A historical epic inspired by true events that took place in The Kingdom of Dahomey, one of the most powerful states of Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries.

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An epic recounting of the defence of Siam against the invading Burmese by a group of village warriors in 1765. Bang-Rajan is a momentous recreation of courage in the face of a seemingly overwhelming adversary. Lots of action, fighting and heroism; long live the family, long live the peasants and long live Siam. Braveheart does Thailand. find out more...

Winner of four Oscars, this film is shot with the most beautifully scenic backgrounds and with great attention to costume detail. An Irish adventurer, Barry Lyndon, crosses Europe from woman to job, but in the end returns to Britain seeking a wealthy marriage. find out more...

Another striking DVD release from the BFI archives that gives a contemporary twist to a dramatic re-construction of the battle of Culloden in 1746; a conflict acknowledged by many for ending Clan unity within the Scottish Highlands. Filmed in black and white and made back in 1964 Culloden remains a striking depiction of a particularly brutal event in history. find out more...

Sofia Coppola brings to the screen an undeniably sympathetic addressing of the short life and times of France's last queen, creating a ravishing picture of Marie's life. This visual feast is an entertaining slice of historical re-jigging, telling the tale of a naive and opulent monarch in a time of revolution, one who breathed in full the last gasp of a dying age of decadence. But historical accuracy or analysis - forget it. find out more...

The first half of an exhaustive and lush dramatisation of Napoleon Bonaparte, from ambitious Corsican soldier at the end of the 18th Century, to his imprisonment on the Island of St Helena by the British, less than twenty years later. If anything "Napoleon" is almost overly dramatic, but it's still an enthralling look at the great man, both publicly and privately, his military achievements, and the turning of a divided France into the most powerful nation in the Western world. find out more...

The second half of an exhaustive and lush dramatisation of Napoleon Bonaparte, from ambitious Corsican soldier at the end of the 18th Century, to his imprisonment on the Island of St Helena by the British, less than twenty years later. If anything "Napoleon" is almost overly dramatic, but it's still an enthralling look at the great man, both publicly and privately, his military achievements, and the turning of a divided France into the most powerful nation in the Western world. find out more...

Benjamin Martin is a war hero who has renounced his past in favour of a quiet, productive life with his not inconsiderable brood, but then the American Revolution and those bloodthirsty British spoil everything. As a history lesson The Patriot is heading for a straight fail, but hey, you ain't watching it for that, so as an epic period romp, with some great action sequences, it does the business nicely. Three cheers for......God Save the Q.......nope, sorry, wrong patriot. find out more...

A Chinese epic based around the rise and fall of General Pang who, on behalf of the ruling Qing dynasty, retook the cities of Suzhou and Nanjing during the unsuccessful Taiping Rebellion during the 1860s. The film starts with a beaten Pang meeting and allying with two bandits, Er-Hu and Wu-Yang, and forming the Shan Army. As they slash their way to victory they become the victims of their own disputes and rivalries and, with victory achieved, no longer the masters, but the wretched pawns in a bi find out more...