Best History Movies of 1971

Scotland, 11th century. Driven by the twisted prophecy of three witches and the ruthless ambition of his wife, warlord Macbeth, bold and brave, but also weak and hesitant, betrays his good king and his brothers in arms and sinks into the bloody mud of a path with no return, sown with crime and suspicion.

Tsar Nicholas II, the inept last monarch of Russia, insensitive to the needs of his people, is overthrown and exiled to Siberia with his family.

Mary Stuart, who was named Queen of Scotland when she was only six days old, is the last Roman Catholic ruler of Scotland. She is imprisoned at the age of 23 by her cousin Elizabeth Tudor, the English Queen and her arch adversary. Nineteen years later the life of Mary is to be ended on the scaffold and with her execution the last threat to Elizabeth's throne has been removed. The two Queens with their contrasting personalities make a dramatic counterpoint to history.

People in a small German village in the last valley to remain untouched by the devastating Thirty Years' War try to exist in peace with a group of soldiers occupying the valley.

Henry VIII has just married Marie of Normandy, and is eager to consummate their marriage. Unfortunately for Henry, she is always eating garlic, and refuses to stop. Deciding to get rid of her in his usual manner, Henry has to find some way of doing it without provoking war with Marie's cousin, the King of France. Perhaps if she had an affair...

Scottish orphan David Balfour is betrayed by his wicked uncle Ebeneezer, who arranges for David to be kidnapped and sold into slavery so that he cannot claim his inheritance. The boy is rescued and befriended by Alan Breck, a Scottish rebel fighting on behalf of his country's independence from the British.

Based upon Paul Gallico's delicate novel, Patrick Garland's Golden Globe winning The Snow Goose is a stark and hauntingly beautiful drama set amongst the striking scenery of the Essex salt marshes during the early years of WWII. A bearded Richard Harris leads the modest cast with his sensitive portrayal of tormented soul Philip Rhayader, a lonely misshapen man shunned by society but with a great love of life; Harris isnt overly bitter of his treatment and expresses his compassion through his paintings and love of the waterfowl that surround him. Harris is ably supported by the waiflike Jenny Agutter as Frith, who radiates the requisite amount of youthful innocence and naivety, and won a best supporting actress Emmy Award for her performance.

A documentary reenactment of the government-ordered massacre of striking tin miners and their families at the Siglo XX Mines in 1967 in Bolivia.

A few days after the arrival of the year 1000, bearer of great misfortune according to the Prophets, the cavalryman Fortunato and two soldiers, Pannocchia and Carestia, travel through Italy in the midst of numerous adventures: The prophetic year is marked only by the discovery on the part of the cavalryman of his wife's betrayal

Ken Loach production for The Wednesday Play; a fictionalised account of the Pilkingtons Glass strike in St Helens, 1970.

This film provides a unique view of Cuba's leader, containing fascinating archive footage of the Bay of Pigs invasion and scenes of Che Guevara - alongside interviews with political prisoners.

An enchanting tale of childhood in a sleepy Cotswold village during and immediately after the First World War.

Star-studded show recorded at the Big Sur Folk Festival, Big Sur, California, September 13th and 14th, 1969. Joan Baez, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Joni Mitchell, John Sebastian, and others. This film captures a remarkable moment in folk, rock, and pop history - the famous folk festival that brought traditional acts like Dorothy Morrison & The Combs Sisters and Carol Ann Cisneros together with the psychedelic rockers of the day who were most deeply rooted in the folk revival. Older songs like ‘Oh Happy Day,’ ‘Rise And Shine,’ ‘All God’s Children,’ and ‘Swing Down, Sweet Chariot’ meet Joni Mitchell’s ‘Woodstock,’ Joan Baez’s ‘Sweet Sir Galahad,’ ‘Bob Dylan’s ‘I Shall Be Released,’ CSNY’s ‘Down By The River,’ and many more of the now-classic songs of what was then called the ‘new rock.’ The scene is notably intimate and - aside from one fan’s dustup with Stephen Stills - mellow, with many rare, close-up moments with the stars.

A documentary film about to resist the brutal action taken by Pakistan occupy army against general people of Bangladesh (previously East Pakistan) in between 26 March, 1971 and 16 Dec, 1971.

Set in the splendor and terror of the Spanish Inquisition, Flame in the Wind tells the story of Carlos, an earnest young nobleman who is faced with a choice: the church system offers safety, protection, and respectability; the Scriptures offer Christ and salvation from sin—and with these torture and death.

Culled mostly from archival footage, this thought-provoking first volume of the Hidden Agenda series relays the little-known history of an elite group of power brokers who wield considerable influence over world affairs. Tracking the growth of the world's largest banking dynasties through the eyes of a conspiracy theorist, the program maintains that the true motivation behind their activities is to control the world itself.

In this small town “epic,” the people of Whitesburg, KY speak directly to the camera about unemployment, student unrest, and the Vietnam War. The down-home candor of the exchanges presents a revolutionary alternative to the voice-over narration then common in commercial productions. Stripped to the basics, the documentary has an energy and immediacy only possible in a film made by the participants themselves.

Betye Saar’s film Colored Spade is an assemblage of derogatory images gradually replaced with depictions of African-American power and solidarity. The film explores Saar’s interest in deconstructing historical and political narratives through the use of symbolism within found imagery.

The colonial silversmith produced items both functional and beautiful. In this 1971 docudrama, silver scraps are transformed into a magnificent new coffeepot under the skilled hands of the master silversmith. You'll witness the art and science of silversmithing at every stage from the adaptation of English designs and the pouring of molds to the forging, raising, and plashing that give the metal its shape and shine.

First of the Man And the State series, dramatizing the character of Socrates in the context of his 339 B.C. trial, posing questions about if the state has the right to silence individuals.