The King

The King is the most recent Netflix’s historical movie, based on one of the most famous William Shakespeare play known as “Henriad”. The movie shows us an incredible interpretation of the short life of the British who conquered the Kingdom of Britain´s arch enemy, France.

The movie happens in the 15th Century and illustration a climatic and realistic representation of the famous Battle of Agincourt, where you can feel the hope and the fear of the characters as if you were on the battlefield. The amazing performance of Timotheé Chamlamet ( King Henry V) shows really well the character development that goes from a young hedonist prince to a hubristic King who sees himself trapped in battles of personal interests. Alongside the emotionally draining scenes Nicholas Britell created a breathtaking soundtrack that is the cherry on the top of the cake.

However if you are looking for historical accuracy you may be disappointed since the movie describes a historical moment that was massively shortened.  Because of this fact the film can also feel a little bit rushed at the end even if it has a solid end with a plot twist that changes the perception of the story.

All in all, The King is a wonderful and touching movie that represents incredibly the Battle of Agincourt, and will make you want to relisten the stunning soundtrack, and if you want to see a movie that will leave you on the edge of your sofa you should definitely watch this film!

Unbroken

“Unbroken” is a thrilling film, directed and produced by Angelina Jolie, based on the extraordinary life of Louis Zamperini, the olympic athlete who join the American army during World War II.

The film begins with a few flashbacks, showing Louis’s life while growing up, his petty youth being an out of the law, and his life as an endurance running athlete.

After joining the American air force, the bombardier and his crew, were caught up in a plane crash in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, where only himself and two other partners survived. They spent a total of 47 days adrift on a lifeboat, with barely anything to eat and drink, when they finally got rescued, or so they thought. They were captured by a Japanese patrol boat. Zamperini and his mate were taken to different camps as war hostages and remain there until the end of the war.

Zamperini is portrayed as a strong and unbreakable man, whose suffering and dread are not shown at any time. Because of his fearless temperament, he his commander Watanabe’s main enemy, making Louis´s life in the camp the most miserable and painful he could.

Even being sadistically humiliated for all his time captive, he always kept his head up, and didn’t let the commander’s threats and endless punishments get to him, he had only one goal set on his mind, survival. His strength and strong will to survive are what make him such a remarkable character. The accuracy of the visual effects of the time are also a key point that makes this film worth watching. Either you decide to give this movie a chance or not, always keep in mind Zamperini’s quotation that made him thrive through all the obstacles, “A moment of pain is worth a lifetime of glory”.

Pride and Prejudice

The film Pride and Prejudice – directed by Joe Wright – is  an adaptation of one of the best romances of all time, written by Jane Austen. The story takes place in England, 19th century, and may seem to be a stereotypical love story at first, but it can definitely take you by surprise.

The five Bennet sisters, all looking for a husband except for Elizabeth, one of our main protagonists. However, as unexpected as life can be, she meets the wealthy young bachelor Mr. Darcy, whose uncourteous and judgmental manners let us know the disdain he has for the Bennets – poor Lizzie – and how he could not care less for the intelligent, good-humoured and loyal Elizabeth.

The way the story reaches the ending is full of ups and downs between these two characters and has a lot to do with the complexity and development of their emotions and personalities. How the protagonists show their feelings towards each other is incredibly well-thought it is very accurately portrayed in the film. The realistic approach yet romantic and fresh to the story is certainly one of the reasons I fall for it every time and you will too.

This is, indeed, a long adaptation and the ending, as previously mentioned, is predictable, so if you are looking for whole new romance plot that no one has ever seen before, then it might not be suitable to your taste. However, apart from that, it is surely worth seeing and may turn out to be impressively entertaining.

Marie Antoinette

The historical film “Marie Antoinette” is definitely one to consider in our top ten recommendations. As its title suggests, this magnificent film tells us the story of one of the most well-known personalities in the history of France.

This legendary plot takes place in Versailles, in the 18th century, where Marie Antoinette, a 14-year-old Austrian princess, is sent to marry the future king of France, Louis XVI. As the role asks for itself, Marie must fulfil the desire of the crown to produce an heir. Confronted with this constant pressure and not being able to do so for a considerable period of time, she tries to escape her stultifying existence.  Constantly evoking the sense of being trapped in a world of regal ritual and stifling etiquette, Marie Antoinette sees herself in need of a more luxuriant and worry-free lifestyle.

This exuberant way of living is shown in a very accurate way as it is the main characteristic of the late baroque period. Not only for all the parties and clothes of the time but also by the architecture and furniture overall full with numerous ornaments painted with gold, making it look like every object is a piece of art. Apart from all the historical details, what really makes the film stand out is its modern feel. It just doesn’t seem like one more adaptation without any touch of originality.

Speaking of originality, the film producers may take it a bit too far by mixing this typical baroque music with very contemporary songs, which may seem slightly confusing, as well as some other references to modern objects of our daily lives. Also, what perhaps would turn “Marie Antoinette” from a really good flick into a great one is if the inside perspective of the main character herself could be more emphasized. Besides that, it is a visually stunning film.

As the film ends with some suspense, it may be the obvious end for who knows her story, or it may just be a way for others to do some research and figure out the story of the important character that, along with her court, was accused of eventually leading France to a financial crises.

The Imitation Game

The Imitation Game is set during the 2nd world war, when England was trying figure out what a German machine ( called Enigma ) that gave information about attacks in code format was saying, so that they could prepare for them.

This movie tells the story of a group of cryptanalysts that were chosen to crack the codes from the Enigma, but gives special importance to one of the mathematicians of the group: Alan Turing. Alan was a genius with a strong personality and innovative ideas that weren’t well accepted by the team. The Imitation Game shows all the ups and downs of the process of this mathematician to make the group and the commanding officers of the operation trust and believe in him.

This is a wonderfully executed movie, with an outstanding cast and a very interesting  plot that introduces you to an historical character that isn’t that well known but was crucial in World’s history. It’s astonishing the way this story is told and the way it shows the characters evolving throughout time. One point that makes the movie stand-out even more, is the delightful performance that Benedict Cumberbatch delivers playing Turing’s role. On the not so bright side, in my opinion, they could have made the movie slightly longer to show the afterwards of Turing’s life after all that he had been through.

All in all, I just think that this movie is perfectly well executed, showing us a really interesting character that is going to capture your attention from the first minute. This entertaining and engaging film is by far one of the finest historical films.

Northmen: A Viking Saga

Northmen: a Viking saga is an astonishing dramatization of a credible fictional tale that could  have taken place in the Viking era, approximately in the 9th century. The legendary subject of the Norse warriors shipwrecked on hostile unfamiliar shores and a majestic king with his only daughter in danger plus his most trusted men which are not as reliable as we initially are lead into thinking add up to a stunning, incredibly clever and skillfully well thought plot full of intrigue and unexpected twists.

The plot develops at a quite intense rate and it will fully depend on the protagonists´ decision making sense, taking in consideration that different choices lead them fatally to the outcome they made for themselves. It is therefore quite impressive the way how it is not only an excellent movie due to the historical element but also for the remarkably well-written script.

Despite the movie´s credibility, the wardrobe sometimes may look rather costume like as it is often the case. The slight presence of an authentic Norse mythology-inspired Swedish death metal band also contributes to giving the movie the raw Nordic aggressive feel that we often associate with this barbaric people often perceived as evil pagans by the former catholic currently British regions. This also translates to a picture filled with violent and intense battlefield and combat scenes, describing a very stereotyped perception of this people. The mythological and legendary element portrayed by the princess´ supernatural gift also enhances the factor of mysticism.

Although in some segments rather cliché, it is an overall decently accurate and believable. All in all, a magnificent movie.

Inglorious

Inglorious is an amazing fictional adaptation of real events that took place in Europe in the 40’s, during World War 2. It’s a story about a vengeful Jewish survivor and how she was helped by ruthless Jewish soldiers to wipe out the German High Command at a movie theatre.

The movie starts with a callous Nazi officer killing a whole family and the people they were hiding, but letting one girl escape. Years later, she is found in France trying to hide away, but finds out the Führer is coming to town, after meeting the Basterds they all plan to kill the German High Command and its leader.

This masterpiece of a movie might not be for everyone. Although, it is a film about one of the most important events of human history, it isn’t accurate. Besides taking place in World War 2, it doesn’t show many historical moments and/or figures, besides Hitler himself, and it doesn’t take the austere approach like other historical WW2 movies. It also demonstrates a side not so seen in most of these, which is a lot of gore, blood and very graphic killing scenes, that has director Quentin Tarantino’s name written all over it. Despite all the action and drama, it has a comedic side as well.

In the end, if you are looking to watch a movie about the second war, but don’t feel like crying or feel depressed about it, Inglorious is the movie for you, full of stunning shots, gory action, a new different kind of war film, with just a bit of comedy, and a majestic soundtrack to top it off.

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

“The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas” is a great film, the events take place during World War II in Germany. It is a very well-known film about the forbidden friendship of these two little boys: one is Jewish and the other one is German. It is a great representation of how things were around this time of war.

The performance of the actors is exceptional, and it is necessary to emphasise the work done by the children. The plot was done to represent how people lived, both German and Jewish; The Jewish were inside the concentration camps while Germans lived with their freedom. This film is brutal, and it has a lot of powerful scenes. This friendship that was formed by accident makes us realize that we are not born hating others. Throughout the film we can feel genuinely sad and sorry for these boys who are separated by an electric fence and cannot play with each other even though they really want to.

This is a spectacular and very emotional film. However, if you are looking for a full representation of what was happening inside the concentration camps, this film may not be for you. It focuses more on the children, specially the German boy, and how it affected his life. Even though this film does not mainly focus on what was going on with the Jewish people, we can still get a good image of how hard reality was for them.

Nothing prepares you for the ending of this story. You will vividly remember the last scenes every time you think about it and even the strongest ones will recoil. This is an extraordinary film worth watching.