Popular History Movies on Kanopy - Page 27

The Man Who Invented Christmas

2017

The Man Who Invented Christmas

2017
6.8
In 1843, despite the fact that Dickens is a successful writer, the failure of his latest book puts his career at a crossroads, until the moment when, struggling with inspiration and confronting reality with his childhood memories, a new character is born in the depths of his troubled mind; an old, lonely, embittered man, so vivid, so human, that a whole world grows around him, a story so inspiring that changed the meaning of Christmas forever.
Dear Comrades!

2020

Dear Comrades!

2020
7.2
When the communist government raises food prices in 1962, the rebellious workers from the small industrial town of Novocherkassk go on strike. The massacre which then ensues is seen through the eyes of a devout party activist.
Maestra

2012

Maestra

2012
Cuba, 1961: 250,000 volunteers taught 700,000 people to read and write in one year. 100,000 of the teachers were under 18 years old. Over half were women. MAESTRA explores this story through the personal testimonies of the young women who went out to teach literacy in rural communities across the island - and found themselves deeply transformed in the process.
Pacific Adventure

1946

Pacific Adventure

1946
6.5
An Australian biopic about the life of pioneering aviator Charles "Smithy" Kingsford-Smith. The film is unusually frank about the controversies that occasionally dogged him. PG Taylor and Billy Hughes both make appearances playing themselves.
The Twisted Tale Of Bloody Mary

2008

The Twisted Tale Of Bloody Mary

2008
She was loved, she was a princess, heir to the throne - but the childhood fairytale turned to lifelong nightmare for Mary Tudor, Henry VIII's first child. When Henry divorced her mother and married Anne Boleyn, Mary became an outcast and a threat to the Protestant succession. By a twist of fate, on the death of her brother, she became queen at last in 1553, but her attempts to make England Catholic again were a disaster for her and the country. History has called her "Bloody Mary" for the burning of the Protestants, but how fair is this? This film paints another picture, of a woman true to her beliefs, pushed towards a terrible psychological disintegration.
The Ambassador

2011

The Ambassador

2011
6.6
Danish journalist Mads Brügger goes undercover as a Liberian Ambassador to embark on a dangerous yet hysterical journey to uncover the blood diamond trade in Africa.
My Friend Dahmer

2017

My Friend Dahmer

2017
6.5
Jeffrey Dahmer struggles with a difficult family life as a young boy. During his teenage years he slowly transforms, edging closer to the serial killer he was to become.
Doctors of the Dark Side

2011

Doctors of the Dark Side

2011
6.8
Doctors of the Dark Side is the first feature length documentary about the pivotal role of physicians and psychologists in detainee torture. The stories of four detainees and the doctors involved in their abuse demonstrate how US Army and CIA doctors implemented the Enhanced Interrogation Techniques and covered up signs of torture at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Interviews with medical, legal and intelligence experts and evidence from declassified government memos document what has been called the greatest scandal in American medical ethics. Based on four years of research by Producer/Director Martha Davis, written by Oscar winning Mark Jonathan Harris, and filmed in HD by Emmy winning DP Lisa Rinzler, the film shows how the torture of detainees could not continue without the assistance of the doctors.
Mystic Mass

2014

Mystic Mass

2014
Every year, thousands of Shia Muslims meet in the village of Nabatiyyeh in Lebanon to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, assassinated in 680 A.D. It is by far the most important religious event in the Shia cult, and leads to the formation of immense mass movements all around the world. Mystic Mass describes extensively this 24h ceremony, and deconstructs its indivisible, ever united, mystic mass, since its formation early in the morning of Ashoura, up to its dissolution in the afternoon of the same day.
The Green Wave

2012

The Green Wave

2012
7.7
Green was the symbol of recognition among the supporters of Iranian presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi. This documentary-collage illustrates with animated blogs and tweets the story of democracy under fire and the dramatic events before and after the 2009 presidential elections in Iran.
This Magnificent Cake!

2018

This Magnificent Cake!

2018
6.7
In 1885, Africa is a succulent cake destined to be wildly divided and everyone wants a piece. A disturbed European king, a Pygmy working in a luxury hotel, a successful but lonely businessman, an enslaved porter, a young army deserter, a ghostly clarinetist. Some benefit from colonialism and greed. Others suffer racism and violence.
Lakota Nation vs. United States

2022

Lakota Nation vs. United States

2022
5.3
Poet Layli Long Soldier crafts a searing portrait of her Oyate’s connection to the Black Hills, through first contact and broken treaties to the promise of the Land Back movement, in this lyrical testament to resilience of a nation.
Mawson: Life and Death in Antarctica

2008

Mawson: Life and Death in Antarctica

2008
4
The Douglas Mawson Antarctic Expedition of 1912 is considered one of the most amazing feats of endurance of all time. Although his two companions perished, Douglas Mawson survived, but how? In a bold historical experiment, scientist and adventurer Tim Jarvis is retracing the gruelling experience, with the same meagre rations, primitive clothing and equipment to uncover what happened to Mawson physically — and mentally — as a man hanging on the precipice of life and death.
Subjects of Desire

2021

Subjects of Desire

2021
Subjects of Desire is a thought provoking film that examines the cultural shift in beauty standards towards embracing (or appropriating) Black aesthetics and features, deconstructing what we understand about race and the power behind beauty.
Nazi Concentration Camps

1945

Nazi Concentration Camps

1945
7.7
Produced and presented as evidence at the Nuremberg war crimes trial of Hermann Göring and twenty other Nazi leaders, this film consists primarily of dead and surviving prisoners and of facilities used to kill and torture during the World War II.
Write Down, I Am an Arab

2014

Write Down, I Am an Arab

2014
"Write Down, I am an Arab" tells the story of Mahmoud Darwish, the Palestinian national poet and one of the most influential writers of the Arab world. His writing shaped Palestinian identity and helped galvanize generations of Palestinians to their cause. Born in the Galilee, Darwish's family fled during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and returned a few years later to a ruined homeland. These early experiences would provide the foundation for a writing career that would come to define an entire nation.
Karski & The Lords of Humanity

2015

Karski & The Lords of Humanity

2015
6
The film tells the story of a member of the Polish underground who acted as a courier during World War II and whose most prominent mission was to inform the Allied powers of Nazi crimes against the Jews of Europe in an effort to prevent the Holocaust.
The Mission

1986

The Mission

1986
7.4
When a Spanish Jesuit goes into the South American wilderness to build a mission in the hope of converting the Indians of the region, a slave hunter is converted and joins his mission. When Spain sells the colony to Portugal, they are forced to defend all they have built against the Portuguese aggressors.
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead

2015

Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead

2015
6.6
A look at the history of the American comedy publication and production company, National Lampoon, from its beginning in the 1970s to 2010, featuring rare and never before seen footage, this is the mind boggling story of The National Lampoon from its subversive and electrifying beginnings, to rebirth as an unlikely Hollywood heavyweight, and beyond. A humour empire like no other, the impact of the magazines irreverent, often shocking, sensibility was nothing short of seismic: this is an institution whose (drunk stoned brilliant) alumni left their fingerprints all over popular culture. Both insanely great and breathtakingly innovative, The National Lampoon created the foundation of modern comic sensibility by setting the bar in comedy impossibly high.
After Jackie

2022

After Jackie

2022
8.5
After Jackie celebrates the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s integration into Major League Baseball. Robinson opened the door for other African Americans to join the league and this documentary taps into key people and events in the aftermath.