Disclaimer:Some of these movies may be rated R or inappropriate for kids under 18. Please ask your parents before you view any of the following films!
American Revolution
"The Patriot"--good, but very historically inaccurate "John Adams"--miniseries with Paul Giamatti...REALLY good! "The Crossing"
Civil War
"Gone with the Wind" "Glory" "Ken Burns: Civil War"--REALLY good documentary "North and South"--old Civil War miniseries "Gettysburg" "Gods and Generals"
Immigration
"Gangs of New York" "Far and Away" "The Godfather, Part I, II, III"--the 3rd one is not as good, but part I and II are AMAZING! "Brooklyn"
The Populist/Progressive Era
"Wizard of Oz" "Newsies" "Iron-Jawed Angels"--we saw it in class; shows the fight for women's suffrage
World War I
"All Quiet on the Western Front" "Legends of the Fall" "Sergeant York" "Lawrence of Arabia" "1917"
1920s
"The Great Gatsby" "The Untouchables"--Prohibition era "Public Enemies"
1930s
"Cinderella Man" "Legend of Bagger Vance" "Of Mice and Men" "Grapes of Wrath" "The Great Debaters" "To Kill a Mockingbird"
World War II
The Pacific Theatre: "Pearl Harbor"--cheesy love story, but the ending gives a good description of that morning "Tora, Tora, Tora" "The Pacific"--a miniseries from HBO...SOOOO good!! "Flags of Our Fathers" (American Perspective)/"Letters from Iwo Jima"(Japanese Perspective)
The European Theatre: "Saving Private Ryan"--we see the beginning part in class; based on the Invasion of Normandy "Patton" "Casablanca" "Dunkirk"
The Holocaust "Schindler's List" "The Pianist" "Life is Beautiful" "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" "Diary of Anne Frank" "Inglourious Bastards" "Hunters" - Amazon Prime "US and the Holocaust" - new Documentary from Ken Burns
Cold War
"13 Days" "Rocky IV"--some historians suggest this movie ended the Cold War! "Miracle" "Trumbo" "Munich"
Civil Rights
"To Kill A Mockingbird" "Malcolm X" "A Time to Kill" "Remember the Titans" "Mississippi Burning" "Ghosts of Mississippi" "A Raisin in the Sun" "Gandhi" "El Norte" "Empire of the Sun" "Eyes on the Prize" "School Ties" "The Joy Luck Club" "Introducing Dorothy Dandridge" "Roots" "Hidden Figures" "Selma"
Vietnam
"The Quiet American" "Good Morning, Vietnam" "Tigerland" "Platoon" "Born on the Fourth of July" "Forrest Gump" "Heaven and Earth" "The Deerhunter" "Full Metal Jacket" "Apocalypse Now" "A Bright Shining Lie" - we watched this in class
1960s/70s America
"JFK" "Nixon" "All the Presidents Men" "Frost/Nixon" "Bobby"
1980s
"Wall Street" "Back to the Future" "The Karate Kid"--check out the All-Valley Karate Tournament "Roger and Me" "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure"
1990s
"Philadelphia" "Clueless" "Reality Bites"
Current America
"Recount" "Bowling for Columbine" "The Social Network"
Movies about Los Angeles
"Chinatown"--an old one but a good one! "Changeling" "LA Confidential" "Crash" "There Will Be Blood"--about the search for oil in California "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"
Inspirational Education Movies
"The Emperor's Club" "Dead Poets Society" "Stand and Deliver" "Dangerous Minds" "Lean on Me"