Best History Movies of the 1970s

1. 1
   Barry Lyndon 1975

   Directed by Stanley Kubrick · Streaming on YouTube Free
   8.0

   8.0 · 3.3K votes
2. 2
   Mirror 1975

   Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky · Streaming on Plex, Plex Channel
   7.8

   7.9 · 1.1K votes
3. 3
   1900 1976

   Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
   7.6

   7.8 · 704 votes
4. 4
   Aguirre, the Wrath of God 1972

   Directed by Werner Herzog · Streaming on fuboTV, Philo, Kanopy
   7.4

   7.4 · 1.3K votes
5. 5
   Patton 1970

   Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner · Streaming on fuboTV
   7.4

   7.4 · 1.3K votes
6. 6
   Delusions of Grandeur 1971

   Directed by Gérard Oury · Streaming on Kanopy, France Channel
   7.3

   7.4 · 759 votes
7. 7
   The Devils 1971

   Directed by Ken Russell
   7.3

   7.5 · 477 votes
8. 8
   The Old Gun 1975

   Directed by Robert Enrico · Streaming on Film Movement Plus
   7.2

   7.5 · 302 votes
9. 9
   Sacco & Vanzetti 1971

   Directed by Giuliano Montaldo · Streaming on Kino Film Collection
   7.2

   7.6 · 220 votes
10. 10
    A Bridge Too Far 1977

    Directed by Richard Attenborough · Streaming on fuboTV, MGM+, Philo
    7.1

    7.2 · 987 votes
11. 11
    The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser 1974

    Directed by Werner Herzog · Streaming on Philo, Kanopy, Shout! Factory TV
    7.1

    7.3 · 392 votes
12. 12
    Tora! Tora! Tora! 1970

    Directed by Richard Fleischer · Streaming on Amazon Prime Video
    7.1

    7.2 · 639 votes
13. 13
    Ludwig 1973

    Directed by Luchino Visconti
    7.1

    7.5 · 195 votes
14. 14
    Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid 1973

    Directed by Sam Peckinpah · Streaming on Howdy
    7.0

    7.2 · 486 votes
15. 15
    Canoa: A Shameful Memory 1975

    Directed by Felipe Cazals
    7.0

    7.9 · 93 votes
16. 16
    The Message 1976

    Directed by Moustapha Akkad
    7.0

    8.5 · 53 votes
17. 17
    Jesus Christ Superstar 1973

    Directed by Norman Jewison
    7.0

    7.1 · 635 votes
18. 18
    Cross of Iron 1977

    Directed by Sam Peckinpah · Streaming on Amazon Prime Video, Cultpix
    7.0

    7.1 · 511 votes
19. 19
    The Message 1976

    Directed by Moustapha Akkad
    6.9

    7.1 · 424 votes
20. 20
    10 Rillington Place 1971

    Directed by Richard Fleischer · Streaming on IndieFlix, Plex, Plex Channel
    6.9

    7.3 · 227 votes
21. 21
    The New Land 1972

    Directed by Jan Troell
    6.9

    7.6 · 112 votes
22. 22
    The Mattei Affair 1972

    Directed by Francesco Rosi
    6.9

    7.5 · 125 votes
23. 23
    The Emigrants 1971

    Directed by Jan Troell · Streaming on YouTube Free
    6.9

    7.4 · 133 votes
24. 24
    The Beguiled 1971

    Directed by Don Siegel
    6.9

    7.0 · 525 votes
25. 25
    The Wild Child 1970

    Directed by François Truffaut · Streaming on fuboTV, MGM+, Philo
    6.8

    7.1 · 318 votes
26. 26
    The Tin Drum 1979

    Directed by Volker Schlöndorff · Streaming on HBO Max
    6.8

    7.0 · 565 votes
27. 27
    Waterloo 1970

    Directed by Sergei Bondarchuk
    6.8

    7.1 · 237 votes
28. 28
    Ryan's Daughter 1970

    Directed by David Lean · Streaming on Plex, Plex Channel, Tubi TV
    6.8

    7.1 · 185 votes
29. 29
    The Garden of the Finzi-Continis 1970

    Directed by Vittorio De Sica · Streaming on fuboTV, MGM+, Philo
    6.8

    7.0 · 294 votes
30. 30
    Hitler: A Career 1977

    Directed by Joachim Fest · Streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Kanopy
    6.8

    7.4 · 88 votes
31. 31
    The Decameron 1971

    Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini · Streaming on Amazon Prime Video, Tubi TV
    6.7

    6.9 · 368 votes
32. 32
    The Promised Land 1975

    Directed by Andrzej Wajda · Streaming on Klassiki
    6.7

    7.4 · 92 votes
33. 33
    The Story of Adèle H. 1975

    Directed by François Truffaut · Streaming on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, MGM+
    6.7

    6.9 · 247 votes
34. 34
    The Dawns Here Are Quiet 1972

    Directed by Stanislav Rostotsky
    6.7

    7.1 · 160 votes
35. 35
    Brother Sun, Sister Moon 1972

    Directed by Franco Zeffirelli · Streaming on Hoopla
    6.7

    7.1 · 146 votes
36. 36
    The Battle of Chile: Part I 1975

    Directed by Patricio Guzmán · Streaming on OVID
    6.7

    7.6 · 62 votes
37. 37
    Fellini's Casanova 1976

    Directed by Federico Fellini
    6.7

    6.9 · 255 votes
38. 38
    The Travelling Players 1975

    Directed by Theo Angelopoulos
    6.7

    7.2 · 105 votes
39. 39
    The Devil 1972

    Directed by Andrzej Żuławski
    6.7

    7.2 · 101 votes
40. 40
    Edvard Munch 1974

    Directed by Peter Watkins
    6.7

    7.3 · 81 votes
41. 41
    In Desert and Wilderness 1973

    Directed by Władysław Ślesicki
    6.7

    7.5 · 60 votes
42. 42
    The Deluge 1974

    Directed by Jerzy Hoffman
    6.6

    7.2 · 91 votes
43. 43
    The Judge and the Assassin 1976

    Directed by Bertrand Tavernier · Streaming on Criterion Channel
    6.6

    6.9 · 149 votes
44. 44
    Rebellion in Patagonia 1974

    Directed by Héctor Olivera
    6.5

    7.6 · 40 votes
45. 45
    Nicholas and Alexandra 1971

    Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner · Streaming on fuboTV, The Roku Channel, YouTube Free
    6.5

    7.0 · 82 votes
46. 46
    Perceval 1978

    Directed by Éric Rohmer · Streaming on Cineverse
    6.5

    7.1 · 65 votes
47. 47
    1776 1972

    Directed by Peter H. Hunt · Streaming on The Roku Channel, YouTube Free, Fawesome
    6.5

    6.9 · 90 votes
48. 48
    Midway 1976

    Directed by Jack Smight · Streaming on Netflix, YouTube Free
    6.5

    6.6 · 345 votes
49. 49
    The New One-Armed Swordsman 1971

    Directed by Chang Cheh · Streaming on ARROW
    6.5

    6.9 · 85 votes
50. 50
    Siberiade 1979

    Directed by Andrei Konchalovsky · Streaming on myfilmfriend
    6.5

    7.2 · 49 votes

Smart score = (votes × rating + 82 × 6.03) ÷ (votes + 82): the TMDB rating, pulled toward the catalog average as if every film had 82 extra average votes.

1. 1
   The Hunters 1977

   Directed by Theo Angelopoulos
   6.5

   7.6 · 30 votes
2. 2
   Sandakan No. 8 1974

   Directed by Kei Kumai · Streaming on Criterion Channel
   6.4

   7.8 · 20 votes
3. 3
   The Battle of Okinawa 1971

   Directed by Kihachi Okamoto
   6.3

   7.8 · 16 votes
4. 4
   Vlad the Impaler: The True Life of Dracula 1979

   Directed by Doru Năstase
   6.4

   7.5 · 23 votes
5. 5
   One Russian Summer 1973

   Directed by Antonio Calenda
   6.3

   7.9 · 14 votes
6. 6
   A Night at Karlstein 1974

   Directed by Zdeněk Podskalský
   6.3

   7.6 · 19 votes
7. 7
   Hitler: A Film from Germany 1977

   Directed by Hans-Jürgen Syberberg
   6.4

   7.3 · 28 votes
8. 8
   The Wedding 1973

   Directed by Andrzej Wajda
   6.3

   7.3 · 27 votes
9. 9
   Orders 1974

   Directed by Michel Brault
   6.3

   7.3 · 25 votes
10. 10
    Janosik 1974

    Directed by Jerzy Passendorfer
    6.3

    7.6 · 15 votes