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Best History Movies of the 1960s

History films released 1960–1969, ranked by TMDB rating among titles with at least 500 votes.

1. 
   #1 Harakiri (1962) · ★ 8.4 · 1,233 votes · 2h 15m · action, drama, history

   Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a wort…

2. 
   #2 Lawrence of Arabia (1962) · ★ 8.0 · 3,591 votes · 3h 48m · adventure, history, war

   During World War I, English officer Thomas Edward 'T.E.' Lawrence sets out to unite and lead the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes to fight the Turks.…

3. 
   #3 Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) · ★ 8.0 · 990 votes · 3h 11m · drama, history, war

   In 1947, four German judges who served on the bench during the Nazi regime face a military tribunal to answer charges of crimes against humanity. Chief Justice Haywood hears eviden…

4. 
   #4 The Great Escape (1963) · ★ 7.9 · 2,953 votes · 2h 53m · adventure, thriller, drama

   The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to si…

5. 
   #5 Andrei Rublev (1966) · ★ 7.9 · 982 votes · 3h 3m · drama, history

   An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev. Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk…

6. 
   #6 The Battle of Algiers (1966) · ★ 7.9 · 934 votes · 2h 2m · drama, history, war

   Former petty criminal Ali la Pointe becomes a commander of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale, directing a guerilla insurgency against the colonial French occupation. Parat…

7. 
   #7 Army of Shadows (1969) · ★ 7.9 · 781 votes · 2h 25m · thriller, drama, history

   Betrayed by an informant, Philippe Gerbier finds himself trapped in a torturous Nazi prison camp. Though Gerbier escapes to rejoin the Resistance in occupied Marseilles, France, an…

8. 
   #8 The Virgin Spring (1960) · ★ 7.8 · 692 votes · 1h 30m · drama, history

   Devout Christians Töre and Märeta send their only daughter, the virginal Karin, and their foster daughter, the unrepentant Ingeri, to deliver candles to a distant church. On their…

9. 
   #9 The Longest Day (1962) · ★ 7.6 · 1,058 votes · 2h 58m · action, drama, history

   The retelling of June 6, 1944, from the perspectives of the Germans, US, British, Canadians, and the Free French. Marshall Erwin Rommel, touring the defenses being established as p…

10. 
    #10 Spartacus (1960) · ★ 7.5 · 2,466 votes · 3h 17m · adventure, drama, history

    The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer Batiatus. After weeks of being trained to kill for the arena, Spartacus turns on his owners…

11. 
    #11 Zulu (1964) · ★ 7.4 · 588 votes · 2h 18m · action, drama, history

    In 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War, man-of-the-people Lt. Chard and snooty Lt. Bromhead are in charge of defending the isolated and vastly outnumbered Natal outpost of Rorke's Drif…

12. 
    #12 A Man for All Seasons (1966) · ★ 7.3 · 517 votes · 2h 0m · drama, history

    A depiction of the conflict between King Henry VIII of England and his Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More, who refuses to swear the Oath of Supremacy declaring Henry Supreme Head of…

13. 
    #13 Cleopatra (1963) · ★ 7.1 · 889 votes · 4h 11m · romance, drama, history

    Determined to hold on to the throne, Cleopatra seduces the Roman emperor Julius Caesar. When Caesar is murdered, she redirects her attentions to his general, Marc Antony, who vows…

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