect

Available on

Fandango At Home
Plex Channel
MovieSphere+ Amazon Channel
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

United 93

6. United 93

Drama History Crime Thriller Action
7.6
20061h 51min

Overview

A real-time account of the events on United Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on 9/11 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania when passengers foiled the terrorist plot.

Themes

Collective action under threat, Real-time information flow, Crisis leadership under pressure, Group solidarity under duress, Calculated risk taking

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The King and the Clown

7. The King and the Clown

Drama History Thriller Historical Drama Historical Event
7.3
20052h 1min

Overview

Two clowns living in Korea's Chosun Dynasty get arrested for staging a play that satirizes the king. They are dragged to the palace and threatened with execution but are given a chance to save their lives if they can make the king laugh.

Themes

Loyalty under coercion, Gender performance, Art versus authority, Class hierarchy pressure, Status and reputation risk, Public satire as survival

Available on

Universcine
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The New World

8. The New World

Drama History Romance Historical Drama Historical Event
6.7
20052h 31min

Overview

A drama about explorer John Smith and the clash between Native Americans and English settlers in the 17th century.

Themes

Native american tension, Interracial romance constraint, New world disruption, Colonialism power dynamics, Intercultural mistrust, 17th century imbalance

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Munich

9. Munich

Drama Action History Thriller Historical Drama
7.5
20052h 44min

Overview

During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, eleven Israeli athletes are taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September. In retaliation, the Israeli government recruits a group of Mossad agents to track down and execute those responsible for the attack.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Plausible deniability ethics, Covert violence consequences, Moral ambiguity in retaliation, Cross-border collaboration, Psychological toll

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Memoirs of a Geisha

10. Memoirs of a Geisha

Drama Romance History Historical Drama Historical Event
7.3
20052h 26min

Overview

In the years before World War II, a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a maid in a geisha house.

Themes

Class inequality, Social mobility, Exploitation and debt, Performance and reputation, Mentorship dynamics, Wartime disruption

Available on

Netflix
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.