History repeats itself: Historical figures on TV and in the movies

The Young Victoria, currently playing in movie theaters, tells the story of Queen Victoria's early years on the English throne and her romance with Prince Albert. Emily Blunt gives a wonderful performance as Victoria, and Rupert Friend is a perfect match as Albert. Many other historical figures have been given the big-screen treatment, where their lives are portrayed by combining both fictional and actual events. Check out this selection of DVDs that deal with the life of a historical figure. This list provides only a fraction of what we have available at the library (see the Search Tip at the end of this post for more!).

Amadeus
DVD FICTION AMADEUS
Antonio Salieri, composer (1750-1825)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer (1756-1791)
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Amazing Grace
DVD FICTION AMAZING
William Wilberforce, British politician and abolitionist (1759-1833)
John Newton, clergyman and former slave ship captain (1725-1807)
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The Aviator
DVD FICTION AVIATOR
Howard Hughes (1905-1976)
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Braveheart
DVD FICTION BRAVEHEART
Sir William Wallace (d. 1305)
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Buffalo Bill and the Indians: Or, Sitting Bull's History Lesson
DVD WESTERN BUFFALO
Buffalo Bill (1846-1917)
Sitting Bull (1831-1890)
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The Duchess
DVD FICTION DUCHESS
Georgiana Spencer Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806)
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Elizabeth
DVD FICTION ELIZABETH
Elizabeth I, Queen of England (1533-1603)
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Elizabeth, The Golden Age
DVD FICTION ELIZABETH
Elizabeth I, Queen of England (1533-1603)

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Gandhi

DVD FICTION GANDHI

Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)

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Iron Jawed Angels

DVD FICTION IRON

Alice Paul, suffragist (1885-1977)

Lucy Burns, suffragist (1879-1966)

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John Adams

DVD TELEVISION JOHN

John Adams (1735-1826)

Abigail Adams (1744-1818)

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Malcolm X

DVD FICTION MALCOLM

Malcolm X (1925-1965)

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Marie Antoinette

DVD FICTION MARIE

Queen Marie Antoinette, consort of Louis XVI, King of France (1755-1793)

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Mary of Scotland

DVD FICTION MARY

Mary, Queen of Scotts (1542-1587)

Elizabeth I, Queen of England (1533-1603)

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The Queen

DVD FICTION QUEEN

Elizabeth II, Queen of Great Britain (1926-)

Tony Blair (1953-)

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The Rosa Parks Story

DVD FICTION ROSA

Rosa Parks (1913-2005)

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The Scarlet Empress

DVD FICTION SCARLET

Catherine II, Empress of Russia (1729-1796)

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Spartacus

DVD FICTION SPARTACUS

Spartacus, gladiator (d. 71 B.C.)

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The Tudors

DVD TELEVISION TUDORS

Henry VIII, King of England (1491-1547)

Season 1: Find it in the catalog!

Season 2: Find it in the catalog!

Search tip!

To find movies that focus on a historical period or person like the ones listed above, try either of these keyword searches:

biographical films and dvd

historical films and dvd

You'll retrieve a long list of DVDs that you can browse through. As long as a DVD was indexed under biographical films or historical films it should turn up in the search.