16th Century History
by The_Historian_78 | created - 07 Jan 2017 | updated - 17 Jan 2021 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas (2013)
Unrated | 122 min | Drama, History
In the 16th century in the Cévennes, a horse dealer by the name of Michael Kohlhaas leads a happy family life. When a lord treats him unjustly, he raises an army and puts the country to fire and sword in order to have his rights restored.
Director: Arnaud des Pallières | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Mélusine Mayance, Delphine Chuillot, David Kross
Votes: 9,203
2. Anonymous (I) (2011)
PG-13 | 130 min | Drama, Thriller
The theory that it was in fact Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, who penned Shakespeare's plays. Set against the backdrop of the succession of Queen Elizabeth I and the Essex rebellion against her.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave, David Thewlis, Sebastian Armesto
Votes: 42,137 | Gross: $4.46M
3. Apocalypto (2006)
R | 139 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
As the Mayan kingdom faces its decline, a young man is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Gerardo Taracena, Raoul Max Trujillo, Dalia Hernández, Rudy Youngblood
Votes: 331,445 | Gross: $50.87M
4. Artemisia (1997)
R | 98 min | Biography, Drama, History
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) was one of the first well-known female painters. The movie tells the story of her youth, when she was guided and protected by her father, the painter ... See full summary »
Director: Agnès Merlet | Stars: Valentina Cervi, Michel Serrault, Predrag 'Miki' Manojlovic, Luca Zingaretti
Votes: 2,206 | Gross: $0.38M
5. Bathory: Countess of Blood (2008)
R | 141 min | Biography, Drama, Fantasy
With an unquenchable thirst for blood, Countess Elizabeth Bathory was one of the most prolific serial killers in history.
Director: Juraj Jakubisko | Stars: Anna Friel, Karel Roden, Vincent Regan, Hans Matheson
Votes: 4,692
6. Dangerous Beauty (1998)
R | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A Venetian courtesan becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft.
Director: Marshall Herskovitz | Stars: Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell, Oliver Platt, Fred Ward
Votes: 19,641 | Gross: $4.53M
7. El Dorado (1988)
149 min | Drama, History
The film tells the epic story of an expedition that took place between 1560 and 1561, headed by Pedro de Ursúa, in search of "El Dorado." The territory they explored subsequently became ... See full summary »
Director: Carlos Saura | Stars: Omero Antonutti, Eusebio Poncela, Lambert Wilson, Gabriela Roel
Votes: 660
8. Henri 4 (2010)
155 min | Biography, Drama, War
A wide-ranging, energetic period piece tracing the rise of the Protestant Henry of Navarre as he goes from battlefield warrior to France's beloved King Henri IV. Director Jo Baier's epic is... See full summary »
Director: Jo Baier | Stars: Julien Boisselier, Joachim Król, Andreas Schmidt, Roger Casamajor
Votes: 1,365
9. Kenau (2014)
Not Rated | 113 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
While she fights a heroic battle against the Spanish besieger with her female army, Kenau, driven by hate and sorrow of the execution of her youngest daughter, is threatened to also lose her eldest daughter.
Director: Maarten Treurniet | Stars: Monic Hendrickx, Lisa Smit, Sallie Harmsen, Peter Van den Begin
Votes: 1,762
10. The Conspiracy (2008)
128 min | Adventure, Drama, History
16th century ruler King Philip II of Spain maneuvers within a court of deceit and betrayal.
Director: Antonio del Real | Stars: Jason Isaacs, Julia Ormond, Jürgen Prochnow, Jordi Mollà
Votes: 424
11. Lady Jane (1986)
PG-13 | 136 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Lady Jane Grey, who was Queen of England for only nine days.
Director: Trevor Nunn | Stars: Helena Bonham Carter, Cary Elwes, John Wood, Michael Hordern
Votes: 7,086 | Gross: $0.28M
12. Elizabeth I (2005)
TV-MA | 112 min | Biography, Drama, History
Mini-series about the the public and private lives of the later years of Queen Elizabeth I.
Stars: Helen Mirren, Toby Jones, Hugh Dancy, Patrick Malahide
Votes: 7,033
13. Elizabeth R (1971)
520 min | Biography, Drama, History
When Elizabeth Tudor comes to the throne, her (male) advisers know she has to marry. Doesn't she? Thus starts a decades-long political/matrimonial game, during an age of high passions and high achievement.
Stars: Glenda Jackson, Ronald Hines, Robert Hardy, Stephen Murray
Votes: 1,940
14. Elizabeth (1998)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama, History
The early years of the reign of Elizabeth I of England and her difficult task of learning what is necessary to be a monarch.
Director: Shekhar Kapur | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Liz Giles, Rod Culbertson, Paul Fox
Votes: 105,151 | Gross: $30.08M
15. Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)
PG-13 | 114 min | Biography, Drama, History
A mature Queen Elizabeth endures multiple crises late in her reign including court intrigues, an assassination plot, the Spanish Armada, and romantic disappointments.
Director: Shekhar Kapur | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Clive Owen, Geoffrey Rush, Jordi Mollà
Votes: 75,078 | Gross: $16.29M
16. The Outlaw (2010)
106 min | Biography, Drama, History
A chronicle of the life of Lope de Vega, the Spanish playwright who dominated Spain's early Golden Age of theater.
Director: Andrucha Waddington | Stars: Alberto Ammann, Leonor Watling, Pilar López de Ayala, Ramon Pujol
Votes: 1,150
17. Luther (2003)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, History
During the early sixteenth century, idealistic German monk Martin Luther, disgusted by the materialism in the Catholic Church, begins the dialogue that will lead to the Protestant Reformation.
Director: Eric Till | Stars: Joseph Fiennes, Bruno Ganz, Peter Ustinov, Alfred Molina
Votes: 16,005 | Gross: $5.79M
18. Mad Love (2001)
R | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
The love story that transformed Juana, Queen of Spain, into Juana "the Mad". A story of passions, lies and jealousy with a political motive behind.
Director: Vicente Aranda | Stars: Pilar López de Ayala, Daniele Liotti, Rosana Pastor, Giuliano Gemma
Votes: 4,056 | Gross: $0.28M
19. Mary Queen of Scots (2013)
119 min | Biography, Drama, History
A queen who lost three kingdoms. A wife who lost three husbands. A woman who lost her head.
Director: Thomas Imbach | Stars: Camille Rutherford, Mehdi Dehbi, Sean Biggerstaff, Aneurin Barnard
Votes: 995
20. Mary, Queen of Scots (1971)
PG-13 | 128 min | Biography, Drama, History
During the sixteenth century, the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots engages in over two decades of religious and political conflict with her cousin, the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I of England, amidst political intrigue in her native land.
Director: Charles Jarrott | Stars: Vanessa Redgrave, Glenda Jackson, Patrick McGoohan, Timothy Dalton
Votes: 4,882 | Gross: $2.33M
21. Orlando (1992)
PG-13 | 94 min | Biography, Drama, Fantasy
After Queen Elizabeth I commands him not to grow old, a young nobleman struggles with love and his place in the world.
Director: Sally Potter | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Billy Zane, Quentin Crisp, Jimmy Somerville
Votes: 18,729 | Gross: $5.29M
22. Othello (1995)
R | 123 min | Drama, Romance
The Moorish General Othello is manipulated into thinking that his new wife Desdemona has been carrying on an affair with his Lieutenant Michael Cassio, when in reality, it is all part of the scheme of a bitter Ensign named Iago.
Director: Oliver Parker | Stars: Laurence Fishburne, Kenneth Branagh, Irène Jacob, Nathaniel Parker
Votes: 10,180 | Gross: $2.11M
23. Queen Margot (1994)
R | 161 min | Biography, Drama, History
Young Queen Margot finds herself trapped in an arranged marriage amidst a religious war between Catholics and Protestants. She hopes to escape with a new lover, but finds herself imprisoned by her powerful and ruthless family.
Director: Patrice Chéreau | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Vincent Perez
Votes: 19,000 | Gross: $2.02M
24. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
R | 123 min | Comedy, Drama, History
The world's greatest ever playwright, William Shakespeare, is young, out of ideas and short of cash, but meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays.
Director: John Madden | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson
Votes: 234,397 | Gross: $100.32M
25. The Countess (2009)
Not Rated | 98 min | Biography, Drama, History
A 17th century Hungarian countess embarks on a murderous undertaking, with the belief that bathing in the blood of virgins will preserve her beauty.
Director: Julie Delpy | Stars: Julie Delpy, Daniel Brühl, William Hurt, Anamaria Marinca
Votes: 8,661
26. The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
Two sisters contend for the affection of King Henry VIII.
Director: Justin Chadwick | Stars: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Jim Sturgess
Votes: 119,994 | Gross: $26.81M
27. The Other Conquest (1998)
R | 105 min | Drama, History
It is May 1520 in the vast Aztec Empire one year after the Spanish Conqueror Hernán Cortés' arrival in Mexico. "The Other Conquest" opens with the infamous massacre of the Aztecs at the ... See full summary »
Director: Salvador Carrasco | Stars: Damián Delgado, José Carlos Rodríguez, Elpidia Carrillo, Iñaki Aierra
Votes: 1,204 | Gross: $0.89M
28. The Princess of Montpensier (2010)
Not Rated | 139 min | Action, Drama, History
Based on the classic didactic novel, the action centers on the noble lady who soon becomes exposed to the sexual and political intrigues of the French court of the religious wars era.
Director: Bertrand Tavernier | Stars: Mélanie Thierry, Lambert Wilson, Gaspard Ulliel, Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet
Votes: 4,286 | Gross: $0.34M
29. The Mill and the Cross (2011)
Not Rated | 92 min | Drama, History
This movie focuses on a dozen of the five hundred characters depicted in Bruegel's painting. The theme of Christ's suffering is set against religious persecution in Flanders in 1564.
Director: Lech Majewski | Stars: Rutger Hauer, Michael York, Charlotte Rampling, Joanna Litwin
Votes: 4,430 | Gross: $0.31M
30. The Prince and the Pauper (2000 TV Movie)
PG | 90 min | Adventure, Family
The King and a poor boy swap places.
Director: Giles Foster | Stars: Aidan Quinn, Alan Bates, Jonathan Hyde, Jonathan Timmins
Votes: 796
31. Tsar (2009)
PG-13 | 116 min | Drama, History
A historical film that tells about two years in the life of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, his relationship with Metropolitan Philip of Moscow and the events of the Oprichnina era.
Director: Pavel Lungin | Stars: Pyotr Mamonov, Oleg Yankovskiy, Ramilya Iskander, Anastasiya Dontsova
Votes: 3,246
32. Reign (2013–2017)
TV-14 | 42 min | Drama
Mary, Queen of Scots, faces political and sexual intrigue in the treacherous world of the French court.
Stars: Adelaide Kane, Megan Follows, Celina Sinden, Torrance Coombs
Votes: 54,411
33. The Virgin Queen (2005–2006)
59 min | Biography, Drama, History
From teenage princess to accomplished queen, torn between duty and personal longing, the reign of Elizabeth I is exposed in this lavish drama filmed against a backdrop of some of Great Britain's most beautiful houses and landscapes.
Stars: Anne-Marie Duff, Sienna Guillory, Ian Hart, Tom Hardy
Votes: 3,279
34. Wolf Hall (2015)
TV-14 | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
After the downfall of Cardinal Wolsey, his secretary, Thomas Cromwell, finds himself amongst the treachery and intrigue of King Henry VIII's court and soon becomes a close advisor to the King, a role fraught with danger.
Stars: Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis, Claire Foy, Thomas Brodie-Sangster
Votes: 13,099
35. The Tudors (2007–2010)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
A dramatic series about the reign and marriages of King Henry VIII.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy, James Frain
Votes: 81,242
36. Charles, Emperor King (2015–2016)
TV-MA | Biography, Drama, History
The Roman Catholic Church faces the new challenges of Protestanism in Northern Europe and Paganism in the Americas. Carlos V seeks to secure the power of the Church, in this continuation of Isabel (2011-2014) and La Corona Partida (2016).
Stars: Álvaro Cervantes, Alfonso Bassave, Marina Salas, Félix Gómez
Votes: 735
37. Gold (2017)
R | 103 min | Adventure, Drama, History
Love, ambition, treason and death clash in a neverending search for a city built with gold.
Director: Agustín Díaz Yanes | Stars: Raúl Arévalo, Bárbara Lennie, Óscar Jaenada, Jose Coronado
Votes: 1,878 | Gross: $0.00M
38. Mary Queen of Scots (2018)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama, History
Mary 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.
Director: Josie Rourke | Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Jack Lowden, Joe Alwyn
Votes: 55,361 | Gross: $16.47M
39. The Spanish Princess (2019–2020)
TV-MA | 55 min | Drama, History, Romance
Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon navigates the royal lineage of England with an eye on the throne.
Stars: Laura Carmichael, Aaron Cobham, Charlotte Hope, Stephanie Levi-John
Votes: 10,711
40. The Magnificent Century (2011–2014)
90 min | Biography, Drama, History
From 1520, follows Suleiman the Magnificent and his relatives from his great conquests to the "Battle of Szigetvár".
Stars: Halit Ergenç, Nur Fettahoglu, Selim Bayraktar, Selen Öztürk
Votes: 19,147
41. Will (2017)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History
A drama about the lost years of young William Shakespeare after his arrival to London in 1589--when theatre was like rock'n'roll, and a young man with a dream changed the world with his words.
Stars: Laurie Davidson, Olivia DeJonge, Ewen Bremner, Mattias Inwood
Votes: 2,165
42. Emperor (II)
Adventure, Thriller | Completed
XVI Century. Action epic about young Johanna "Of Ghent", who seeks revenge on the holy Roman Emperor Charles V for the death of her father. It happens in a world of wealth, debauchery, violent retaliations, sex, manipulation, and treason.
Director: Lee Tamahori | Stars: Adrien Brody, Sophie Cookson, Paz Vega, Thomas Kretschmann
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