European Renaissance (14th-17th century)
by indeetee | created - 19 May 2014 | updated - 06 Aug 2020 | PublicFilms & series set during the Age of Discovery and a time of "Rebirth" in Europe.
Ottoman Empire - transformed into a transcontinental empire after 1354 when the Ottomans crossed into Europe. The Ottomans ended the Byzantine Empire with the 1453 conquest of Constantinople (Istanbul) by Mehmed II, resulting in many scholars and artists fleeing to Italy. This helped to spark the European Renaissance.
Italy - Origin of the Renaissance period, in the late 14th century
England - The Elizabethan Period (1558-1603), which was part of the Tudor era (1485-1603) marked the height of the English Renaissance.
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1. The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
Two sisters contend for the affection of King Henry VIII.
Director: Justin Chadwick | Stars: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Jim Sturgess
Votes: 119,896 | Gross: $26.81M
2. The Tudors (2007–2010)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
A dramatic series about the reign and marriages of King Henry VIII.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy, James Frain
Votes: 81,100
Set in the Tudor Period Britain (1485-1603).
3. Elizabeth (1998)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama, History
The early years of the reign of Elizabeth I of England and her difficult task of learning what is necessary to be a monarch.
Director: Shekhar Kapur | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Liz Giles, Rod Culbertson, Paul Fox
Votes: 105,031 | Gross: $30.08M
Set in the Elizabethan Period Britain (1558-1603).
4. Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)
PG-13 | 100 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A young peasant maid working in the house of painter Johannes Vermeer becomes his talented assistant and the model for one of his most famous works.
Director: Peter Webber | Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Colin Firth, Tom Wilkinson, Judy Parfitt
Votes: 82,622 | Gross: $11.63M
Set in the Dutch Golden Age (1588-1702).
5. Nightwatching (2007)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
An extravagant, exotic and moving look at Rembrandt's romantic and professional life, and the controversy he created by the identification of a murderer in the painting 'The Night Watch'.
Director: Peter Greenaway | Stars: Martin Freeman, Emily Holmes, Eva Birthistle, Jodhi May
Votes: 3,446
Set in the Dutch Golden Age (1588-1702).
6. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
R | 123 min | Comedy, Drama, History
The world's greatest ever playwright, William Shakespeare, is young, out of ideas and short of cash, but meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays.
Director: John Madden | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson
Votes: 234,193 | Gross: $100.32M
Set in the Elizabethan Period Britain (1558-1603).
7. Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)
PG-13 | 114 min | Biography, Drama, History
A mature Queen Elizabeth endures multiple crises late in her reign including court intrigues, an assassination plot, the Spanish Armada, and romantic disappointments.
Director: Shekhar Kapur | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Clive Owen, Geoffrey Rush, Jordi Mollà
Votes: 75,012 | Gross: $16.29M
Set in the Elizabethan Period Britain (1558-1603).
8. Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998)
PG-13 | 121 min | Drama, Romance
The Brothers Grimm arrive at the home of a wealthy Grande Dame who speaks of the many legends surrounding the fable of the cinder girl before telling the "true" story of her ancestor.
Director: Andy Tennant | Stars: Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston, Dougray Scott, Patrick Godfrey
Votes: 81,645 | Gross: $65.71M
Set in the 16th century, France.
9. Queen Margot (1994)
R | 161 min | Biography, Drama, History
Young Queen Margot finds herself trapped in an arranged marriage amidst a religious war between Catholics and Protestants. She hopes to escape with a new lover, but finds herself imprisoned by her powerful and ruthless family.
Director: Patrice Chéreau | Stars: Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Vincent Perez
Votes: 18,976 | Gross: $2.02M
10. Restoration (1995)
R | 117 min | Biography, Drama, History
The exiled royal doctor to King Charles II devotes himself to helping Londoners suffering from the plague, and in the process falls in love with an equally poor woman.
Director: Michael Hoffman | Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Sam Neill, David Thewlis, Polly Walker
Votes: 9,915 | Gross: $4.10M
11. Much Ado About Nothing (1993)
PG-13 | 111 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Young lovers, and soon to wed, Hero and Claudio conspire to get verbal sparring partners and confirmed singles, Benedick and Beatrice, to wed as well.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Keanu Reeves, Kate Beckinsale
Votes: 51,932 | Gross: $22.55M
12. Romeo and Juliet (1968)
PG | 138 min | Drama, Romance
When two young members of feuding families meet, forbidden love ensues.
Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery, Milo O'Shea
Votes: 34,735 | Gross: $38.90M
13. A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)
PG-13 | 116 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
Lovers' lives are complicated by city law, feuding faerie royalty, and... love.
Director: Michael Hoffman | Stars: Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rupert Everett, Stanley Tucci
Votes: 26,942 | Gross: $16.07M
14. Hamlet (1996)
PG-13 | 242 min | Drama
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother remarrying the murderer, his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Julie Christie, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet
Votes: 40,025 | Gross: $4.41M
15. Dangerous Beauty (1998)
R | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A Venetian courtesan becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft.
Director: Marshall Herskovitz | Stars: Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell, Oliver Platt, Fred Ward
Votes: 19,615 | Gross: $4.53M
16. Luther (2003)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, History
During the early sixteenth century, idealistic German monk Martin Luther, disgusted by the materialism in the Catholic Church, begins the dialogue that will lead to the Protestant Reformation.
Director: Eric Till | Stars: Joseph Fiennes, Bruno Ganz, Peter Ustinov, Alfred Molina
Votes: 15,998 | Gross: $5.79M
17. Artemisia (1997)
R | 98 min | Biography, Drama, History
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) was one of the first well-known female painters. The movie tells the story of her youth, when she was guided and protected by her father, the painter ... See full summary »
Director: Agnès Merlet | Stars: Valentina Cervi, Michel Serrault, Predrag 'Miki' Manojlovic, Luca Zingaretti
Votes: 2,204 | Gross: $0.38M
18. The Headsman (2005)
R | 115 min | Drama
The story of time-tested loyalty of two friends during Europe's 16th-century Inquisition. Orphans Martin and Georg bond as children, but walk very different paths as adults. Georg follows ... See full summary »
Director: Simon Aeby | Stars: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Peter McDonald, Anastasia Griffith, Steven Berkoff
Votes: 1,079
19. The Princess of Montpensier (2010)
Not Rated | 139 min | Action, Drama, History
Based on the classic didactic novel, the action centers on the noble lady who soon becomes exposed to the sexual and political intrigues of the French court of the religious wars era.
Director: Bertrand Tavernier | Stars: Mélanie Thierry, Lambert Wilson, Gaspard Ulliel, Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet
Votes: 4,284 | Gross: $0.34M
20. The Countess (2009)
Not Rated | 98 min | Biography, Drama, History
A 17th century Hungarian countess embarks on a murderous undertaking, with the belief that bathing in the blood of virgins will preserve her beauty.
Director: Julie Delpy | Stars: Julie Delpy, Daniel Brühl, William Hurt, Anamaria Marinca
Votes: 8,652
21. Henri 4 (2010)
155 min | Biography, Drama, War
A wide-ranging, energetic period piece tracing the rise of the Protestant Henry of Navarre as he goes from battlefield warrior to France's beloved King Henri IV. Director Jo Baier's epic is... See full summary »
Director: Jo Baier | Stars: Julien Boisselier, Joachim Król, Andreas Schmidt, Roger Casamajor
Votes: 1,365
22. Bathory: Countess of Blood (2008)
R | 141 min | Biography, Drama, Fantasy
With an unquenchable thirst for blood, Countess Elizabeth Bathory was one of the most prolific serial killers in history.
Director: Juraj Jakubisko | Stars: Anna Friel, Karel Roden, Vincent Regan, Hans Matheson
Votes: 4,688
23. Anonymous (I) (2011)
PG-13 | 130 min | Drama, Thriller
The theory that it was in fact Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, who penned Shakespeare's plays. Set against the backdrop of the succession of Queen Elizabeth I and the Essex rebellion against her.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave, David Thewlis, Sebastian Armesto
Votes: 42,117 | Gross: $4.46M
24. The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965)
Approved | 138 min | Biography, Drama, History
The biographical story of Michelangelo's troubles while painting the Sistine Chapel at the urging of Pope Julius II.
Director: Carol Reed | Stars: Charlton Heston, Rex Harrison, Diane Cilento, Harry Andrews
Votes: 8,043
25. Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)
PG | 145 min | Biography, Drama, History
King Henry VIII of England discards one wife, Catharine of Aragon, who has failed to produce a male heir, in favor of the young and beautiful Anne Boleyn.
Director: Charles Jarrott | Stars: Richard Burton, Geneviève Bujold, Irene Papas, Anthony Quayle
Votes: 8,105 | Gross: $2.07M
26. As You Like It (2006)
PG | 127 min | Drama, Comedy, Romance
A daughter of the powerful Duke must show her courage and inventiveness to be with the man she loves.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Takuya Shimada, Brian Blessed, Richard Clifford, Bryce Dallas Howard
Votes: 3,725
27. 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)
PG-13 | 154 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
Christopher Columbus' discovery of the Americas and the effect this has on the indigenous people.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Gérard Depardieu, Armand Assante, Sigourney Weaver, Loren Dean
Votes: 32,779 | Gross: $7.19M
28. Christopher Columbus (1985)
360 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
After his proposal to sail west to the East Indies is rejected by Portugal, Columbus overcomes court intrigue in Spain to gain support for his expedition.
Stars: Gabriel Byrne, Rossano Brazzi, Virna Lisi, Oliver Reed
Votes: 709
29. Elizabeth I (2005)
TV-MA | 112 min | Biography, Drama, History
Mini-series about the the public and private lives of the later years of Queen Elizabeth I.
Stars: Helen Mirren, Toby Jones, Hugh Dancy, Patrick Malahide
Votes: 7,028
30. Elizabeth R (1971– )
520 min | Biography, Drama, History
When Elizabeth Tudor comes to the throne, her (male) advisers know she has to marry. Doesn't she? Thus starts a decades-long political/matrimonial game, during an age of high passions and high achievement.
Stars: Glenda Jackson, Ronald Hines, Robert Hardy, Stephen Murray
Votes: 1,933
31. The Virgin Queen (2005–2006)
237 min | Biography, Drama, History
From teenage princess to accomplished queen, torn between duty and personal longing, the reign of Elizabeth I is exposed in this lavish drama filmed against a backdrop of some of Great Britain's most beautiful houses and landscapes.
Stars: Anne-Marie Duff, Sienna Guillory, Ian Hart, Tom Hardy
Votes: 3,274
32. The Lady and the Highwayman (1988 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 90 min | Adventure, Drama, History
Swashbuckling tale of romance, betrayal, jealousy, banditry, murder, and court intrigue set in the 1660s, during the Restoration to the English throne of King Charles II.
Director: John Hough | Stars: Emma Samms, Oliver Reed, Claire Bloom, Christopher Cazenove
Votes: 1,224
33. A Little Chaos (2014)
R | 117 min | Drama, Romance
Two talented landscape artists become romantically entangled while building a garden in King Louis XIV's palace at Versailles.
Director: Alan Rickman | Stars: Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman, Stanley Tucci, Matthias Schoenaerts
Votes: 25,361 | Gross: $0.55M
34. Princes in the Tower (2005 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 120 min | Drama
Sixteen years after the presumed deaths of the two boy princes held captive in the Tower, Perkin Warbeck makes his claim to the throne as the rightful King Richard. Did the younger brother ... See full summary »
Director: Justin Hardy | Stars: Mark Umbers, John Castle, Roger Hammond, Sally Edwards
Votes: 139
35. The Last King (2003)
TV-14 | 188 min | Biography, Drama, History
The chronicle of Charles II's time on the throne, his ten-year exile from Oliver Cromwell's England, and his triumphant return.
Stars: Rufus Sewell, Rupert Graves, Charlie Creed-Miles, Christian Coulson
Votes: 1,811
36. Beloved Sisters (2014)
Not Rated | 138 min | Drama, History, Romance
The 18th century literary genius Friedrich Schiller falls in love with the sisters Charlotte and Caroline von Lengefeld. After a passionate summer together in a menage a trois, jealousy and rivalry endanger their union.
Director: Dominik Graf | Stars: Hannah Herzsprung, Florian Stetter, Henriette Confurius, Claudia Messner
Votes: 1,597 | Gross: $0.05M
37. Adventures of Don Juan (1948)
Passed | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Romance
The great lover Don Juan comes to the assistance of his queen.
Director: Vincent Sherman | Stars: Errol Flynn, Viveca Lindfors, Robert Douglas, Alan Hale
Votes: 3,532 | Gross: $4.72M
38. Captain Blood (1935)
Passed | 119 min | Action, Adventure, History
After treating a Monmouth rebel against King James II in 1680s England, a young Irish doctor is exiled as a slave to Jamaica where he captures a Spanish galleon and becomes the most feared pirate of the Caribbean.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Lionel Atwill, Basil Rathbone
Votes: 16,090 | Gross: $2.96M
39. Monarch (2000)
109 min | Biography, Drama, History
Shortly before his death in 1547, the injured King Henry VIII is forced to take refuge a manor house closed for the season. While there, he must confront both his mortality and the ghosts of his past.
Director: John Walsh | Stars: T.P. McKenna, Jean Marsh, James Coombes, Peter Sowerbutts
Votes: 164
40. The White Queen (2013)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
Three different, yet equally relentless women vie for the throne in 15th-century England.
Stars: Aneurin Barnard, Rebecca Ferguson, Amanda Hale, Faye Marsay
Votes: 31,342
41. Wolf Hall (2015)
TV-14 | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
After the downfall of Cardinal Wolsey, his secretary, Thomas Cromwell, finds himself amongst the treachery and intrigue of King Henry VIII's court and soon becomes a close advisor to the King, a role fraught with danger.
Stars: Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis, Claire Foy, Thomas Brodie-Sangster
Votes: 13,068
42. The Devil's Mistress (2008)
189 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
Drama charts the progress of the English Civil War through the story of a young woman, the fictional Angelica Fanshawe, and her three husbands.
Stars: Andrea Riseborough, Dominic West, Tom Goodman-Hill, John Simm
Votes: 2,728
43. Gunpowder, Treason & Plot (2004 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 205 min | Drama, History
Mini series depicting the turbulent and bloody reigns of Scottish monarchs Mary, Queen of Scots and her son King James VI of Scotland who became King James I of England and foiled the Gunpowder Plot.
Director: Gillies MacKinnon | Stars: Vulpe Adrian, Carmen Ungureanu, Clémence Poésy, Tadeusz Pasternak
Votes: 1,921
44. The Dog in the Manger (1996)
119 min | Comedy, Romance
Having taken a fancy to her secretary, Teodoro, spunky young beauty Countess Diana of Belflor is alarmed to learn of his engagement to one of her maids, Marcela. She intervenes to separate ... See full summary »
Director: Pilar Miró | Stars: Emma Suárez, Carmelo Gómez, Fernando Conde, Ana Duato
Votes: 1,055
45. Mad Love (2001)
R | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
The love story that transformed Juana, Queen of Spain, into Juana "the Mad". A story of passions, lies and jealousy with a political motive behind.
Director: Vicente Aranda | Stars: Pilar López de Ayala, Daniele Liotti, Rosana Pastor, Giuliano Gemma
Votes: 4,049 | Gross: $0.28M
46. Isabel (2011–2014)
3,038 min | Biography, History
The life of Isabella I of Castile, also known as Isabella the Catholic.
Stars: Michelle Jenner, Ramon Madaula, Rodolfo Sancho, Jordi Díaz
Votes: 2,517
47. The Broken Crown (2016)
113 min | Biography, Drama, History
In a Spain consumed by ambition and power, the future of an empire depends on one woman's state of mind.
Director: Jordi Frades | Stars: Rodolfo Sancho, Irene Escolar, Raúl Mérida, Eusebio Poncela
Votes: 858
48. Charles, Emperor King (2015–2016)
TV-MA | Biography, Drama, History
The Roman Catholic Church faces the new challenges of Protestanism in Northern Europe and Paganism in the Americas. Carlos V seeks to secure the power of the Church, in this continuation of Isabel (2011-2014) and La Corona Partida (2016).
Stars: Álvaro Cervantes, Alfonso Bassave, Marina Salas, Félix Gómez
Votes: 733
49. The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)
Approved | 106 min | Biography, Drama, History
A depiction of the love/hate relationship between Queen Elizabeth I and Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Donald Crisp
Votes: 6,160
50. Conquest 1453 (2012)
Not Rated | 162 min | Action, Drama, History
After the death of his father Murat II, Mehmet II ascends to the Ottoman throne. After braving internal and external enemies, he decides to complete what he was destined to do - conquer Constantinople.
Director: Faruk Aksoy | Stars: Devrim Evin, Ibrahim Celikkol, Dilek Serbest, Cengiz Coskun
Votes: 59,066 | Gross: $0.07M
51. Emperor (II)
Adventure, Thriller | Completed
XVI Century. Action epic about young Johanna "Of Ghent", who seeks revenge on the holy Roman Emperor Charles V for the death of her father. It happens in a world of wealth, debauchery, violent retaliations, sex, manipulation, and treason.
Director: Lee Tamahori | Stars: Adrien Brody, Sophie Cookson, Paz Vega, Thomas Kretschmann
52. Mary Queen of Scots (2018)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama, History
Mary Stuart's (Saoirse Ronan's) attempt to overthrow her cousin Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie), Queen of England, finds her condemned to years of imprisonment before facing execution.
Director: Josie Rourke | Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Jack Lowden, Joe Alwyn
Votes: 55,254 | Gross: $16.47M
53. The Miniaturist (2017)
60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
A young woman moves to 17th century Amsterdam and hires a mysterious local miniaturist to furnish the dollhouse she received from her merchant husband as a present, but the lifelike miniatures somehow start eerily foreshadowing her fate.
Stars: Anya Taylor-Joy, Romola Garai, Hayley Squires, Alex Hassell
Votes: 6,167
54. Age of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas (2013)
Unrated | 122 min | Drama, History
In the 16th century in the Cévennes, a horse dealer by the name of Michael Kohlhaas leads a happy family life. When a lord treats him unjustly, he raises an army and puts the country to fire and sword in order to have his rights restored.
Director: Arnaud des Pallières | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Mélusine Mayance, Delphine Chuillot, David Kross
Votes: 9,193
55. The Spanish Princess (2019–2020)
TV-MA | 55 min | Drama, History, Romance
Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon navigates the royal lineage of England with an eye on the throne.
Stars: Laura Carmichael, Aaron Cobham, Charlotte Hope, Stephanie Levi-John
Votes: 10,664
56. The White Princess (2017)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
Based on the Philippa Gregory book of the same name, the story of Elizabeth of York, the White Queen's daughter, and her marriage to the Lancaster victor, Henry VII.
Stars: Jodie Comer, Rebecca Benson, Jacob Collins-Levy, Richard Dillane
Votes: 15,538
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