Based on a true story...

There's no two ways about it: I LOVE that recently historical films have been creeping into cinemas, simultaneously proving to be box office hits and capable of dominating the awards season. For both a history and film nerd, this is an extremely exciting prospect! Despite not being able to watch a film without looking for all the inconsistencies, goofs and plot holes, I'm not one of those people that automatically moans when a film is historically inaccurate - slightly ironic, I know, but perfect for these type of films!

These are a selection of the historical films I've either seen or am desperate to see soon. They're either based on a true story, or on a book, but either way they feature heavily around actual historical events which is the interesting part.

ARGO

During the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, the American embassy in Iran was invaded by revolutionaries and several Americans were taken hostage. However, six managed to escape to the official residence of the Canadian Ambassador and the CIA orders "exfiltration" expert Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) to lead the rescue of the six U.S. diplomats from Tehran. With few options, Mendez derives the plan of creating a phony film studio, that is scouting Iran for exotic locations to shoot a science-fiction movie, smuggling the Americans out as its production crew. Mendez creates the ruse and proceeds to Iran as the film's associate producer, however, time is running out with the Iranian security forces closing in on the truth and both the captives and the White House have grave doubts about the operation itself.

I saw this with the LSESU History Society last term and absolutely loved it. I'm really shocked that Ben Affleck hasn't been nominated for an Academy Award for this - it's a superb film - but I'm really glad he's collecting Best Director awards from most other ceremonies this season. They're no consolation prize for missing out on an Oscar nomination, but surely it says a lot about the voting process if he's done so well elsewhere? Not only is Argo a gripping and tense film, but also incredibly funny, and home to one of the best lines of 2012: "Argo-fuck yourself!"

LINCOLN

In 1865, as the American Civil War winds inexorably toward conclusion, U.S. president Abraham Lincoln (Daniel Day-Lewis) endeavors to achieve passage of the landmark constitutional amendment which will forever ban slavery from the United States. However, his task is a race against time, for peace may come at any moment, and if it comes before the amendment is passed, the returning southern states will stop it before it can become law. Lincoln must, by almost any means possible, obtain enough votes from a recalcitrant Congress before peace arrives and it is too late. Yet the president is torn, as an early peace would save thousands of lives. As the nation confronts its conscience over the freedom of its entire population, Lincoln faces his own crisis of conscience: end slavery or end the war.

Doesn't this look epic?! I'm seeing it in a few weeks and am very excited to see if it lives up to its widespread critical acclaim and if Daniel Day-Lewis is as incredible as everyone says...

ZERO DARK THIRTY

It's been hailed as the greatest manhunt in history, and director Kathryn Bigelow tackles the hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden in Zero Dark Thirty. Maya (Jessica Chastain) is a CIA operative who spends a decade following the terrorist attacks against the America on September 11th 2001 in the ruthless pursuit of leads to uncover bin Laden's whereabouts. Finally, in May 2011 it appears that her work has paid off, and U.S. Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 is sent to kill or capture bin Laden.

Jessica Chastain has been universally praised for her role in the film, and Bigelow's controversial lack of Oscar nomination caused my enitre Twitter feed to implode once the nominations were released. It must be good, and I for one cannot wait to finally see it!

HYDE PARK ON HUDSON

The story of the secret love affair between Franklin D. Roosevelt (Bill Murray) and his distant cousin Margaret Stuckley (Laura Linney) centres on the weekend in 1939 when King George (Samuel West) and Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) pay a royal visit to upstate New York with the objective of securing the United States’ allegiance in the impending war. As the Royal couple copes with the President's oddly plebeian arrangements, Daisy learns that there is far more to Roosevelt's life than she realized. With the world about to be set ablaze by war, friendships are struck and perspectives are gained on that special weekend that would make all the difference with a great, but very human, president.

It's a lot lighter than the others in this list, and hasn't been nominated for millions of awards but nonetheless Hyde Park on Hudson still looks like a pretty decent film. It's got a fabulous cast and looks as if it'll provide some comedic relief in amongst a season of thoughtful, heavy films.

EMPEROR

A story of love and understanding set amidst the tensions and uncertainties of the days immediately following the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II. On the staff of General Douglas MacArthur (Tommy Lee Jones), the de facto ruler of Japan as Supreme Commander of the occupying forces, a leading Japanese expert, General Bonner Fellers (Matthew Fox) is charged with reaching a decision of historical importance: should Emperor Hirohito be tried and hanged as a war criminal? Interwoven is the story of Fellers' love affair with Aya, a Japanese exchange student he had met years previously in America. Memories of Aya and his quest to find her in the ravaged post-war landscape help Fellers to discover both his wisdom and his humanity and enable him to come to the momentous decision that changed the course of history and the future of two nations.

I've now covered the American occupation of Japan in two of my courses this year and find it fascinating, so stumbling across the trailer for Emperor seemed a little too good to be true! I'm very much looking forward to seeing this!

(Synopses sourced from imdb.com and bfi.co.uk)

Obviously each of these films will have a lot of dramatic license, and most likely won't be as well received by historians as they'll be by film critics, but in my book as long as they're bringing key historical events into the public conscious and getting people more interested in history then that can only be a good thing. No-one's expecting them to be perfect: they're not documentaries, there are no interviews with the actual people involved, no Dan Snow narration with interactive battle-maps and no archive footage. They're "based on a true story" and as long as they're mostly historically accurate (i.e. no iPads in the 1970s and tweeting in the 1920s) and tell a good story, then I'm sold. If scenes have been exaggerated for dramatic effect and story-lines slightly tweaked then I'm not going to be demanding a refund and writing a strongly-worded letter to someone vaguely important. I can find out the exact details of what happened later - and I always do, no matter what the film - once the credits have rolled.

There's a distinct nostalgia associated with the past, and there's something inherently comforting and immensely fascinating about looking back at the past in order to progress going forward. That's why I love studying history, and when combined with hours in a cinema, I'm in absolute heaven.