Period Dramas-Medieval Times 476-1453
This is a list of movies or/and mini series set in the 476-1453.
The medieval period begun after the fall of the Roman Empire and is segmented into 3 main areas of the medieval period: early middle age(476-1000), High middle age(1000-1300) and late middle age (1300-1453).
For those who are serious about Period Dramas and deem a movie/mini series worthy to be listed, add your comments.
The medieval period begun after the fall of the Roman Empire and is segmented into 3 main areas of the medieval period: early middle age(476-1000), High middle age(1000-1300) and late middle age (1300-1453).
For those who are serious about Period Dramas and deem a movie/mini series worthy to be listed, add your comments.
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- DirectorPeter FlinthStarsJoakim NätterqvistSofia HelinStellan SkarsgårdArn, the son of a high-ranking Swedish nobleman, is educated in a monastery and sent to the Holy Land as a knight templar to do penance for a forbidden love.Date Set:roughly between 1177 to 1197 (this is only estimates)
Reigning Monach: King Canute I of Sweden and Saladin, first Sultan of Egypt and Syria
Backdrop: Battle of Montgisard, Battle of Hattin
Not a bad production. Its a simple story of 2 young lovers who fall in love, they get torn apart by family, she goes to the convent, Arn goes in the military and is fighting in the crusades. After many years they come together....can't tell you the ending, you need to see it. I've read somewhere it's a part of a trilogy - StarsDerek JacobiMichael CulverJulian FirthThe medieval era cases of a Crusader-turned-Monk who investigates mysteries in the Norman English town of Shrewsbury.Date set: 1138-1145
Reiging monach: King Stephen and Empress Matilda (Maud).
Backdrop: battle for the throne of England between Stephen and Matilda
I know this is a detective TV series set in the middle ages, but this is the one that began my addiction to period dramas. This also stars one of my favourite British actor Derek Jacobi. - DirectorPeter GlenvilleStarsRichard BurtonPeter O'TooleJohn GielgudKing Henry II of England comes to terms with his affection for his close friend and confidant Thomas Becket, who finds his true honor by observing God's divine will rather than the King's.Date Set:1166 (roughly)
Reigning Monach: King Henry II
On my must watch soon list - StarsIan McShaneMatthew MacfadyenEddie RedmayneSet against a backdrop of war, religious strife and power struggles which tears lives and families apart.Date set: 1135 and 1153 (aka as The Anarchy)
Reigning Monach: Due to the civil war in England when King Henry I died; the sucession of the crown was a contest between Stephen of Blois and Matilda of Boulogne (Empress Matilda)
I have read Ken Follets's "The Pillars Of The Earth", and it took me 2 days to complete. The movie production is a fine piece...that is if you have not read the book. By reading the book it kind of ruined the entertainment value of this film; so any critic I write is tainted.
So I won't bother going into details here. The only things I do have to write is this:
1. Eddie Redmayne as Jack Jackson is a strange choice for the main lead. But there you go.
2. David Oakes as William Hamleigh good casting...He also played Juan Borgia in the 2011/2012 production of The Borgias. But he really needs a role that expends his acting abilities.
3. Alison Pill as Princess Maude (aka Empress Matilda) again good casting and an unusual one. Would never have picked her as an medievil princess but there you go. She is brilliant in this TV production.
4. Finally costume; well done and very authentic. - DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweCate BlanchettMatthew MacfadyenIn twelfth-century England, Robin Longstride and his band of marauders confront corruption in a local village and lead an uprising against the crown that will forever alter the balance of world power.Date set: 1199 AD, after King Richard I death
Reigning Monarch: King John, House of Plantagenet
A refreshing look at Robin Hood, more earthy than the rest. Thankfully it's not a copy cat of the 1991 Robin Hood:Prince of Thieves, which was a good waste of a brain cell or 2.
Ridley Scott knows how to direct, AND he know his audience. The first act of the movie, gets you hooked, after that act 2 & 3 were mediocre and predictable.
One big plus is Marion (Kate Blanchette), she's a widow, past the prime of youth and hardened by life and the reality of it all. And thank goodness, for that, if a young Hollywood or English actress was the lead the film would never work.
Secondly, the costume, fantastic and it's obvious the wardrobe department had the budget to make the look authentic.
Finally, a bit of humour goes a long way. The film does not take itself too seriously. - DirectorJean-Jacques AnnaudStarsSean ConneryChristian SlaterHelmut QualtingerAn intellectually nonconformist friar investigates a series of mysterious deaths in an isolated abbey.Date Set: 1323
Reigning Monach: Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor (House of Wittelsbach)
Set: Benedictine monastery in Northern Italy
I rather liked this movie, part mystery/part detective/part christianity. I actually read the book and the production does follow it, with in reason. ***SPOILER*** during the ending it rather regretabe, to know all that knowledge stored in the library, gathering dust, destroyed by fire. - DirectorLaurence OlivierStarsLaurence OlivierRobert NewtonLeslie BanksIn the midst of the Hundred Years' War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France in 1415.Date Set: 1414AD -1415AD
Backdrop: Battle of Agincourt
Reigning Monarch: King Henry V, House of Lancaster.
Well I just had to add it...see my comments about it below - 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.Date Set: 1414AD -1415AD
Backdrop: Battle of Agincourt
Reigning Monarch: King Henry V, House of Lancaster.
King Henry of England, invades Frances, wins an impossible battle on the field of Agincourt with only a handful of Enlishmen. Great play by William Shakespeare. Having seen Kenneth Branagh Henry V (1989) and Sir Laurence Olivier Henry V (1944)adaptions it was hard tell which was better than the other as I liked them both. Branaghn was modern, well acted and the battle scenes were very realistics. A round of applause for Derek Jacobi as the narrator of the production. While Oliviers still stands the test of time, superbly acted, exceptionally casted and very much in the tradition of a Shakespeare play...just look at the sets.
The reason I added the 1989 version on the list is simply because of the poster. - 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.Date set: 1177AD
Reigning Monach: Saladin, first Sultan of Egypt and Syria
Backdrop:Battle of Montgisard
Some critics have been unkind to this production. I, on the other hand, found it to be engaging, interesting, great acting, beautiful scenery and costume design. Lighting was one of the things I've noticed in this movie. Ridley Scott has done a great job in directing, one again. Sure it starts of slow, but it is when Balian is in the middle east, things move along. The most stand out actor is Edward Norton, who played a minor role as the leper king, Baldwin (historically Baldwin was a 16 year old teenage boy who was seriously afflicted by leprosy). For whatever reason, the make up crew went a bit too heavy on the eye liner on Eva Green. - DirectorAndrey KonchalovskiyStarsGlenn ClosePatrick StewartJonathan Rhys MeyersKing Henry II meets with Eleanor of Aquitaine at Christmastide 1183 to choose one of his sons as his successor.Date set: 1183
Also see
The Lion in Winter (1969) - DirectorFranco ZeffirelliStarsMel GibsonGlenn CloseAlan BatesHamlet, Prince of Denmark, finds out that his uncle Claudius killed his father to obtain the throne, and plans revenge.I found this movie hard to digest. Not because this version of Shakespeare interpretation, but because of the casting of Mel Gibson in the lead role, which is pivotal to the play. The Danish prince Hamlet is young, intelligent and smart, but also there is a method to his madness. It's a challenging role and I am on the fence, whether Mel Gibson was right to play this lead character. Would it work with another actor? who knows. As for the supporting cast, they were fabulous. Glenn Close as Gertrude, always good in anything.
- DirectorJack GoldStarsBrenda BruceEileen WayAnne DysonMacbeth and his wife murder Duncan in order to gain his crown, but the bloodbath doesn't stop there, and things supernatural combine to bring the Macbeths down.
- 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.Date set: 1280 or 1297-1305
Reigning Monarch:Edward I (House of Plantagenet)
Never heard of William Wallace until this movie. The cast is almost perfect, and Mel Gibson is perfectly cast as the scotish rogue who turns into the stuff legends are made of. Battle scene are well crafted and the direction is wonderful. Really great banter amongst the scots as they talk of battle and life. However this movie is not to be taken as a "true" account of William Wallace's life and the time lines for King Edward I, Prince Edward II and Princess Isabella has obviously been 'fudged' and overlooked. Yes King Edward I, qualled the rebellion of the Scots, but Isabella and Edward II would have been mere children at this time.
***Trivia***I've watched a 6 part documentary on the history of Scotland. It appears Isabella was only a young child. She was born in 1295; Wallace was executed in 1305. You do the maths... - DirectorPaul McGuiganStarsWillem DafoePaul BettanyMarián AguileraA priest on the lam takes up with a traveling band of actors, who then discover a murder has occurred and try to solve it by recreating the crime in a play.Date Set: 1380
Reigning Monach: King Richard II, House of Plantagenet - StarsJohn Murray ScottFrank WindsorDavid AndrewsA linking together of Shakespeare's history plays chronicling the rise and fall of monarchs over the eighty-six years between Richard II and Richard III.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsMilla JovovichJohn MalkovichRab AffleckA young girl receives a vision that drives her to rid France of its oppressors.Date set:1412 -1431.
Reigning Monarch:King Charles VII of France - DirectorBrian HelgelandStarsHeath LedgerMark AddyRufus SewellAfter his master dies, a peasant squire, fueled by his desire for food and glory, creates a new identity for himself as a knight.What can I say...except I got bored with this movie. I found the costume and hairstyle of the leading lady, far too modern and the humour, way too over the top; the sly comments weren't even witty. Thumbs up for attempting to blend ancient themes of heroism with the music of rock, thumbs down for thinking the audience buys into this crap. Watch and you decide for yourself whether or not you enjoyed it
- DirectorKevin ReynoldsStarsJames FrancoSophia MylesRufus SewellAn affair between the second in line to Britain's throne and the princess of the feuding Irish spells doom for the young lovers.Date set: roughly after the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century.
Where do I start with this film.
Still this production is not bad but why cast James Franco as Tristan? His face has too much modern characteristics; though he does try his best in the awkard role. Sophie Myles is excellently cast as Isolde however the main stand out is Rufus Sewell (another actor that is often overlooked) as Lord Marke of Cornwall.
The only thing that I can say is the director Kevin Reynolds, may have had his hands tied or was restricted in the things he wanted in the production i.e. budget
***Spoiler*** the death scene at the end is the biggest let down of the film. I won't go into details, only to say it was too drawn out and it felt like the director wanted to wring out every last emotion in human kind. Alas sadly for me, call me a cynic but any great love story like Tristan & Isolde or Lancelot & Guinevere is free advertising for adultery and basic betrayal. - StarsGilles BéhatHélène DucJean-Luc MoreauSet during the reigns of the last five kings of the Capetian dynasty and the first two kings of the House of Valois, the series begins as the French King Philip the Fair, already surrounded by scandal and intrigue, brings a curse upon his family when he persecutes the Knights Templar. The succession of monarchs that follows leads France and England to the Hundred Years' War.Date set 1307 before the 100 years war
Reigining Monarch: King Philippe IV of France
Backdrop: build up to, what is termed "Hundred Years War" (a series of wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet)
I have seen the recent French mini series (2005) and it was above average, though the customs were very chique and stylish. I would love to see the 1972 version as I have read it is a better production then the 2005. The 2005 version had very odd architecture and costumes. One character wore a bright red blood colour leather garb...wonder if he chaffed in the wrong areas of his body. - DirectorJohn BoormanStarsNigel TerryHelen MirrenNicholas ClayMerlin the magician helps Arthur Pendragon unite the Britons around the Round Table of Camelot, even as dark forces conspire to tear it apart.One of the better Arthurian movie, in my opinion. And doesn't Helen Mirren look sleek and oozing with sex appeal as Arthur's sister Morgana. Watched it again, and it still looks good. Loved the the look of the production and the knights with shiney, almost glittery like armour. ***SPOILER*** I like the way Arthur discovers Guenevere and Lancelot's deception and leaves a message for them both as they both lie asleep in each other's arms. They wake up to discover Excalibur placed between their bodies and they realise Arthur knows the truth.
- DirectorRichard DonnerStarsMatthew BroderickRutger HauerMichelle PfeifferThe thief Gaston escapes the dungeon of medieval Aquila through the latrine. Soldiers are about to kill him when Navarre saves him. Navarre, traveling with his spirited hawk, plans to kill the bishop of Aquila with help from Gaston.A wonderful love story of a knight and the lady he loves, cursed by the jealous suitor. Isabor is a hawke by day, returning to her true form by night, Etainne is a man by day, at night he transforms into a wolf. Both destined to never to touch until day is night and night is day.***SPOILER*** an eclipse is the only way to break a curse like this.
Trivia:a babyfaced Mathew Broderick star as the young thief who assist Etainne in his revenge - StarsCiarán HindsSusan LynchVictoria SmurfitAfter returning from the Third Crusade in the Holy Land, Ivanhoe discovers that England is under the rule of the corrupt Prince John.Saw this only once on TV, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I've never read the book, but I've read this is as close as it can get to the book. ***SPOILER***Sian Phillips as Queen Eleanor, on a cold desolate beach side giving a thorough verbal 'kick up the backside' to her adult sons King Richard and Prince John. Talk about parental disapproval.
- DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsRutger HauerJennifer Jason LeighTom BurlinsonIn medieval Europe, a young girl from a noble family is obsessed with her captors - commoners.Saw this years and years ago. The only thing I remember is the siege of the castle by a group of wayward mercenaries. No one can get in to the castle to save Jennifer Jason Leight until someone found a dead dog riddled that died of plague. They chopped the dog up and catapulted the chopped up dog flesh into the castle. One of the flesh fell into a well. And ofcourse people drunk from the well. I think they all died of the plague but I really can't remember that far
- DirectorFranklin J. SchaffnerStarsEric StoltzGabriel ByrneNicola CowperA young knight intent on joining King Richard's crusaders pledges to lead a group of orphans to safety and to protect them from a notorious slaver.
- DirectorCaroline ThompsonStarsMiranda RichardsonTom IrwinVera FarmigaSnow White's mother dies during childbirth, leaving baby Snow and father John for dead on an icy field, who then receives a visit from one of Satan's representatives, granting him three wishes.have deep reservations regarding this movie, on one hand it's the same formula, on the other hand it's a film that I would tag as "entertaining, but only watch it when it's screen on TV"
***Trivia***: Kristin Kreuk the actress who plays Lana Lang of Smallville TV series is Snow White