The Best Historical Drama Movies Of All Time

Ranker Film
Updated February 10, 2022 116.5k votes 7.7k voters 293.3k views
Voting Rules
Your favorite historical drama films, regardless of box office gross or popularity.

Here is a list where movie fans, like you, get to rank the best historical drama movies and period pieces of all time below. So what makes a good historical drama movie? Some would say period-accuracy is most important while others may assert plot and emotion should be priorities. Sometimes a great performance can overcome a flawed historical drama. These differing opinions are why it is difficult to rank the best historical drama movies of all time. 

Do your due diligence and vote up your favorite historical dramas and historical action movies. These are the top films in the historical fiction, drama genre, meaning that each and every one of these is either tells a story from history or is a period piece. We have included details such as cast, year, director, and more. This list of historical drama films also contains plot summaries and miscellaneous information. Once you look below, you'll find that this is much more than just a top 100 period piece movies list.  But which of these are the best historical fiction movies to watch?

Many of these top historical drama movies are available for streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime.  Don't agree with this list? Feel free to rerank it to your heart's desire. You can either copy the historical drama films or add your own. This list, though, contains the best historical drama movies of all time, as voted on by fans of the films. Make sure to rock the vote by voting up the greatest dramatic history movies on this list (according to you). Historical drama movie titles that can be clicked on for more information about the film. After you've voted for your favorites, share the list on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social networks. Aside from this list of the best historical drama movies, you can also take a look at the Best Family Drama Movies, The Best R-Rated Drama Movies, and the Best PG-13 Rated Drama Movies. 

All sorts of directors have taken on Historical drama movies. Examples include Orson Welles, Martin Scorsese, and Robert Redford.

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