Best movies about dictatorships
by guisreis | created - 30 Aug 2013 | updated - 2 days ago | PublicFictitious or not modern totalitarian regimes have not been incuded. Movies about colonial oppression have.
See also my list about distopy and fictional dictatorships.
Add: Militares da Democracia, by Silvio Tendler - https://www.facebook.com/Militares-Da-Democracia-Militares-que-resistiram-ao-Golpe-de-64-584276421662211/
On Sacred Land - https://www.mca.com.au/artists-works/works/2017.9/
https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/works/354.1988/
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1. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
R | 118 min | Drama, Fantasy, War
In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú
Votes: 703,303 | Gross: $37.63M
2. Schindler's List (1993)
R | 195 min | Biography, Drama, History
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, Caroline Goodall
Votes: 1,451,724 | Gross: $96.90M
3. Baptism of Blood (2006)
110 min | Drama, History
During the period of 1964 to 1985, Brazil lived a military dictatorship. In the 60s, the Dominican friars Tito, Betto, Fernando and Ivo help leftist organizations. However, they are ... See full summary »
Director: Helvecio Ratton | Stars: Caio Blat, Daniel de Oliveira, Léo Quintão, Odilon Esteves
Votes: 750
4. Land and Freedom (1995)
Not Rated | 109 min | Drama, War
David is an unemployed communist that comes to Spain in 1937 during the civil war to enroll the republicans and defend the democracy against the fascists. He makes friends between the soldiers.
Director: Ken Loach | Stars: Ian Hart, Rosana Pastor, Icíar Bollaín, Tom Gilroy
Votes: 12,104 | Gross: $0.23M
5. The Return to Homs (2013)
Not Rated | 94 min | Documentary, Biography, History
A look behind the barricades of the besieged city of Homs, where for nineteen-year-old Basset and his ragtag group of comrades, the audacious hope of revolution is crumbling like the buildings around them.
Director: Talal Derki | Star: Abdul Basset Saroot
Votes: 1,070
6. I Am Cuba (1964)
Not Rated | 141 min | Drama
Four vignettes about the lives of the Cuban people set during the pre-revolutionary era.
Director: Mikhail Kalatozov | Stars: Sergio Corrieri, Salvador Wood, José Gallardo, Raúl García
Votes: 10,674
Cuba under the rule of Fulgencio Batista.
7. Rend Your Heart (2018)
115 min | Drama
An adaptation of the namesake play by Oduvaldo Vianna Filho, which tells the story of Manguari Pistolão, an anonymous militant, that after 40 years of fighting for what he thought was new ... See full summary »
Director: Jorge Furtado | Stars: Marco Ricca, Drica Moraes, Chay Suede, George Sauma
Votes: 266
8. The Last King of Scotland (2006)
R | 123 min | Biography, Drama, History
Based on the events of the brutal Ugandan dictator Idi Amin's regime as seen by his personal physician during the 1970s.
Director: Kevin Macdonald | Stars: James McAvoy, Forest Whitaker, Gillian Anderson, Kerry Washington
Votes: 196,091 | Gross: $17.61M
9. O Homem que Virou Suco (1980)
97 min | Drama
São Paulo police mistakenly thinks a folk poet and singer is the same man who had stabbed his boss.
Director: João Batista de Andrade | Stars: José Dumont, Aldo Bueno, Rafael de Carvalho, Ruthinéa de Moraes
Votes: 392
Dictatorship is not a main issue of this film but the story happens during military rule in Brazil. Besides that, the values of military dictatorship and repression against unions appear in the movie.
10. They Don't Wear Black Tie (1981)
120 min | Drama
Union leader's son doesn't want to engage in a strike, because his wife is pregnant, thus disregarding his father's tradition of political activism.
Director: Leon Hirszman | Stars: Gianfrancesco Guarnieri, Fernanda Montenegro, Carlos Alberto Riccelli, Bete Mendes
Votes: 1,824
11. April Captains (2000)
123 min | Drama, History, War
Story of the 1974 coup that overthrew the right-wing Portuguese dictatorship--which continued the fascist policies of long-time dictator Antonio Salazar--and of two young army captains who were involved in it.
Director: Maria de Medeiros | Stars: Stefano Accorsi, Maria de Medeiros, Joaquim de Almeida, Frédéric Pierrot
Votes: 3,400
12. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress (2002)
110 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
Two youths sent for a Maoist "re-education" in the mountains fall in love with the village tailor's granddaughter.
Director: Sijie Dai | Stars: Xun Zhou, Kun Chen, Ye Liu, Shuangbao Wang
Votes: 4,585 | Gross: $0.67M
13. Lemon Tree (2008)
Not Rated | 106 min | Drama, War
The story of a Palestinian widow who must defend her lemontree field when a new Israeli Defense Minister moves next to her and threatens to have her lemon grove torn down.
Director: Eran Riklis | Stars: Hiam Abbass, Rona Lipaz-Michael, Ali Suliman, Doron Tavory
Votes: 6,882 | Gross: $0.57M
14. The Offended (2016)
85 min | Documentary
"In the Salvadoran civil war, my father and thousands more were captured and tortured by the State. These are some of their stories. When I turned 33, my mother told me that my father, ... See full summary »
Director: Marcela Zamora
Votes: 24
A very strong film on dire right-wing military dictatorship supported by the United States in El Salvador.
15. The Trial (2018)
140 min | Documentary, History
The Trial documents the trial of Dilma Rousseff, focusing on the defense team, who struggles to prove her innocence against a majority vote by a Congress riddled with corruption. A tale of ... See full summary »
Director: Maria Ramos | Stars: Dilma Rousseff, Jair Bolsonaro, José Eduardo Cardozo, Eduardo Cunha
Votes: 1,476
The coup in Brazil, 2016.
16. A Twelve-Year Night (2018)
TV-MA | 122 min | Adventure, Biography, Crime
1973. Uruguay is governed by a military dictatorship. One autumn night, three Tupamaro prisoners are taken from their jail cells in a secret military operation. The order is precise: "As we can't kill them, let's drive them mad."
Director: Álvaro Brechner | Stars: Antonio de la Torre, Chino Darín, Alfonso Tort, César Troncoso
Votes: 10,990
17. Free Angela and All Political Prisoners (2012)
Not Rated | 102 min | Documentary, Crime, History
A documentary that chronicles the life of young college professor Angela Davis, and how her social activism implicates her in a botched kidnapping attempt that ends with a shootout, four dead, and her name on the FBI's 10 most wanted list.
Director: Shola Lynch | Stars: Angela Davis, Eisa Davis, Brandon J. Dirden
Votes: 784
May a regime with political prisioners be called a democracy?
18. Trumbo (2015)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama
In 1947, Dalton Trumbo was Hollywood's top screenwriter, until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs.
Director: Jay Roach | Stars: Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, Helen Mirren, Louis C.K.
Votes: 84,798 | Gross: $7.86M
Authoritarian United States. Sorry to tell you, if you still did not know, but that is not a democracy.
19. Duck, You Sucker! (1971)
PG | 138 min | Drama, War, Western
A low-life bandit and an I.R.A. explosives expert rebel against the government and become heroes of the Mexican Revolution.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Rod Steiger, James Coburn, Romolo Valli, Maria Monti
Votes: 37,525 | Gross: $0.70M
Huerta's counter-revolutionary military dictatorship in Mexico.
20. The Lives of Others (2006)
R | 137 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck | Stars: Ulrich Mühe, Martina Gedeck, Sebastian Koch, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 410,687 | Gross: $11.29M
21. The Official Story (1985)
Not Rated | 112 min | Drama, History
During the final months of Argentinian Military Dictatorship in 1983, a high school teacher sets out to find out who the mother of her adopted daughter is.
Director: Luis Puenzo | Stars: Norma Aleandro, Héctor Alterio, Chunchuna Villafañe, Hugo Arana
Votes: 10,869 | Gross: $0.03M
22. No (I) (2012)
R | 118 min | Drama, History
An advertising executive comes up with a campaign to defeat Augusto Pinochet in Chile's 1988 referendum.
Director: Pablo Larraín | Stars: Gael García Bernal, Alfredo Castro, Antonia Zegers, Luis Gnecco
Votes: 26,223 | Gross: $2.34M
23. Michael Collins (1996)
R | 133 min | Biography, Drama, Thriller
Neil Jordan's historical biopic of Irish revolutionary Michael Collins, the man who led a guerrilla war against the UK, helped negotiate the creation of the Irish Free State, and led the National Army during the Irish Civil War.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Julia Roberts, Ian Hart
Votes: 33,772 | Gross: $11.09M
24. Unremember (2018)
96 min | Drama
In 1979 a teenage girl emigrates back to Brazil from Paris, plunging her into the political and social storm of that country, and forcing her to confront the disappearance of her father many years earlier.
Director: Flávia Castro | Stars: Jeanne Boudier, Sara Antunes, Eliane Giardini, Julián Marras
Votes: 405
25. Go Ahead, Brazil! (1982)
105 min | Crime, Drama
This movie is about one of the worst periods for the Brazilian people. Shows the days of military dictatorship when the Brazilian people against the government were put in jails, tortured, ... See full summary »
Director: Roberto Farias | Stars: Reginaldo Faria, Carlos Zara, Antônio Fagundes, Natália do Vale
Votes: 526
26. A Slave of Love (1976)
Not Rated | 94 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A fate of popular film actress during the turbulent years of the Russian Civil War.
Director: Nikita Mikhalkov | Stars: Elena Solovey, Rodion Nakhapetov, Aleksandr Kalyagin, Oleg Basilashvili
Votes: 1,795
Under White Army occupation.
27. Kamchatka (2002)
106 min | Drama
The film is seen through the eyes of a ten-year-old boy, Harry (Matías del Pozo), who does not know that Argentina's 1976 coup d'état is impacting his life. After witnessing the "... See full summary »
Director: Marcelo Piñeyro | Stars: Ricardo Darín, Cecilia Roth, Héctor Alterio, Fernanda Mistral
Votes: 3,715
28. Resistance (2019)
122 min | Drama, History
In 1961, Gov. Leonel Brizola leads the unparalleled Legality movement, a first in the history of Brazil. Fighting for the Constitution, he mobilizes the resistance to ensure President João ... See full summary »
Director: Zeca Brito | Stars: Cleo, Letícia Sabatella, Fernando Alves Pinto, Leonardo Machado
Votes: 162
The film is about the risk of a military coup in Brazil 1961, avoided by a non democratic change of system of government from presidentialism to parliamentarism in order to limit president João Goulart's powers. Military dictatorship would take place three years afterwards anyway.
29. The Year My Parents Went on Vacation (2006)
PG | 110 min | Drama
A boy is left alone in a Jewish neighborhood in 1970, when the World Cup coincides with political crackdowns by the military dictatorship.
Director: Cao Hamburger | Stars: Michel Joelsas, Germano Haiut, Daniela Piepszyk, Paulo Autran
Votes: 6,662 | Gross: $0.76M
30. Machuca (2004)
Not Rated | 121 min | Biography, Drama, History
Two 12-year-old Chilean children from different social classes become friends in 1973. They both discover each other's world as political tensions in their country increase.
Director: Andrés Wood | Stars: Matías Quer, Ariel Mateluna, Manuela Martelli, Aline Küppenheim
Votes: 12,660
31. Dossiê Jango (2013)
102 min | Documentary, History
An account of the mysterious death of a former president of Brazil whose deposition led to the Military Revolution in Brazil in 1964, seeking to clarify obscure facts in the country's history at that time.
Director: Paulo Henrique Fontenelle | Stars: Carlos Diegues, João Goulart, Paula Moreno, Flavio Tavares
Votes: 154
32. The Portuguese Falcon (2015)
106 min | Action, Comedy, History
Follows Portugal's first fascist superhero: the ultra patriotic Captain Falcon!
Director: João Leitão | Stars: Gonçalo Waddington, David Chan Cordeiro, José Pinto, Miguel Guilherme
Votes: 2,053
33. The Breadwinner (2017)
PG-13 | 94 min | Animation, Drama, Family
In 2001, Afghanistan is under the control of the Taliban. When her father is captured, a determined young girl disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family.
Director: Nora Twomey | Stars: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Noorin Gulamgaus, Laara Sadiq
Votes: 28,246 | Gross: $0.31M
Taleban.
34. The Day That Lasted 21 Years (2012)
77 min | Documentary, History, Thriller
Provides evidence of manipulation and investment funding from the U.S. government to carry out the Brazilian military coup that occurred in 1964.
Director: Camilo Tavares | Stars: Auro de Moura Andrade, Robert Bentley, Júlio de Sá Bierrenbach, Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco
Votes: 468
35. Dawson Isla 10 (2008)
117 min | Drama
The ex-members of Chile's cabinet survive the prison on Dawson Island.
Director: Miguel Littin | Stars: Benjamín Vicuña, Bertrand Duarte, Pablo Krögh, Cristián de la Fuente
Votes: 381
I have only watched the final part of this film, unfortunately.
36. State of Siege (1972)
Not Rated | 120 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Using the interrogation of a US counterinsurgency agent as a backdrop, the film explores the consequences of the struggle between Uruguay's government and the leftist Tupamaro guerrillas.
Director: Costa-Gavras | Stars: Yves Montand, Renato Salvatori, O.E. Hasse, Jacques Weber
Votes: 6,066 | Gross: $1.13M
37. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)
Not Rated | 113 min | Drama
A woman assists her friend in arranging an illegal abortion in 1980s Romania.
Director: Cristian Mungiu | Stars: Anamaria Marinca, Laura Vasiliu, Vlad Ivanov, Alexandru Potocean
Votes: 63,309 | Gross: $1.19M
Ceausescu dictatorship is not an openly treated issue in this movie about abortion, but life conditions under the regime are shown throughout the film.
38. Histories of Hunger in Brazil (2018 TV Movie)
52 min | Documentary, History | Completed
Histories of Hunger in Brazil is a documentary that sets a timeline of hunger in the country. From Colonial Brazil, where the seeds of social inequalities were planted, to the recent public... See full summary »
Director: Camilo Tavares
Votes: 11
How military dictatoship contributed for maitaining the hunger in Brazil.
39. Che: Part One (2008)
Not Rated | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1956, Ernesto 'Che' Guevara and a band of Castro-led Cuban exiles mobilize an army to topple the regime of dictator Fulgencio Batista.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Julia Ormond, Benicio Del Toro, Oscar Isaac, Pablo Guevara
Votes: 47,963 | Gross: $1.80M
40. Ojos que no ven (2003)
PG-13 | 95 min | Crime, Thriller, Drama
Through out six different and yet parallel stories that take place during the corrupted government during the 90s in Peru, Lombardi tells the moral decomposition that ran through all classes and generations of the peruvian society.
Director: Francisco J. Lombardi | Stars: Gianfranco Brero, Gustavo Bueno, Patricia Pereyra, Paul Vega
Votes: 289
41. Butterfly (1999)
R | 96 min | Drama, War
Based in 1936 Spain, Moncho is an outcast at school but is able to form a strong bond with his outspoken teacher. When fascism arrives to Spain, his teacher is considered an enemy of the regime & arrested.
Director: José Luis Cuerda | Stars: Manuel Lozano, Fernando Fernán Gómez, Uxía Blanco, Gonzalo Uriarte
Votes: 9,758 | Gross: $2.09M
42. Cidadão Boilesen (2009)
92 min | Documentary
A documentary about the controversial businessman Henning Boilesen Jr. and his involvement with the military regime as one of its most enthusiastic supporters, financing it and ... See full summary »
Director: Chaim Litewski | Stars: Hennig Boilesen Jr., Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Jarbas Passarinho, Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns
Votes: 154
43. A Luneta do Tempo (2014)
99 min | Drama, Musical, Western
In arid and treacherous lands, Lampião and his band are pursued by Antero Tenente and his troop, which faces the capture of the bandit as a matter of honor.
Director: Alceu Valença | Stars: Hermila Guedes, Irandhir Santos, Alceu Valença, Ari de Arimateia
Votes: 131
Part of the story happens during Getúlio Vargas dictatorship.
44. The Man in the Black Cape (1986)
120 min | Biography, Crime
Biography of Brazilian congressman Tenório Cavalcanti, who used to appear in public carrying a machine-gun, and wearing a black cloak.
Director: Sergio Rezende | Stars: José Wilker, Marieta Severo, Jonas Bloch, Isolda Cresta
Votes: 318
The final part shows the military coup d'état.
45. Cuchillo de palo (2010)
93 min | Documentary
Of all my uncles, Rodolfo was the only one who didn't want to be a blacksmith like my grandfather: He wanted to be a dancer. The search for the traces of his life leads to the discovery ... See full summary »
Director: Renate Costa | Stars: Miguel Auad Petunia, Nancy Baruja, Renate Costa, Manuel Cuenca
Votes: 152
About Strossner's dictatorship in Paraguay, particularly about violence against homosexuals.
46. Under the Sun (2015)
Not Rated | 106 min | Documentary
A propaganda documentary about North Korea that reveals a few hidden facts because the director continues filming between the scripted scenes.
Director: Vitaliy Manskiy | Stars: Lee Zin-Mi, Yu-Yong, Hye-Yong, Oh-Gyong
Votes: 5,055 | Gross: $0.07M
47. Les enfants du 209 rue Saint-Maur, Paris Xe (2018 TV Movie)
101 min | Documentary
Zylberman tells the story of a building in rue Saint-Maur during the German occupation of Paris through the memories of those who lived there and survived the war.
Director: Ruth Zylberman | Stars: Odette Diamant, Albert Baum, Hélène Baum, Jeanine Dinanceau
Votes: 45
48. A Grande Cidade ou As Aventuras e Desventuras de Luzia e Seus 3 Amigos Chegados de Longe (1966)
80 min | Crime, Drama
Luzia comes from the backwoods of Northeast Brazil to Rio de Janeiro, in search of her fiancé. But soon she'll find out he has turned into a dangerous criminal and is being looked after by the police.
Director: Carlos Diegues | Stars: Leonardo Villar, Anecy Rocha, Antonio Pitanga, Joel Barcellos
Votes: 160
49. The Two Popes (2019)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Behind Vatican walls, the conservative Pope Benedict XVI and the liberal future Pope Francis must find common ground to forge a new path for the Catholic Church.
Director: Fernando Meirelles | Stars: Jonathan Pryce, Anthony Hopkins, Juan Minujín, Luis Gnecco
Votes: 133,042
Very important depiction of Argentine military dictatorship and the behaviour of Bergoglio then.
50. The First Grader (2010)
PG-13 | 103 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
The story of an 84 year-old Kenyan villager and ex Mau Mau veteran who fights for his right to go to school for the first time to get the education he could never afford.
Director: Justin Chadwick | Stars: Naomie Harris, Oliver Litondo, Tony Kgoroge, Alfred Munyua
Votes: 4,894 | Gross: $0.33M
The violent past of British colonial rule is a shadow for the main character.
51. Torre das Donzelas (2018)
97 min | Documentary
"The Virgin's Tower" - Memoires of a group of rebel women that were imprisioned by the Brazilian dictatorship in the 60's.
Director: Susanna Lira | Stars: Dilma Rousseff, Ana Bursztyn-Miranda, Maria Aparecida Costa, Rita Sipahi
Votes: 108
52. Pastor Claúdio (2018)
76 min | Documentary
A historic meeting between two personally antagonistic figures: Evangelical Bishop Claudio Guerra, responsible for murdering and incinerating opponents of the Brazilian military ... See full summary »
Director: Beth Formaggini | Stars: Claudio Guerra, Eduardo Passos, Ivanilda Veloso
Votes: 28
53. Underground (1995)
Not Rated | 167 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Two underground black marketeers, Marko and Blacky, sell weapons to the Communist resistance in wartime Belgrade, living the good life along the way.
Director: Emir Kusturica | Stars: Predrag 'Miki' Manojlovic, Lazar Ristovski, Mirjana Jokovic, Slavko Stimac
Votes: 61,280 | Gross: $0.17M
54. A King in New York (1957)
G | 105 min | Comedy, Drama
A recently-deposed European monarch seeks shelter in New York City, where he becomes an accidental television celebrity and is later wrongly accused of being a Communist.
Director: Charles Chaplin | Stars: Charles Chaplin, Maxine Audley, Jerry Desmonde, Oliver Johnston
Votes: 8,883
If it is not held properly in a dictatorship, it depicts very undemocratic Mccarthism in US.
55. Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985)
R | 120 min | Drama
A gay man and a political prisoner are together in a prison. The gay man narrates the stories of two fake movies and his own life.
Director: Hector Babenco | Stars: William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga, José Lewgoy
Votes: 17,360 | Gross: $17.04M
56. Panama Canal Stories (2014)
TV-14 | 106 min | Drama
Five shorts spanning a century on lives impacted by the Panama Canal.
Directors: Abner Benaim, Carolina Borrero, Luis Franco Brantley, Pinky Mon, Pituka Ortega-Heilbron | Stars: Lakisha May, Andre Morris, Carlos Eduardo Goldstein Alemán, Kathleen Wise
Votes: 161
US domination over Panama in different moments of history.
57. The Spy Gone North (2018)
Not Rated | 137 min | Drama, Thriller
In the mid-1990s, a loyal South Korean secret agent is caught in a political vortex plotted by the ruling classes of North and South Korea.
Director: Yoon Jong-bin | Stars: Hwang Jung-min, Lee Sung-min, Cho Jin-woong, Ju Ji-hoon
Votes: 6,198 | Gross: $0.50M
Neither North Korea nor South Korea were democracies during this spy story.
58. Reds (1981)
PG | 195 min | Biography, Drama, History
A radical American journalist becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia, and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States.
Director: Warren Beatty | Stars: Warren Beatty, Diane Keaton, Edward Herrmann, Jerzy Kosinski
Votes: 24,725 | Gross: $40.38M
Lack of freedom of thought inside the United States, authoritarian regime in Soviet Union, colonialism throughout the world...
59. Wadjda (2012)
PG | 98 min | Comedy, Drama
An enterprising Saudi girl signs on for her school's Koran recitation competition as a way to raise the remaining funds she needs in order to buy the green bicycle that has captured her interest.
Director: Haifaa Al-Mansour | Stars: Waad Mohammed, Reem Abdullah, Abdullrahman Al Gohani, Ahd
Votes: 21,483 | Gross: $1.35M
Politics is not clearly an issue in the movie, but the story happens not only under an authoritarian rule but also show a very authoritatian and sexist culture and the cult of personality.
60. Friendly Fire (1998)
76 min | Drama
Brazil in the early 70s. Miguel, Eloi, Osvaldo and Paolo take part in armed attacks against the military dictatorship. They pay a heavy price with torture and arrest. Today the four friends... See full summary »
Director: Beto Brant | Stars: Leonardo Villar, Helio Lahal, Zécarlos Machado, Cacá Amaral
Votes: 412
61. Miel de naranjas (2012)
100 min | Drama
Henry grows tired of witnessing injustices, and he engages in risky actions.
Director: Imanol Uribe | Stars: Iban Garate, Blanca Suárez, Karra Elejalde, Eduard Fernández
Votes: 354
62. The Devil's Backbone (2001)
R | 106 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
After Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Marisa Paredes, Eduardo Noriega, Federico Luppi, Fernando Tielve
Votes: 71,028 | Gross: $0.75M
63. Olga (2004)
141 min | Biography, Drama, History
Based upon the true story of Olga Benário, the German-born wife of Brazilian communist leader Luís Carlos Prestes. During the dictatorship of Getúlio Vargas (1930-1945) she was arrested and... See full summary »
Director: Jayme Monjardim | Stars: Camila Morgado, Caco Ciocler, Luís Melo, Eliane Giardini
Votes: 3,649
64. Zuzu Angel (2006)
108 min | Biography, Drama, History
Based on the true story of Zuzu Angel, a famous Brazilian fashion designer in the 70's, who searches for her son Stuart, a member of a leftist university group who suddenly disappears ... See full summary »
Director: Sergio Rezende | Stars: Patricia Pillar, Daniel de Oliveira, Leandra Leal, Alexandre Borges
Votes: 1,046
65. Quase Dois Irmãos (2004)
102 min | Drama
The strange friendship between two men of opposite social classes. Miguel is a senator. His childhood friend Jorge is a major drug-dealer. In the 1970s, they meet in prison: Miguel was ... See full summary »
Director: Lúcia Murat | Stars: Caco Ciocler, Flavio Bauraqui, Werner Schünemann, Antônio Pompêo
Votes: 651
66. Team America: World Police (2004)
R | 98 min | Action, Comedy
Popular Broadway actor Gary Johnston is recruited by the elite counter-terrorism organization Team America: World Police. As the world begins to crumble around him, he must battle with terrorists, celebrities and falling in love.
Director: Trey Parker | Stars: Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Elle Russ, Kristen Miller
Votes: 178,643 | Gross: $32.79M
The movie is nice because it criticizes American imperialist foreign politics, but it also does show North Korean dictatiorship.
67. Top Secret! (1984)
PG | 90 min | Comedy, Crime, Music
An American rock and roll singer is invited to a cultural festival in East Germany in order to distract from a plot to destroy NATO submarines, but he accidentally becomes involved in a resistance plot to rescue an imprisoned scientist.
Directors: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker | Stars: Val Kilmer, Omar Sharif, Jeremy Kemp, Warren Clarke
Votes: 73,104 | Gross: $20.50M
A caricature of East German. Hilarious spoof.
68. The Architecture of Doom (1989)
Not Rated | 119 min | Documentary, History
An absorbing and chilling documentary about the National Socialist aesthetic, and how attempts to create the Aryan Ideal caused the extermination of millions. Aspects covered include: ... See full summary »
Director: Peter Cohen | Stars: Rolf Arsenius, Bruno Ganz, Sam Gray, Martin Bormann
Votes: 1,137
69. The Boy in the Mirror (2014)
78 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The story of a boy who sees his mirror reflection come to life.
Director: Guilherme Fiúza Zenha | Stars: Lino Facioli, Regiane Alves, Ricardo Blat, Gisele Fróes
Votes: 260
The movie happens during the dictatorship lead by Getúlio Vargas. Though, it does not focuses authoritarian rule, but the ban on fascist Brazilian Integralist Action, also known as "green shirts", besides other issues.
70. Marighella (2012)
100 min | Documentary, Biography
A documentary about the member of the brazilian Communist Party, Congressman elected by vote, and later on enemy number one of the brazilian dictatorship of 1964, Carlos Marighella.
Director: Isa Grinspum Ferraz | Stars: Carlos Augusto Marighella, Lázaro Ramos, Miguel Arraes, Hennig Boilesen Jr.
Votes: 3,483
71. O Bom Burguês (1983)
99 min | Crime
True story of Brazilian bank clerk who supplied money for the guerilla fighting against the military dictatorship of the 70s. When he changes his disguise, he gets involved with high ... See full summary »
Director: Oswaldo Caldeira | Stars: José Wilker, Betty Faria, Jardel Filho, Christiane Torloni
Votes: 89
72. Reaching for the Moon (2013)
Not Rated | 118 min | Biography, Drama, History
A chronicle of the tragic love affair between American poet Elizabeth Bishop and Brazilian architect Lota de Macedo Soares.
Director: Bruno Barreto | Stars: Glória Pires, Miranda Otto, Tracy Middendorf, Marcello Airoldi
Votes: 3,570 | Gross: $0.04M
The 1964 military coup and the first three years of dictatorship take place during the story.
73. Max Schmeling (2010)
Not Rated | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Max Schmeling's fights against Joe Louis are listed in the best ten boxing matches of all time.
Director: Uwe Boll | Stars: Henry Maske, Heino Ferch, Susanne Wuest, Vladimir Weigl
Votes: 1,222
74. Goodbye, Children (1987)
PG | 104 min | Drama, War
A French boarding school run by priests seems to be a haven from World War II until a new student arrives. Occupying the next bed in the dormitory to the top student in his class, the two young boys begin to form a bond.
Director: Louis Malle | Stars: Gaspard Manesse, Raphael Fejtö, Francine Racette, Stanislas Carré de Malberg
Votes: 36,131 | Gross: $4.54M
75. Barbara (I) (2012)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama
A doctor working in 1980s East Germany finds herself banished to a small country hospital.
Director: Christian Petzold | Stars: Nina Hoss, Ronald Zehrfeld, Rainer Bock, Christina Hecke
Votes: 15,988
76. The Violin (2005)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama, Music
In an unnamed Latin American country that closely resembles Mexico, the government fights a rural insurgency with torture, assault, rape, and murder. Soldiers descend on a town, cutting off... See full summary »
Director: Francisco Vargas | Stars: Ángel Tavira, Gerardo Taracena, Dagoberto Gama, Mario Garibaldi
Votes: 2,597 | Gross: $0.07M
The "dirty war" in Mexico.
77. Quem é Primavera das Neves (2017)
75 min | Documentary
Primavera das Neves, full name Primavera Ácrata Saiz das Neves was a Portuguese translator, journalist and writer, who worked and lived a good part of her life in Brazil, having signed most of her works as Vera Neves Pedroso.
Directors: Ana Luiza Azevedo, Jorge Furtado | Stars: Jorge Furtado, Anna Bella Geiger, Eulalie Ligneul, Mariana Lima
Votes: 21
78. Timbuktu (2014)
PG-13 | 96 min | Drama, War
A cattle herder and his family who reside in the dunes of Timbuktu find their quiet lives -- which are typically free of the Jihadists determined to control their faith -- abruptly disturbed.
Director: Abderrahmane Sissako | Stars: Ibrahim Ahmed, Abel Jafri, Toulou Kiki, Layla Walet Mohamed
Votes: 18,288 | Gross: $1.08M
Daesh rule over village Timbuktu in Mauritania.
79. Memória Cubana (2010)
70 min | Documentary
Through the files of Cuban cinema news program Noticieros ICAIC Latinoamericanos, the documentary shows the most relevant events of the second half of the 20th century as seen by the ... See full summary »
Director: Alice de Andrade | Stars: Alfredo Guevara, Julia Yip, Santiago Álvarez
Votes: 7
Many dictatorships, undemocratic regimes and colonial rules are discussed.
80. Indochine (1992)
PG-13 | 160 min | Drama, Romance, War
Eliane adopts Camille, whose Vietnamese parents were friends. In 1930, a French navy officer is interested in Eliane (owns 60km2 plantation) and later in Camille. There's an uprising in Vietnam against French colonial power.
Director: Régis Wargnier | Stars: Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Perez, Linh-Dan Pham, Jean Yanne
Votes: 10,945 | Gross: $5.73M
Dire French colonization in Vietnam.
81. Hyojadong ibalsa (2004)
R | 116 min | Comedy, Drama
Follows a president's barber, his wife, and their only son through four decades of tumultuous Korean history.
Director: Chan-sang Lim | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Moon So-ri, Lee Jae-eung, Jo Yeong-jin
Votes: 1,036
The film starts with the repression and the fall of authoritarian First Republic of South Korea. Most of the movie happens during the electoral but not really democratic and very repressive Third Republic and the more explicit and dire Fourth Republic.
82. The Resistance Banker (2018)
TV-MA | 123 min | Biography, Drama, War
In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, banker brothers Walraven and Gijs van Hall face their greatest challenge yet when they decide to help fund the Dutch resistance.
Director: Joram Lürsen | Stars: Jacob Derwig, Barry Atsma, Fockeline Ouwerkerk, Pierre Bokma
Votes: 10,686
Nazi occupation in Netherlands during WWII.
83. Red Princesses (2013)
Not Rated | 102 min | Drama
Family is no longer a safe place to grow up.
Director: Laura Astorga | Stars: Valeria Conejo, Aura Dinarte, Carol Sanabria, Fernando Bolaños
Votes: 81
Somoza dictatorship in Nicaragua.
84. Papicha (2019)
R | 108 min | Drama
In 1997 Algiers, terrorists wanting an archaic Islamic state are everywhere. They oppress women, determined to control their bodies, clothing, and public space. Young student Nedjma is passionate about creating a fashion show.
Director: Mounia Meddour | Stars: Lyna Khoudri, Shirine Boutella, Hilda Amira Douaouda, Yasin Houicha
Votes: 3,643
85. Broken Promise (2009)
TV-14 | 129 min | Biography, Drama, Family
The true story of Jewish boy, and talented soccer player, Martin, who has to make risky lifetime decisions in order to survive in WWII when he sees his family is taken to Poland one by one.
Director: Jirí Chlumský | Stars: Samuel Spisák, Ondrej Vetchý, Vladimir Cerny, Lubomír Bukový
Votes: 466
86. The Next Victim (1983)
98 min | Crime, Thriller
TV reporter tries to find out who is killing prostitutes in a São Paulo neighborhood.
Director: João Batista de Andrade | Stars: Antônio Fagundes, Louise Cardoso, Mayara Magri, Othon Bastos
Votes: 117
Brazilian military dictatorship.
87. Tony Manero (2008)
TV-MA | 97 min | Drama, Music
A man is obsessed with John Travolta's disco dancing character from Saturday Night Fever (1977).
Director: Pablo Larraín | Stars: Alfredo Castro, Amparo Noguera, Héctor Morales, Paola Lattus
Votes: 4,560
88. Che: Part Two (2008)
Not Rated | 135 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1967, Ernesto 'Che' Guevara leads a small partisan army to fight an ill-fated revolutionary guerrilla war in Bolivia, South America.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Demián Bichir, Rodrigo Santoro, Benicio Del Toro, Catalina Sandino Moreno
Votes: 35,059
Che Guevara's guerrilha vs. Barrientos's US-supported military dictatorship in Bolivia.
89. Mapantsula (1988)
Not Rated | 100 min | Crime, Drama
Mapantsula tells the story of Panic, a petty gangster who inevitably becomes caught up in the growing anti-apartheid struggle and has to choose between individual gain and a united stand against the system.
Director: Oliver Schmitz | Stars: Thomas Mogotlane, Marcel van Heerden, Thembi Mtshali, Dolly Rathebe
Votes: 212
South African apartheid.
90. Istanbul United (2014)
Not Rated | 84 min | Documentary, History, Sport
The 'Ultra' fans of Istanbul's three biggest football clubs, known for their violent rivalries begin fighting side-by-side to protect civilians from police, as 'Istanbul United'.
Directors: Farid Eslam, Oliver Waldhauer | Stars: Can Atalay, Cahit Binici, Ayan Güner, Kerem Gürbüz
Votes: 152
Not a dictatorship, but a very violent regime.
91. Lili Marleen (1981)
R | 120 min | Drama, Music, Romance
In 1938, a German singer falls in love with a Jewish composer in Zurich, who helps Jews flee Nazi Germany. She wants to help but is forced back to Germany. Her song "Lili Marleen" becomes a hit with soldiers and the Nazi top brass.
Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder | Stars: Hanna Schygulla, Giancarlo Giannini, Mel Ferrer, Karl-Heinz von Hassel
Votes: 4,295
92. Desert Ambush (2011 TV Movie)
85 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
In northern Nigeria, two French scientists working for an environmental NGO disappear. Hugo Geoffroy, leader of a French police emergency unit, is sent to negotiate the freedom of the hostages.
Director: Frédéric Garson | Stars: Laurent Lucas, Natacha Régnier, Daniel Martin, Emile Abossolo M'bo
Votes: 81
93. Sambizanga (1972)
Not Rated | 97 min | Drama
A man is wrongfully arrested and tortured to death after he is suspected of being part of a revolutionary group.
Director: Sarah Maldoror | Stars: Elisa Andrade, Domingos de Oliveira, Jean M'Vondo, Dino Abelino
Votes: 774
94. Condor (2007)
103 min | Documentary
Operation Condor was a secret agreement between the military dictatorships of the Southern Cone in the 1970s, with the knowledge of the CIA. These governments to shared information and violently repressed suspected left-wing subversives.
Director: Roberto Mader
Votes: 35
95. Divine Divas (2016)
110 min | Documentary, Musical
The Divine Divas are the icons of the first generation of Brazilian transvestite artists in the 1960's. One of the first stages to host men dressed as women was the Rival Theatre, ran by ... See full summary »
Director: Leandra Leal | Stars: Rogéria, Jane di Castro, Divina Valéria, Camille K.
Votes: 395
96. Sarajevo (2014 TV Movie)
98 min | Drama, History, War
On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria is in Sarajevo with his wife, Sophie. While through the city by car, they are victims of an attack and die. This is the trigger of the First World War.
Directors: Andreas Prochaska, Kurt Mündl | Stars: Florian Teichtmeister, Heino Ferch, Melika Foroutan, Juergen Maurer
Votes: 2,937
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia under Austrian-Hungarian occupation.
97. The Quiet Woman (2008 TV Movie)
97 min | Drama
January 1943. Louise is 70 and in her bar, militiamen are customers like anyone else and no one complains that her meals depend on the black-market. Her serenity is disturbed by a cry for help from an English airman who falls from the sky.
Director: Thierry Binisti | Stars: Line Renaud, Pierre Mondy, Richard Sammel, Simon Boyle
Votes: 87
98. El Golpe (crónica de una conspiración) (2006)
96 min | Documentary
The return of the democracy in the Argentina in 1973 marks the beginning of the countdown towards the following "coup d'état". On March 24 1976 the worst dictatorship of the history of this... See full summary »
Director: Matías Gueilburt | Star: Gastón Pauls
Votes: 32
Not only military coup in 1976 and its dire consequences, but also harsh authoritarian path under only formally democratic government of Isabel Martinez de Perón and of López Rega.
99. To the Ends of the World (2018)
Not Rated | 103 min | Drama, War
Indochina War, 1945: French soldier Robert is the only survivor of a massacre in which his brother has died. Blinded by revenge, he rejoins the forces in search of the assassins. But meeting the young Indochinese Maï disrupts his mission.
Director: Guillaume Nicloux | Stars: Gaspard Ulliel, Guillaume Gouix, Lang Khê Tran, Gérard Depardieu
Votes: 1,227
Well done war film, but not very clear that the aggressors were the Frenchmen. It reminds Hollywood movies on Vietnam war.
100. Colonia (2015)
R | 110 min | Biography, Drama, History
A young woman's desperate search for her abducted boyfriend draws her into the infamous Colonia Dignidad, a sect nobody has ever escaped from.
Director: Florian Gallenberger | Stars: Emma Watson, Daniel Brühl, Michael Nyqvist, Richenda Carey
Votes: 57,198
Chilean coup and military dictatorship.
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