Best historical movies

There's something about historical films that is intriguing. Somehow, a story becomes much more compelling and engaging when it is based on real events, or is at least somewhat true to life.

If such movies interest you or you are looking to explore the genre, then this article is for you. Check out a list of some of the best historical films on OTT.

Historical movies on OTT

Schindler's List

Steven Spielberg's epic historical drama is based on Australian novelist Thomas Keneally's 1982 book Schindler's Ark. The movie centres on Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist who, during World War II, employed over a thousand primarily Polish-Jewish refugees in his factories, thereby saving them from the Holocaust. Liam Neeson plays Schindler, Ben Kingsley plays Schindler's Jewish accountant, Itzhak Stern, and Ralph Fiennes plays SS officer Amon Göth,. The movie won 7 trophies at the 66th Academy Awards; it had 12 nominations.

IMDb Rating: 9/10

OTT Platform: Netflix, JioCinema

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Oppenheimer

Christopher Nolan is the writer, director, and producer of the epic biographical thriller drama Oppenheimer, which released in 2023. The life of American theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, who contributed to the creation of the first nuclear weapons during World War II, is chronicled in this film. The movie recounts Oppenheimer's academic pursuits, his leadership of the Los Alamos Laboratory, and his 1954 security hearing. While Cillian Murphy plays Oppenheimer, Robert Downey Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a member of the US Atomic Energy Commission. Oppenheimer took home 7 Academy Awards in 2024, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor.

IMDb Rating: 8.3/10

OTT Platform: JioCinema

Dunkirk

Christopher Nolan wrote, directed, and co-produced the 2017 epic historical war thriller film Dunkirk, which is the story of the Dunkirk evacuation during World War II. Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jack Lowden, Harry Styles (in his first feature film role), Aneurin Barnard, James D'Arcy, Barry Keoghan, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy, Mark Rylance, and Tom Hardy are among the ensemble cast members. Nolan used music and cinematography to create suspense. The movie won Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing Oscars.

IMDb Rating: 7.8/10

OTT Platform: Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video

Apollo 13

Ron Howard's 1995 docudrama stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris, and Kathleen Quinlan about the Apollo 13 lunar mission's abortive 1970 mission. The movie follows 3 astronauts as they travel on Apollo 13, the fifth crewed mission to the moon by the United States. The spacecraft suffered from reduced oxygen supply and power loss due to an on-board explosion while in transit. As a result, NASA's flight controllers were forced to abandon the moon landing and devise creative mechanical and scientific solutions to safely return the astronauts to Earth.

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

OTT Platform: Amazon Prime Video, JioCinema, ZEE5

The Trial of the Chicago 7

The Chicago Seven refers to a group of anti-Vietnam War demonstrators accused of conspiracy and of crossing state lines to incite riots during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The ensemble cast includes Michael Keaton, Frank Langella, John Carroll Lynch, Eddie Redmayne, Noah Robbins, Mark Rylance, Alex Sharp, Ben Shenkman, Michael Abdul-Mateen II, Sacha Baron Cohen, Daniel Flaherty, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Jeremy Strong. The movie received six nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor for Baron Cohen.

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

OTT Platform: Netflix

Lincoln

Steven Spielberg's 2012 biographical historical drama starred Daniel Day-Lewis as US President Abraham Lincoln. Tony Kushner's screenplay, which focuses on the last four months of Abraham Lincoln's life, was partially inspired by Doris Kearns Goodwin's 2005 biography, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. The movie centres on Lincoln's attempts in January 1865 to get the US House of Representatives to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, ending slavery and forced labour.

IMDb Rating: 7.3/10

OTT Platform: Sony LIV

The Last of the Mohicans

Michael Mann's 1992 American historical action film, The Last of the Mohicans, is based on James Fenimore Cooper's 1826 novel of the same name. The movie shows the French and Indian War that took place in 1757. Jodhi May, Madeleine Stowe, and Daniel Day-Lewis star in the film that was well-received by critics and enjoyed commercial success. The film transports viewers to Albany, New York, in 1757, during the French and Indian War, and introduces Major Duncan Heyward of the British Army. He reports to the commander of Fort William Henry in the Adirondack Mountains, Colonel Edmund Munro. Cora and Alice, Munro's two daughters, need to be escorted to their father by Heyward.

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

OTT Platform: Amazon Prime Video

Titanic

James Cameron's epic romantic disaster movie was released in 1997. It is based on stories of the RMS Titanic sinking in 1912 and combines elements of fiction and history. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet play members of different social classes who fall in love during the ship's maiden voyage. The movie also stars Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher, Bernard Hill, Jonathan Hyde, Danny Nucci, David Warner, and Bill Paxton. It was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won 11, including Best Picture and Best Director.

IMDb Rating: 7.9/10

OTT Platform: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+