Over the summer I was able to catch a few historical movies and a documentary.  Below are my grades for the movies/ doc. and a brief explanation.  If there’s any thoughts on any of these, please comment below.

Oppenheimer

Grade: A

Oppenheimer was an amazing movie; not only great cinematography, but it does a wonderful job getting into the drama of Oppenheimer’s fascinating story.  The movie highlights the Manhattan Project and the development of the atomic bomb which Oppenheimer led. The movie also tells the story of his life, his questionable associations, as well as his controversial treatment during the post-war era.  This movie really deserves all the hype that it has received.

Napoleon

Grade: C

I was quite disappointed with this movie.  I find Napoleon to be one of the most interesting characters from history so I really had high hopes.  I’ve loved teaching the Napoleonic Era in my Modern World history classes over the years.  I’ve been fascinated with Napoleon’s rise and his eventual fall.  But the movie does not focus much at all on his military brilliance or his impressive victories enough.  It focuses too much on his lack of ability to have a son with Josephine.  There’s also parts of the movie that if you didn’t know the background history, you might not know what’s going on… like when he’s suddenly fighting in Egypt.  The movie could have done a better job making it clear why certain events were happening.  I enjoyed many of the visuals in the movie such as the Battle of Waterloo, but the movie as a whole should have been focused more on his military life.

Conquistadors: The Rise and Fall

Grade: A-

Conquistadors: The Rise and Fall is a 6 part documentary on the National Geographic Channel about the Conquistadors who rose to power after Columbus’s landing in the New World.  It discusses their rise and conquest of mighty empires like the Aztecs and the Incas, as well as their expansion throughout the Americas.  The documentary made a strong effort to give the perspectives of the Natives and enslaved Africans throughout the colonization of the Americas.  The documentary also makes the point that the Conquistadors’ conquest of the Americas was not an event that happened very swiftly with little resistance, like is often depicted.  In parts of Central and South America, the natives put up tough resistance, and therefore, the eventual conquest was a slower, drawn out process.  The landing of Columbus and the actions of the Conquistadors changed world history forever.  The documentary was entertaining and quite informative.

All Quiet On The Western Front

Grade: B+

The movie follows a German soldier as he fights in World War 1.  The movie also follows the negotiations for peace between the French and the Germans.  The cinematography of the movie is amazing.  The movie does a great job depicting the unfortunate horrors of trench warfare during the war.  The movie is rather graphic in order to give the viewer the true experience of what war was like.  There were a couple of scenes in the movie that were difficult to watch.  But overall, it was a really good movie.

If you have any differing opinions on these grades, please share in the comments.

Check out related posts below: