Historical persons/events that you'd think would make an awesome premise for a movie

[Mithie]

I debated on whether to start this thread in the arts forum or the VV, but I figured you guys would be more make for better discussion. Historically accurate films are a rarity these days, and apart from a few select gems, there really hasn't been that many worth watching. I miss the days of the 60s and 70s where historical drama was proliferate - and I guess nowadays you can't make a blockbuster without tons of sfx and CGI, and most of these are either woefully detracted from history or plain stupid. The magic is there, though, and is evident in Master and Commander, and I'd really like to see a good attempt at a historical movie adaptation.

Now, for starters, it's been 40 years since they made a movie about Nelson and Trafalgar (and a poorly made one at that), and it's about damn time we had another go. Huge ships of the line blowing the crap out of each other with bind blowing SFX while a Nelson played by Daniel Craig looks from the prow of the HMS Victory? I guarrantee you, every single British man will pay 9 pounds to see it... TWICE.

For that matter, how about a war movie about the taking of Quebec by James Wolfe? You've got your band of brothers esque camaraderie combined with a daring raid up a sheer cliff face against overwhelming odds? I'd watch it. Would beat the crap out of Scary Movie XXXXI, that's for sure.

Besides, it would get our youths interested in history again, and that can't be a bad thing.

[PointOfViewGun]

The story of the ship Bismarck would be nice. I guess.

[Carl von Döbeln]

a movie about the great northern war would be nice


Edit: and of course a movie about the siege of Rhodes

[DAVIDE]

Movie on first punic war

[Luger]

A movie about the 1939-1940 Biltzkrieg

[Salem1]

The Great Northern War. Done right, it would be a truly epic movie about an epic event in history.

[Georgy Zhukov]

The Great Northern War. Done right, it would be a truly epic movie about an epic event in history.

There's a russian movie about it

[Farnan]

The life of Ahmed Shah Masoud.

US Army Special Operations in the beginning of the US intervention in Afghanistan, where they were embedded with the Northern Alliance. You get cavalry charges combined with Close Air Support...

Finally Operation Anaconda. First time the vast majority of its soldiers fought in combat. Highest elevation of a battle in US history. Western training and equipment meets Taliban fanaticism and experience...

[Tiberios]

The life of Ahmed Shah Masoud.

I second that.

Otherwise a Band of Brothers series seen from the viewpoint of a German or Bristish group of soldiers.

Or a movie about Alexios I Komnenos.

lastly, a decent Viking movie, about Canute the Great's life.

[pannonian]

Harold Godwinson, William the Bastard, Harald Hardrada. Each of them is interesting enough for a film dedicated to them, but their stories intertwine, climaxing in two famous and world-changing battles. Instead of a mythical Horatio at the bridge, we have a historical but unnamed viking holding back the entire English army at the bridge. And at the end of Hastings, there is Edith Swanneck picking through the bodies, trying to identify Harold. Bookmark the movie(s) with English embroiderers producing the Bayeux tapestry.

[Farnan]

Harold Godwinson, William the Bastard, Harald Hardrada. Each of them is interesting enough for a film dedicated to them, but their stories intertwine, climaxing in two famous and world-changing battles. Instead of a mythical Horatio at the bridge, we have a historical but unnamed viking holding back the entire English army at the bridge. And at the end of Hastings, there is Edith Swanneck picking through the bodies, trying to identify Harold. Bookmark the movie(s) with English embroiderers producing the Bayeux tapestry.

I'd watch that.

[Orko]

A movie about myself.
Just kidding. My life is just too epic to put into a single movie.

[Chukada1]

The Battle of Shanghai: Expecially the scene that depicts the grinding mill of flesh and blood. It was around Luodian which was only a small town but it guarded the route for re-inforcements and supplies into downtown Shanghai.

Therefore, the successful defense of Luodian was strategically paramount to the security of Suzhou and Shanghai. As early as August 29, German adviser Alexander von Falkenhausen told Chiang Kai-shek that the town of Luodian had to be held at all costs. For the fight for Luodian, the Chinese concentrated some three hundred thousand soldiers, while the Japanese amassed more than one hundred thousand troops, supported with naval ships, tanks and airplanes.

Note: 300 000 more Chinese soldiers, and 200 000 more Japanese soldiers were fighting in the actual city of Shanghai.

The carnage and intensity of the resulting battle earned the fight for Luodian the nickname "grinding mill of flesh and blood" (血肉磨坊). The Japanese offensive usually began at daybreak with concentrated aerial bombing, followed by the release of observation balloons to pinpoint the exact location of remaining Chinese positions for artillery and naval strikes. Japanese infantry would then advance under smokescreen and armored support. Japanese planes would also accompany the infantry and strafe Chinese reinforcements.

Chinese defense was stubborn even in the face of such overwhelming firepower. During the night, Chinese soldiers mined the roads connecting the coastal towns to Luodian and engaged in night combat to cut off Japanese advance troops. At daybreak, the Chinese would garrison the foremost defensive lines with comparatively fewer troops to reduce casualties resulting from intense Japanese bombardments. The Chinese would then emerge from rear positions to engage the enemy when the Japanese land offensive started after naval and artillery strikes had ceased.

Despite their numerical superiority, the defense of Luodian would prove to be impossible for the Chinese. The Japanese had a number of advantages, including superiority of firepower, and the fact that the Chinese were in a passive position to face the onslaught, because they were not able to mount effective offensives until the Japanese were practically on top of Luodian. Because of this, the Chinese decided to defend to the death to hold onto every square inch of the town. This tactic greatly accelerated the attrition rate within the Chinese ranks. The casualty rate of General Chen Cheng's army group was more than fifty percent. By the end of September, the Chinese had been almost bled dry and were forced to give up Luodian.

That and a hollywood movie about the Vietnam war from a Vietnamese perspective.

[Flavius Nevitta]

I recently read the autobiography of Edward Porter Alexander: "Fighting for the Confederacy".

A great read, relatively short part about his youth with some entertaining episodes, a bit about his time in the military academy and then his experiences during the Civil War. As early leader of the signal troops and later commander of Longstreet's artillery brigade, he's in contact with many of the famous and great leaders of the South. He includes some nice anecdotes, some funny, some tragic about life during the war (I have to admit that in the beginning he seems not really comfortable writing and drops names and places constantly but as soon as the war starts the book gets better and better until the dramatic and vivid stories of the Fall of Richmond and the surrender).

As he's young (mid 20ies during the CW) and seems to have a nice, loving relationship with his wife (whom he calls "Miss Teen" throughout the book) there's also some room for Hollywood romance.

That book would make a great movie imho!

[Pallantides]

A movie about my adventures.

[nopasties]

Belisarius.
The epic war between Heraclius and Khosrau II following Heraclius.
I'd like to see someone like Mel Gibson go all out and do a decent movie about the Mongols or Huns that did not over focus on key people like Attila or Ghengis but show historcal accuracy and a decent battle scene.
Marcus Aurelius.
Battle of Manzikert.
Battle of Yarmuk.
Ataturk.
The Crusades from a muslim perspective for once.
Charlemagne
Ivan III
Peter the Great
Tamerlane
Baibars
Abd-ar-Rahman III till the fall of the caliphate of cordoba
Babur or anything on the Mughals--is there any movie on the Mughals??
The siege of Golconda
The Mongol invasion of Japan
Boxer Rebellion
A full account of Richard I and his time on crusade
A following of Marco Polo
Basil II
Teutonic Order--would be cool to see a cavalry charge of Ritterbruder on the big screen
Alexander Nevsky
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vytautas_the_Great
julian the apostate
Roger II of Sicily
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_IV_of_Georgia

[King Edward III]

A film about the Hundred Years' War, particularly the Edwardian phase.

[Del Valle]

The siege of Malta would be nice.

A movie I would really like to see is one depicting Operation Barbarossa from the eyes of a German soldier in Army Group South. Start with the easy victories in the early months, continue with the fearsome winter and tougher battles which cause personal loss, then climax at the Battle of Stalingrad where he is finally captured after a long time. At the end of the film it is revealed that it is the last Wermacht veteran who is telling the story. The following day he passes away, surrounded by loved ones and all the achievements he did in life.

[Markas]

Hmm. Some movies about the Battle of Hastings, the final ottoman siege of Constantinople, The Vietnam War from the NVA/Viet Cong perspective, the siege of Rhodes... they've pretty much all been said. Oh, a band of brothers type series about the training and seizing of Pegasus Bridge on D-Day.

[Azog 150]

I'd love to see a mini-Series or movie following the British 1st Airborne Division from their time in North Africa, to their drops in Sicily and Italy, up until their heroic stand at Arnhem during Operation Market Garden (And what a climax that would be). Could potentially go even further up until their time in the POW camps and their eventual liberation.

Either that or a mini-series or movie about the Ox and Bucks and their run up to and seizure of Pegasus Bridge and later on their famous bayonet charge.


I would also to see a movie from either a British, Indian, Gurkha or Japanese standpoint about the Battle for Burma

A movie about the Battle for Caen from either a Canadian or British standpoint would also be great.

And finally, a decent movie about World War 1. I don't care from who's standpoint or where it is set, but I haven't seen a good movie about this in recent times at all (Accept from Paschendale)