Best Films to Teach Introduction to Art History 1: Pre-History through Medieval Art
This film list is designed to supplement the instruction in an introductory Art History 1 class (Pre-history through Medieval Art).
List activity
6.3K views
• 2 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
26 titles
- DirectorMel BrooksStarsMel BrooksGregory HinesDom DeLuiseMel Brooks brings his one-of-a-kind comic touch to the history of mankind covering events from the Old Testament to the French Revolution in a series of episodic comedy vignettes.
- DirectorAlain JaubertStarsMarcel CuvelierLaura Guerin
- DirectorRolf ForsbergStarsPierce BrosnanPaul DarrowThe Romans saw the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World as the crowning achievements of their predecessors. Through stunning on-location and re-created visuals, learn how and why they were built and how they dazzled the ancients.
- DirectorBrenda ChapmanSteve HicknerSimon WellsStarsVal KilmerRalph FiennesMichelle PfeifferEgyptian Prince Moses learns of his identity as a Hebrew and his destiny to become the chosen deliverer of his people.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsBrad PittEric BanaOrlando BloomAn adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.
- DirectorRon ClementsJohn MuskerStarsTate DonovanSusan EganJames WoodsThe son of Zeus and Hera is stripped of his immortality as an infant and must become a true hero in order to reclaim it.
- StarsStan BernardTate SteinsiekScott A. MellorCovers many of the ancient Greek and Norse Gods, monsters and heroes including Hades, Hercules, Medusa, Minotaur, Odysseus and Zeus.
- DirectorChris ColumbusStarsLogan LermanKevin McKiddSteve CooganA teenager discovers he's the descendant of a Greek god and sets out on an adventure to settle an on-going battle between the gods.
- DirectorZack SnyderStarsGerard ButlerLena HeadeyDavid WenhamIn the ancient battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas and 300 Spartans fight against Xerxes and his massive Persian army.
- DirectorTyrone GuthrieAbraham PolonskyStarsDouglas CampbellEleanor StuartRobert GoodierThe land ruled by King Oedipus is plagued by ill-fortune and the people are promised relief by the gods if the slayer of the former king is apprehended and punished. This does not bode well for King Oedipus and his Queen. (Performed in masks by the Stratford, Ontario, Shakespearean Festival Players.)
- DirectorBrad MaysStarsWillow HaleKaren TiegrenAomawa Baker
- This documentary is part of a series that describes wars, battles, and revolutions that were turning points in Western history.
- StarsBrian BlessedThis film is one in a series of programs that takes a look at some of the most decisive military battles in the history of the world.
- StarsMichael CarrollPeter WellerJ.J. HuckinA series of documentaries that go over the world's history and it's many accomplishments.
- DirectorLarry KleinStarsDavid MacaulayDerek JacobiIan McKellenAs we explore the remains of Roman cities, we also follow the story of one such city in Gaul, beset with political corruption and Celtic insurrection.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweJoaquin PhoenixConnie NielsenA former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.
- DirectorKevin MacdonaldStarsChanning TatumJamie BellDonald SutherlandIn Roman-ruled Britain, a young Roman soldier endeavors to honor his father's memory by finding his lost legion's golden emblem.
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsJim CaviezelMonica BellucciMaia MorgensternDepicts the final twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, on the day of his crucifixion in Jerusalem.
- DirectorPier Paolo PasoliniStarsFranco CittiNinetto DavoliJovan JovanovicAn adaptation of nine stories from Boccaccio's "Decameron".
- StarsClancy BrownThomas BurnsMichael KulikowskiThis 4 part series documents the history of the Vikings, Goths, Mongols, and Huns.
- StarsDreama WalkerJared KeesoRachel MelvinA sheriff uncovers dark secrets when the daughter of her lover becomes a murder suspect. Based on the novels by Robin Wasserman.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweCate BlanchettMatthew MacfadyenIn twelfth-century England, Robin Longstride and his band of marauders confront corruption in a local village and lead an uprising against the crown that will forever alter the balance of world power.
- DirectorTim KingStarsDavid MacaulayCaroline BergDerek JacobiDavid Macaulay and Caroline Berg explore medieval cathedral architecture through the fictional animated story of the rebuilding of such a cathedral in the middle ages after a disastrous fire.
- DirectorPeter NewingtonStarsDavid MacaulaySarah BullenRonald BaddileyThe architecture and life of medieval castles are explored while we follow the story of one such English castle in medieval Wales.
- DirectorJames RuncieStarsPatricia RoutledgeJanet SuzmanPeter VaughanHildegard of Bingen was one of the most remarkable women of the Middle Ages--an Abbess and woman of God, a visionary, naturalist, playwright, political moralist, and composer. Born in 1098, she was beset by the most extraordinary religious visions from the age of eight-visions which she wrote down, painted, dramatized, and set to music. This substantial legacy of her visionary writings and songs are unique for their mystic power and beauty. They serve as some of the most radiant and illuminating accounts of religious experience ever. Yet, despite this outpouring of religious creativity, her visions were called into questions, and she was put on trial by the Church in 1148. This is the story of events leading up to that trial and of the trial itself. The setting is the monastery of St. Disibod on the Rhine in central Germany. Hildegard's befriending of a young persecuted girl and the care she shows for a dying crusader eventually lead her into conflict with her Abbot. She is placed under an interdict, which results in Hildegard and her nuns being forbidden from taking communion and singing the divine service. After enduring the punishment for some time, Hildegard protests, and it is her subsequent examination and trial by the Archbishop of Mainz around which the story revolves. This beautiful film features excerpts from Hildegard's own mystically powerful writing as well as her exquisite songs of prayer.