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The Death of the White Stallion
🇩🇪 Germany The 16th CenturyThis somewhat superficial historical drama is about the 1525 Peasants' War in Germany when the lower classes rebelled against oppressive conditions imposed by the clergy and nobility and then committed many acts (including atrocities) that did not morally set them far apart from the people they were fighting. It was a time of upheaval: Martin Luther (1483-1556) had broken away from the Catholic Church, calling for reform, and Anabaptists in Germany, like Thomas Munzer fought on the side of the peasants (opposed by Luther). This complex age and its political and religious turmoil are summed up in a story about an attack on a small monastery whose monks used a forged document to confiscate some land from the peasants. When their wrong-doing is revealed by the monk who forged the document in the first place, the peasants attack.
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Black Arrow
England The 14th CenturyIn 15th century England, a civil war called Wars of the Roses is being fought between two rival houses who want the throne. Fresh from battle, a knight finds his family dead. He joins the outlaws led by the Black Arrow (Stephan Chase) to seek justice. The noble Black Arrow foils Sir Brackley's (Oliver Reed) plan to kill one ward (Benedict Taylor) and marry the other. This is a classic story by Robert Louis Stevenson turned into film by Disney pictures.
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Er Woo Dong: The Entertainer
The 15th CenturyEr Woo Dong translates to "entertainer," a rough approximation of the duties of 14th-century Korean courtesan Er Yoon Chang. After a lifetime "in service," Er Yoon Chang retires to a faraway village. Meanwhile, her powerful father, ashamed of his daughter's lifestyle, dispatches an assassin to do her in. Er Yoon Chang is protected by her faithful deaf-mute bodyguard, but only up to a point.
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When the Raven Flies
🇮🇸 Iceland The Middle AgesVikings pillage Ireland, seeking silver and slaves, slaying men and women in the process. A young boy is spared when a Viking takes pity on him instead of killing him. Twenty years later the boy returns to Iceland take his revenge.
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Nothing Left to Do but Cry
🇮🇹 Italy The 16th Century The 15th CenturyA teacher (Saverio) and a schoolkeeper (Mario) get lost in the Italian countryside. They find themselves in the late 15th century, they met Leonardo da Vinci and try to teach him how to play cards, they try to stop Columbus, they sing beatles's song etc...
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Bertoldo, Bertoldino, and Cacasenno
The Middle AgesDuring the reign of King Alboin, the peasant Bertoldo, sly and smart, manages to always get away with pranks and pleasantires with great mastery, and, even if his clumsy wife Marcolfa and their foolish son Bertoldino always put him in trouble, his shrewdness and acumen save him from any unfortunate situation...
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Sword of the Valiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
England The Middle AgesMen of Iron... Blades of Steel. — Gawain was a squire in King Arthur's court when the Green Knight burst in and offered to play a game with a brave knight. Gawain journeys across the land, learning about life, saving damsels, and solving the Green Knight's riddle.
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The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter
The 10th CenturyThe Yangs are betrayed by a government official conspiring with the Mongols. All of the Yang family males except the 5th and 6th brother are killed. Fu Sheng loses his mind after the death of his family, while the other brother takes refuge in a Buddhist temple.
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Secret Service of the Imperial Court
🇨🇳 China The 15th CenturySecret Service of the Imperial Court was one of the last kung fu/swordplay films to be made at Hong Kong's Shaw Bros. studio. Set in the Ming Dynasty, it makes excellent use of the studio's vast array of sprawling sets and colorful costumes to give a real period flavor. It has a good cast, lots of large-scale fight action and an exciting storyline about a conflict between an honorable officer and a corrupt Eunuch.
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The Annunciation
England 🇫🇷 France 🇨🇿 Czechia 🇮🇹 Italy The 18th Century The 17th Century The Middle Ages Ancient HistoryThe Annunciation (in Hungarian: Angyali üdvözlet) is a Hungarian film directed by András Jeles in 1984, based on The Tragedy of Man (1861) by Imre Madách. When Adam (Péter Bocsor) and Eve (Júlia Mérő), having succumbed to Lucifer's temptation, are cast out of the Garden of Eden, Adam holds Lucifer (Eszter Gyalog) to his promise, reminding him that "You said I would know everything!". So Lucifer grants Adam a dream of the world to come. And what a bizarre dream: Adam becomes Miltiades in Athens; a knight called Tancred in Byzantium; Kepler in Prague; Danton in revolutionary Paris; and a nameless suitor in Victorian London. Guided by a deceptively sweet but ultimately contemptuous Lucifer, Adam confronts an endless procession of the horror of the human story ... rapists and concubines, betrayal and savagery, mindless cruelty and fanaticism.
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Good King Dagobert
The 7th CenturyKing's Dagobert I intestinal and sexual problems loom large as he survives an attack on his royal caravan then barely makes it to Rome to personally give thanks to the Pope. After he arrives at the Vatican, he becomes involved in the battle between two contenders for the papacy and has to face the machinations of a ruthless Byzantine princess.
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John Wycliffe
England The 14th CenturyThis affecting biography chronicles the life and times of prominent European philosopher John Wycliffe, who was the first to translate the Bible into English. The 14th century, Oxford University scholar often found himself caught between opposing theological, political and societal forces: He defended England's autonomy against the pontiff's authority and championed the indigent against the wealthy's abuses.
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The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood
England The Middle AgesAll he needs is a trusty bow, a merrie band...and a solid line of credit! — The evil brother of Richard the Lionheart is holding the king for ransom, and only Robin Hood and his band of merry men can save him...for a small fee, of course.
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John the Fearless
🇧🇪 Belgium The 14th CenturyHe has a strong arm...and a kind heart! — He's the "Rocky" of the 15th century-defender of the poor, enemy of evil, champion of justice. He's fearless and the strongest man in the land. He's ready and willing to take on all wrong doers-rich and poor. Accompanied by a lovable, meek little friend, his quest takes him on an unforgettable journey. Swamp monsters, knights in armor, duels, royal pageantry, and damsels in distress all abound in this story of timeless values. In the spirit of "Robin Hood," it's a robust, romantic tale: a feast for the eyes and a joy for the heart.
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Little Dragon Maiden
🇨🇳 China The 13th CenturyWhen Hong Kong's new wave, gravity-defying action-look hit the scene in the early 1980's, so did a new wave of actors; Canto-pop stars. Little Dragon Maiden intelligently mixed the old with the new to create pure golden magic as kung-fu fighting veterans Chen Kuan-tai and Lo Lieh joined relative newcomer Leslie Cheung in a far-out, costume-action love story that really cooks. Cheung garnered international recognition in John Woo's A Better Tomorrow.
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Hearts and Armour
The 8th CenturyThe Middle Ages . . . A time of magic and mystery . . . of heroes and villains . . . of love and death . . . of hearts and armour — Bradamante, a woman wearing an invincible suit of armor, is travelling the countryside at the time of the Crusades. After ending up in the middle of a web of romantic and cultural tangles, she finds herself in love with a Moor prince, while one of the Christian knights has fallen in love with a Moor princess. Others, however, are against the cross-cultural romance, and Bradamante's love is soon forced into a duel to the death. Will she ever be with her true love? Written by Jean-Marc Rocher
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The Story of the Voyages
The Middle AgesIn this fantasy with dragons and flying machines, 10-year-old Marta is determined to find her brother who was kidnapped at Christmastime by a fake Saint Nick because the little boy is blessed with the ability to locate gold. A kindly, wise philosopher-type by the name of Orlando joins Marta in her search, and together they survive a gigantic sleeping dragon and imprisonment in a tower with no clear means of escape. They overcome that hurdle, but later on, Orlando succumbs to the evils of The Plague (an all-consuming woman!) and Marta continues on her search alone. Eventually, she does find her brother -- but that only introduces problems she had never considered.
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Razia Sultan
🇮🇳 India The 13th CenturyThe film is based on the life of Razia Sultan (1205–1240), the only female Sultan of Delhi (1236–1240) and her speculated love affair with the Abyssinian slave, Jamal-ud-Din Yakut. Razia Sultan is 1983 Urdu film, written and directed by Kamal Amrohi, and starring Hema Malini, Parveen Babi and Dharmendra in lead roles. The film's music was provided by Khayyam, with lyrics by Jan Nisar Akhtar and two songs by Nida Fazli who walked into the project when Akhtar died. Some songs were sung by Lata Mangeshkar, including classics like, "Aye Dil-e Nadaan".
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Adi Shankaracharya
The 8th CenturyThe first and only Indian movie to be made in Sanskrit. The movie follows the life and times of Sankara - the founder of the non-duality (Advaita) school of Indian philosophy.
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The Return of Martin Guerre
🇫🇷 France The 16th CenturyVillage of Artigat, southern France, summer 1542, during the reign of Francis I. Martin Guerre and Bertrande de Rols marry. A few years later, accused of having committed a robbery, Martin suddenly disappears. When, almost a decade later, a man arrives in Artigat claiming to be Martin, the Guerre family recognizes him as such; but doubts soon arise about his true identity.
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Shaolin Temple
Henan Province The 7th CenturyThe Tang emperor is betrayed by one of his generals, who installs himself as emperor in the East Capital. The son of one of his slave workers escapes to the Shaolin Temple, learns kung fu, and sets out to kill the traitor who killed his father.
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Ivanhoe
England The 12th CenturyIvanhoe, a worthy and noble knight, the champion of justice returns to England after the holy wars, and finds England under the reign of Prince John and his henchmen and finds himself being involved in the power-struggle for the throne of England.
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House of Traps
🇨🇳 China The 11th CenturyIt all started with The Five Venoms, the internationally loved kung-fu thriller. It continued through more than a dozen bloody good entertainments featuring the same actors in different roles. This is considered the last official "Venoms" movie, but what a film it is. There's one plasma-spurting attack after another as heroes and rogues alike try to solve the secrets of this hell house. The core Venoms themselves choreograph the gory fun in this fond farewell to their worldwide film series sensation!
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The Brave Archer and His Mate
🇲🇳 Mongolia 🇨🇳 China The 13th CenturyGuo Jing and Huang Rong return to Peach Blossom Island and are shocked to see that Guo's first martial arts teachers, the "Seven Freaks of Jiangnan", have all been murdered except for Ke Zhen'e. Guo Jing is tricked into believing that Huang Rong's father, Huang Yaoshi, is responsible for the murders and he attempts to avenge his teachers by fighting Huang Yaoshi. The intelligent Huang Rong eventually uncovers the truth and reveals that the murders are actually part of a plot masterminded by Ouyang Feng and Yang Kang. Ouyang and Yang want to make Guo Jing and Huang Yaoshi kill each other and Yang can learn Ouyang's newly mastered skills from the fake copy of the Nine Yin Manual.
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Cat vs. Rat
🇨🇳 China The 11th CenturyChan Chiao a.k.a. The Cat (Adam Cheng) and Pai Yu-tang a.k.a. The Rat (Alexander Fu Sheng) compete in various flamboyantly choreographed duels before realizing that they must seek the judgment of their master (Lau Kar-wing). He disappoints them by ruling that their abilities are perfectly equal, then being so completely impartial as to give the Rat a nine-ringed sword which he can use to defeat the Cat, and giving the Cat a spear to defeat the sword which he just gave the Rat. A few more contests result in ties before a subplot gets underway involving a precious jade seal owned by the Emperor Yung Hsi (Gordon Lau) and the thieves out to steal it. This, finally, is what forces the Cat and Rat to work together and overcome their rivalry.
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Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils
🇨🇳 China The 11th CenturyA rather standard costume action/drama set in medieval China with a few fantasy overtones.
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Parsifal
England The Middle AgesA psychological interpretation of the opera mixing in references to the history of Germany, Wagner's life, German literature and philosophy. The action is centered around Wagner's death mask. Kundry is the main character - one might read the film as the story of her redemption rather than that of Amfortas.
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Fire and Sword
England The Middle AgesThe young knight Tristan is injured in a fight in Ireland and cared for by the beautiful Isolde. He falls in love with her, unaware that she is the daughter of the Irish king.
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Dragonslayer
The 6th CenturyIn the Dark Ages, Magic was a weapon. Love was a mystery. Adventure was everywhere... And Dragons were real. — The sorcerer and his apprentice Galen are on a mission to kill an evil dragon in order to save the King’s daughter from being sacrificed in accordance to a pact that the King himself made with the dragon to protect his kingdom. A fantasy film from Disney Studios that exhausted all possible visual effects of the time.
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History of the World: Part I
🇫🇷 France 🇮🇹 Italy The 18th Century The 15th Century The 1st CenturyTen million years in the making. The truth, the whole truth, and everything, but the truth! — An uproarious version of history that proves nothing is sacred – not even the Roman Empire, the French Revolution and the Spanish Inquisition.
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Excalibur
🇮🇪 Ireland England The Middle AgesForged by a god. Foretold by a wizard. Found by a king. — A surreal adaptation of Sir Thomas Malory's "Le Morte d'Arthur", chronicling Arthur Pendragon's conception, his rise to the throne, the search by his Knights of the Round Table for the Holy Grail, and ultimately his death.
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Knightriders
Pennsylvania England The Middle AgesThe Games...The Romance...The Spirit...Camelot is a state of mind. — George Romero's unusual story of a modern-day Renaissance troupe whose participants follow a medieval code of honor.
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Time Bandits
England 🇬🇷 Greece The 1910s Ancient History The Middle AgesAll the dreams you've ever had and not just the good ones. — Young history buff Kevin can scarcely believe it when six dwarfs emerge from his closet one night. Former employees of the Supreme Being, they've purloined a map charting all of the holes in the fabric of time and are using it to steal treasures from different historical eras. Taking Kevin with them, they variously drop in on Napoleon, Robin Hood and King Agamemnon before the Supreme Being catches up with them.
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The Fantastic Adventures of Unico
🇵🇱 Poland The Middle AgesUnico the Unicorn has the amazing power to make anyone he meets happy. Whether it's because of his personality or the powers of his horn, no one knows. However, the gods become jealous of Unico, thinking that only they should be able to decide or allow people to be happy. Unico is banished to the Hill of Oblivion, and the West Wind is ordered to take him there. She can't stand giving this fate to Unico, so Unico's adventures begin, as the West Wind takes him from one place and time to the next, in a neverending journey to escape the wrath of the gods.
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The Brave Archer 3
🇲🇳 Mongolia 🇨🇳 China The 13th CenturyGuo Jing and Huang Rong pursue Yang Kang to Iron Palm Peak, where Qiu Qianren and the Iron Palm Sect is based. Huang is injured by Qiu in a fight and she escapes with Guo Jing's help. Guo brings her in search of a cure to heal her wounds and they stumble upon a house in a swamp, inhabited by a woman called Yinggu. Yinggu tells them that the only person who can save Huang Rong's life is Duan Zhixing, the former ruler of the Kingdom of Dali, who has become a monk now.
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Al-qadisiya
The 7th CenturyDirected by Salah Abouseif.
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Outlaw: The Saga of Gisli
🇮🇸 Iceland The 10th CenturyBased on the saga of Gísli Súrsson, one of the Icelandic Sagas.
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Grendel Grendel Grendel
🇩🇰 Denmark The 6th CenturyGrendel'll get you! — This is an animated story covering the ancient legend of Beowulf, as narrated by Grendel himself, the "monster" in the legend. Aimed more at adults than children, this version holds some interesting twists on the traditional tale, and is based on a novel by American critic and academic John Gardner.
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The Falcon
🇷🇸 Serbia The 14th CenturyBanović Strahinja takes place during the middle ages in Serbia. While estate owner Strahinja is hunting, a Turkish bandit, Alija, attacks his castle. The Turks kill his servants and kidnap his beloved Andja. When he discovers what has happened, Strahinja gathers a together a group of scoundrels and chases the bandits.
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Bosco d'amore
The 14th CenturyThe time is the mid-14th century --- the Pope is now residing at Avignon, the Black Death is killing millions across Europe, and civil wars are adding to the turmoil and chaos. In this story adapted from Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron, a young teenage couple is sent to live in a nearby town by the man's uncle, in an attempt to keep them safe from harm. She is from the lower classes, and he comes from a noble family -- a family that opposes his choice of a future bride. While en route to the town, the couple's horses are stolen and they are forced to continue through the forest on foot -- at a pace that introduces them to a kaleidoscope of Boccaccio's characters, from masters of mysticism, to soldiers of the warring Papal armies. Somehow, the couple manage to get through this gauntlet of sorts, and they do marry. Just as they are ready to go back to Rome, they hear that there is an insurrection in the offing, and suddenly, their brief spate of stability is threatened again.
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Khan Asparukh - Part I - Phanagoria
🇧🇬 Bulgaria The 7th CenturyThis is an epic screen presentation showing the creation, the consolidation and the power of First Bulgarian Kingdom and the first Bulgarian ruler Khan Asparuh. This is the first part of the film trilogy about the events before the creation of the Bulgarian state in the middle of the VII century. Volga Bulgaria is straining under the attacks of the Khazars. Following the testament of his father, the sons of Khan Kubrat looking for a new home for their tribes. The youngest of them - Asparukh, wander 20 years in search of "land forever" for his people and reaches the mouth of the Danube. The film is narrated by captured Byzantine chronicler Belisarius, which should Asparukh in his journeys. Byzantine witnessed the heroic efforts of the Bulgarians to win the land south of the Danube and to create their new country.
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Kagemusha
Yamanashi Prefecture The 16th CenturyAkira Kurosawa's lauded feudal epic presents the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. When Shingen dies, his generals reluctantly agree to have the impostor take over as the powerful ruler. He soon begins to appreciate life as Shingen, but his commitment to the role is tested when he must lead his troops into battle against the forces of a rival warlord.
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Hawk the Slayer
The Middle AgesTwo brothers locked in deadly combat till the end of time! — Hawk the Slayer, after seeing both his father and bride die at the hands of his malevolent brother, Voltan, sets out for revenge and the chance to live up to his title. Tooling himself up with the "mind-sword" and recruiting a motley band of warriors: a giant, a dwarf, a one-armed man with a machine-crossbow and an elf with the fastest bow in the land; Hawk leads the battle against Voltan to free the land from the forces of evil and avenge his loved ones.
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Catherine de Heilbronn
The Middle AgesIn the Middle Ages, the earl Wetter von Stahl is accused of having bewitched Catherine, the daughter of the blacksmith of Heilbronn. The earl tries to be exonerated by proceeding himself to the interrogation of the young woman, who apparently shows an "unnatural possession".
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Unidentified Flying Oddball
England The Middle AgesChaos in the Cosmos! — A NASA spacecraft proves Einstein right when, traveling faster than light, it ends up near King Arthur's Camelot. On board are big-hearted Tom Trimble and Hermes, the look-alike robot he built. Tom immediately makes friends with pretty Alisande while becoming enemies with the evil knight Sir Mordred. It seems Mordred has joined up with the Sorcerer Merlin and they are both up to no good. It is now up to Tom to try and use 20th century technology to foil their plans.
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G.I. Samurai
The 16th CenturyA squadron of Japanese Self-Defense Force soldiers find themselves transported through time to their country's warring states era, when rival samurai clans were battling to become the supreme Shogun.
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Vlad the Impaler: The True Life of Dracula
🇷🇴 Romania The 15th CenturyVlad Tepes, otherwise known as Vlad the Impaler and Dracula, fights the Ottoman Turks on the battlefield and the Hungarian Boyars in his court.
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Goetz of Berlichingen of the Iron Hand
The 16th CenturySir Gotz von Berlichingen, a knight who fights for God and his Emperor, is the bitter enemy of the Bishop of Bamberg, who has managed to persuade Gotz's old friend Adalbert of Weislingen to fight for him. He allows Adalbert to kidnap him and bring him to his castle, where he tries to convince his old friend to come over from the "dark side". Complications ensue.
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Meera
The 16th CenturyMeera is a 1979 Hindi language film by Gulzar. The film is based on the life of Meera, a Hindu saint-poet who renounced princely comforts in pursuit of her love for Lord Krishna.
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