List Rules Films that deal with issues of personal liberties and human rights.
List of the best movies involving personal liberties being taken away. This list features award-winning movies that tackle the issues of personal liberty and the right as a human being to live freely. Whether it is a film about slavery, like Oscar-winner 12 Years a Slave from 2013 or a film depicting a tyrannical government regime, like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, this list as them all and you have the personal right to watch them!
When it comes to freedom of speech being under attack, great films like Good Night, and Good Luck with George Clooney or The Front with Woody Allen speak to a time of American McCarthyism and Hollywood blacklisting. Similarly, the exploitation of religious freedom is depicted with such taste in the Academy Award winning movie Life is Beautiful. This list, which would make the ACLU probably want to sue somebody, contains movies that are brand spanking new (Elysium) and black-and-white old (12 Angry Men). Civil liberties are the antagonists' worst nightmares in these critically acclaimed feature films.
1
13 5
Street Team Central added Schindler's ListLiam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley Schindler's List is a 1993 American epic historical period drama, directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg and scripted by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the novel Schindler's Ark by Thomas ...more
2
17 9
Life Is BeautifulRoberto Benigni, Horst Buchholz, Richard Sammel Life Is Beautiful is a 1997 Italian tragicomedy comedy-drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian book shop owner, who must employ his ...more
3
18 11
V for VendettaNatalie Portman, John Hurt, Hugo Weaving V for Vendetta is a 2006 American political thriller film directed by James McTeigue and written by the Wachowski Brothers, based on the 1988 Vertigo graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore ...more
4
11 6
Enemy of the StateWill Smith, Jack Black, Gene Hackman Enemy of the State is a 1998 American spy-thriller about a group of rogue U.S. National Security Agency agents conspiring to kill a U.S. Congressman and try to cover up the murder. It was ...more
5
9 4
1984Donald Pleasence, Michael Redgrave, Edmond O'Brien 1984 is a 1956 film, based freely on the novel of the same name by George Orwell, depicting a totalitarian future society. This is the first cinema rendition of the story, directed by Michael ...more
6
13 9
Minority ReportCameron Diaz, Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell Minority Report is a 2002 American neo-noir science fiction mystery-thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and loosely based on the short story of the same name by Philip K. Dick. It is set ...more
7
12 8
The PianistAdrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Emilia Fox The Pianist is a 2002 historical drama film co-produced and directed by Roman Polanski, scripted by Ronald Harwood, and starring Adrien Brody. It is based on the autobiographical book The ...more
8
11 7
12 Angry MenHenry Fonda, Jack Klugman, Lee J. Cobb 12 Angry Men is a 1957 American drama film adapted from a teleplay of the same name by Reginald Rose. Written and co-produced by Rose himself and directed by Sidney Lumet, this trial film tells ...more
9
9 5
Fahrenheit 451Julie Christie, Cyril Cusack, Oskar Werner Fahrenheit 451 is a 1966 British Dystopian science fiction drama film directed by François Truffaut and starring Oskar Werner, Julie Christie, and Cyril Cusack. Based on the 1953 novel of ...more
10
15 12
Django UnchainedLeonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson Django Unchained is a 2012 American revisionist Western film directed by Quentin Tarantino. With the help of a German bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz), a freed slave (Jamie Foxx) sets out to ...more
11
10 9
BrazilRobert De Niro, Bob Hoskins, Ian Holm Brazil is a 1985 British film directed by Terry Gilliam and written by Gilliam, Charles McKeown, and Tom Stoppard. British National Cinema by Sarah Street describes the film as a ...more
12
6 5
The CrucibleWinona Ryder, Daniel Day-Lewis, Jeffrey Jones The Crucible is a 1996 drama film written by Arthur Miller and based on his play of the same name. It was directed by Nicholas Hytner and stars Daniel Day-Lewis as John Proctor, Winona Ryder as ...more
NetworkRobert Duvall, Faye Dunaway, William Holden Network is a 1976 American satirical film written by Paddy Chayefsky and directed by Sidney Lumet, about a fictional television network, UBS, and its struggle with poor ratings. The film stars ...more
14
7 8
12 Years a SlaveChiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch 12 Years a Slave is a 2013 period drama film directed by Steve McQueen, based on the 1853 memoir by Solomon Northup In the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free ...more
15
7 9
ElysiumMatt Damon, Jodie Foster, Alice Braga Elysium is a 2013 American dystopian science fiction action thriller film written, directed, and co-produced by Neill Blomkamp, and starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Alice Braga and Sharlto ...more
16
4 6
RollerballJames Caan, Maud Adams, Ralph Richardson Rollerball is a 1975 dystopian sports action science fiction film, which Norman Jewison directed from a screenplay dramatized by William Harrison, who adapted his own short story, "Roller ...more
17
3 5
PeteBoyle added Battle RoyaleBeat Kitano, Chiaki Kuriyama, Kou Shibasaki Battle Royale is a 2000 Japanese action thriller film adapted from the 1999 novel of the same name by Koushun Takami. It is the final film directed by Kinji Fukasaku, the screenplay written by ...more
Citizen RuthBurt Reynolds, Kelly Preston, Alicia Witt Citizen Ruth is a 1996 comedy film written by Jim Taylor and Alexander Payne. The film is the directorial debut of Payne. It stars Laura Dern in the title role of a poor, irresponsible and ...more
19
2 4
The FrontWoody Allen, Danny Aiello, Michael Murphy The Front is a 1976 comedy-drama film about the Hollywood blacklist during the age of live television. It is written by Walter Bernstein, directed by Martin Ritt and stars Woody Allen and Zero ...more
20
7 10
The Hunger Games: Catching FireJennifer Lawrence, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is a 2013 American science fiction action film based on Suzanne Collins' dystopian novel, Catching Fire, the second installment in The Hunger Games trilogy. The ...more
21
2 5
The SiegeBruce Willis, Denzel Washington, Annette Bening In 1996 Nestor Cerpa and his Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) took over 400 people hostage at the Japanese Ambassador's Residence in Lima. Over the next four months a chilling, ...more
22
2 5
The FountainheadGary Cooper, Raymond Massey, Patricia Neal The Fountainhead is a 1949 American film directed by King Vidor, based on the best-selling book of the same name by Ayn Rand, who wrote the screenplay adaptation. The film and novel are ...more
23
2 5
LennyDustin Hoffman, Valerie Perrine, Gary Morton Lenny is a 1974 American biographical film about the comedian Lenny Bruce, starring Dustin Hoffman and directed by Bob Fosse. The screenplay by Julian Barry is based on his play of the same
24
2 5
Good Night, and Good LuckGeorge Clooney, Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Daniels Good Night, and Good Luck. is a 2005 American drama film directed by George Clooney and starring David Strathairn, Clooney, Robert Downey, Jr., Patricia Clarkson and Jeff Daniels. The movie was ...more
25
1 4
PeteBoyle added Salò, or the 120 Days of SodomPaolo Bonacelli, Caterina Boratto, Hélène Surgère Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom, commonly referred to as simply Salò, is a 1975 Italian-French art film written and directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, with uncredited writing ...more
26
2 6
The MajesticJim Carrey, Matt Damon, Rob Reiner The Majestic is a 2001 American drama film directed and produced by Frank Darabont, written by Michael Sloane, and starring Jim Carrey, Martin Landau, Jeffrey DeMunn, David Ogden Stiers, James ...more
27
2 7
The People vs. Larry FlyntCourtney Love, Edward Norton, Woody Harrelson The People vs. Larry Flynt is a 1996 American biographical drama film directed by Miloš Forman and starring Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, and Edward Norton. It chronicles the rise of ...more
