Best/Worst 10 History Films of 2017 | Based on a True Story

[@CynicalHistorian]

1517 to Paris was actually a 2018 release. Yikes, that means there were not very many good Based on a True Stories in 2017. I'll clarify that in the review coming up.

[@MAOofDC]

Can I make a request for a movie for you to review, please sir. The Conspirator. I can even point out an inaccuracy that is glaring if you live in my hometown. The Surratt's House and Tavern you see in the film in NO WAY looks like the actual tavern (Still standing in Clinton, MD) and period photos show that build to be in the middle of a field not the woods depicted in the film.

[@jtilton5]

Just a heads up, I got two adds for HBO. One at the beginning, and one at about the 8:39 mark. Not sure if it is because Im not in the US (living in Thailand) or not. Are demonitzed vids still supposed to get adds?

[@MrNegativecreep07]

My only real criticism of Dunkirk was how empty it felt. I admire Nolan trying to avoid CGI, but you never really got that sense of scale. Other than that, I loved it.

[@el.campesino]

Stop quoting ‘History Buffs,’ it just makes you look like an idiot. No offense.

[@alittlebitofhistory]

I admire the no CGI part but other than that the film kinda fell flat, the Little boats and RAF parts were great but everything on the beach just had nothing to it after the stuka attack, I feel the film has been given a pass but a lot of people because Nolan directed it but that's more in concept than content. Now obviously I don't know the logistics of it but surely after visiting the place and knowing how many extras and wooden cut outs you had will look tiny, you'd try and contact historical societies and reenactors in UK and France to see how many you could get to come in their uniforms and just fill space up similar to making the film Gettysburg.

[@princelorian]

Dunkirk was trash

[@lesliesylvan]

ThatOneWith: You're either a troll or your hubris is showing. It looks like you almost got Johhny G to become self-censored, but he too saw through your charade. No offense, of course ;)

[@donpacificbobcat9er615]

I mean it probably wouldn't have been my first choice to settle down or even just visit when the Nazies invades, but come on that was what, over 7 decades ago. Oh sorry were you talking about the movie? Oh, my bad.

[@royblekman8186]

My favorite historical movie of the year was The Death of Stalin. While the movie had a few problems it was still a great movie in my opinion. It showed me a point of Russian history that i had never seen before.

[@blurp1235]

Roy Blekman Well it wasn’t trying to be very accurate, it’s trying to be funny and entertaining, and it does that well.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

It's one of your favorite movies of the year, then - I think we should talk about the difference between an "historical movie" and a "movie that uses history as a setting" because I think this is where a lot of the disagreement with Cipher's video on the movie stems from.

[@eoinkane3675]

I feel its sorta unfair to class death of Stalin as a based on history film considering the movie is adapting the graphic novel of the same name which to my knowledge said it was inspired by history giving it wiggle room when it comes to historical accuracy

[@mankytoes]

You don't think it was presented as fiction? You think people will walk out saying "I had no idea Stalin had a cockney accent"? It was accurate in tone, in portraying the terror of living in Soviet Russia, and the brutal backstabbing involved in the leadership. That's the point of the film. As I'm known as a bit of a history nerd, I've had a couple of people ask me how accurate it was. I haven't heard anyone, anywhere, who took it completely at face value. Getting into fascism v communism... those are just labels. Would you really say Franco was significantly worse than Stalin? I don't know where you're from, but it is a very English film, I think some Americans don't quite get the humour and tone. There was outrage at the time- how can purges be funny? It's a black comedy. The whole point is that purges aren't funny.

[@Lebdjev]

Nice relativism bro. =o

[@TheDwarfInator]

I saw 15:17 to Paris and man, it was horrendous. It may be historically accurate, but nearly the entire movie was dull. Yeah, it's cool they used the actual people...until you see their acting capabilities lol. I thought there was little to no substance in the movie and a waste of a time.

[@well_i_liked_it]

I lasted 30 minutes then had to turn it off. It would have been less painful to be on the Train.

[@troodon1096]

The actual events of interest were good, but it was ridiculously padded, even going so far as to show the main participants in childhood. Some background is OK, but I didn't need to see their entire life stories. This smacks of a story that is indeed very interesting... but not long enough to sustain a feature length movie. If that sounds like damning with faint praise, yeah it pretty much is, the way I would say that the 2014 Godzilla movie is great whenever Godzilla was on screen... for all of 8 minutes. About 15 minutes of this movie are excellent. The rest, not so much.

[@GodOfWar221]

Hey, based on your recommendation. I recently picked up "Into The Fire" written by Dakota Meyer. By far, one of the finest stories I have ever read. It really opened my eyes, to the struggle our servicemen in Afghanistan faced. Thank you very much for your service. And thanks again for the recommendation.

[@orangekayak78]

But ... but... Tom Cruise is saving us form the Thatuns or something

[@gumgumdookuin7963]

Funny enough, that was the only thing I knew of the movie: it had Cruise as lead.

[@elros93]

15:17 as one of the worst movies I've ever seen. I don't know how you ranked it so high.Historical accuracy is one thing but that movie as just plain bad.

[@nationalist818]

The video is only 14:48 long did he edit it or , was that a typo?

[@Alex-fv2qs]

@@nationalist818 There's a movie called "15:17 to Paris"

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

You realize he's ranking the movie specifically ON ITS HISTORICITY, right? Not its general quality? Though I think he uses general quality more when discussing movies he dislikes than ones he likes - maybe that's a bit of inconsistency on his part.

[@elros93]

@@fuzzydunlop7928 but then mudblood is not historic.it is a historic fiction.as history buff says authenticity is nothing if the actual movie is bad.we are there to see a movie first

[@TensileStrength]

I don't know anything about the Tonya Harding besides reading her Wikipedia article. My general impression about I, Tonya is that they at least tried to be accurate and didn't piss all over history. It also didn't make her out to be a misunderstood ruffian with a heart of gold, or the devil incarnate. I came out of it despising her, but at the same time empathizing her as a human being who was the ways she was because she was dealt a raw hand in life. If you like ambiguity you would probably I, Tonya. I would definitely enjoy an analysis of its accuracy.

[@CHEESYHEAD684]

I love history so much, I really don't see the need to add fictional love stories or over-the-top unrealistic action to "make it more interesting". If you don't think history is awesome and interesting enough to portray on it's own as it is then please just why even use history? Make up a fictional story to go with your fictional additions.

[@Nani58970]

Hey Cypher! Love your content! I don't know if you're currently accepting requests for based on a true story videos, but do you think you could do one on Blood Diamond? I'd really like to see what are your thoughts on the movie and how it portrays the Sierra Leonean civil war. Greetings from Argentina!

[@Zeus57234]

Wow you're literally the only person I've heard say anything good about 15:17 to Paris, critics and audiences alike weren't to pleased by it. Can't wait to see your full review on it.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

Vatican II: Electric Boogaloo?

[@yrobtsvt]

dude you put way too much effort into this awesome video for it to get only 5,000 views

[@lorenzodocx4021]

god i'm early better make joke president wilson is the best president

[@bobmiller3627]

If Wilson were running against Trump in 2020...I'd vote for him :/ But that ain't saying much though is it?

[@lorenzodocx4021]

agree

[@philswift1252]

Bob Miller it’s a good thing retarded folks can’t vote.

[@Nani58970]

Bob Miller You do realize Wilson was the reason why the KKK was revived right? I don't like Trump, but he just doesn't compare.

[@fenixdown22]

Thanks! Looks like a have a few to add to my list :)

[@DuelJ007]

is there any place where I can watch your videos other than youtube?

[@natureman494]

I thought lost city of Z was completely fictitious which is why I didn’t watch it.

[@kzonedd7718]

Nuns got scre... nope, nuns got the sha... nope... nuns ... look, can we maybe do this line without the nuns? :-P :-P

[@veeltephil]

Hey Cypher, you might want to check out this one: Der Hauptmann / The Captain: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Captain_(2017_film)?wprov=sfti1

[@kasinokaiser1319]

Can you make these for other years? I need good watch suggestions

[@CynicalHistorian]

Did for 2016, and i will for 2018 eventually

[@kasinokaiser1319]

The Cynical Historian Thanks :)

[@901Cardinal]

How the hell do you only have 70k subs? This will go down as the greatest tragedy in KZbin history.

[@JJ44595]

Are you thinking of doing a based on true story for operation finale?

[@CynicalHistorian]

depends if there is anything worth saying about it

[@TheySt0leMyUserName]

So..... You gonna review To Hell and Back or what?

[@TheySt0leMyUserName]

PS love this channel

[@CynicalHistorian]

probably not. I haven't seen it, but I'm guessing there isn't much to say about it

[@AncientAccounts]

Are you gonna do a video on allied?

[@CynicalHistorian]

not much to say, and it was fairly boring. I stopped taking notes 30 minutes in

[@AncientAccounts]

The Cynical Historian kk thanks for the quick response , love your vids btw

[@CynicalHistorian]

Hooah. Truthfully, I'm procrastinating from grading right now. Ugh

[@AncientAccounts]

The Cynical Historian you a teacher ? I didn't know that

[@CynicalHistorian]

@@AncientAccounts Teaching Assistant

[@mollkatless]

tom cruise was in a self-serving "star vehicle" of a laughably bad movie? no way!

[@christianweibrecht6555]

Cypher, can you make a video by the history of a Halloween related topic? Also who is your favorite overwatch character?

[@gumgumdookuin7963]

I think he made one called Witch.

[@manofwar1123]

On the topic of conspiracies, could you please do Tinker,Taylor,soldier,spy the 2011 version, would be interesting to see the British side of spy craft.

[@drenek1]

Hi I've got a movie suggestion for you: Bat 21 movie vs reality. It seems you did not cover this 1988 movie yet. Thanks for all your videos, very useful.

[@gumgumdookuin7963]

Top ten list from Cynical? Lol. Nevermore's gonna love this. :)

[@alshnevermore3741]

*Pops head up* Hey! How's it going?

[@alaninsoflo]

You are completely wrong about The Death of Stalin, American Made and 15:17 To Paris.

[@williamsledge3151]

Me and my dad recently watched The Founder and it was a really awesome movie.

[@snookums01]

I tried to watch the Lost City of Z but just couldn't stand it. The only reason I didn't walk out was because I was watching on an airplane.

[@adamforrester7175]

My dad and I were watching this film called hatred also known as volhynia I was wondering if can do a video on it

[@jimlegansjr9986]

"Nun's took it the hardest" ROFLSOMSFOAIDMT!

[@maddermax3162]

Just in time for........ The end of 2018

[@CynicalHistorian]

just in time for.... a historian?

[@MrAspiringactor]

Technically wouldn't The Greatest Showman count as "fiction=bad"? Sure it uses real people but the story has little to nothing to do with Barnum's real story other than guy starts a circus and then manages an opera singer.

[@notfunny6369]

Again the movie death of Stalin is based on a comic

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

That makes them both bad in terms of the history, then. That doesn't change the fact that they're based on historical figures. 300 was a good movie - but it was still a bad historical movie regardless of the ip's origins.

[@notfunny6369]

@@fuzzydunlop7928 what I'm saying is you can't apply historical accuracy to a movie about a comic book. If the movie claimed to be telling the true story of what happened, then bash on the falsehoods please.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

If the source material is about an historical event or figure, then of course you can apply historical accuracy to it - if the movie is a faithful adaptation of the comic book, then the criticism just becomes applicable to both the movie and the comic. If the comic book clearly asserts that it's a work of fiction, then the movie has to reflect that and if it doesn't then it's instantly regarded in terms of historical accuracy. Cipher even applies this to movie about the coke smuggler - if they were up front then it would make a world of difference. Don't stick your toes into history if you don't want it to be bitten off by the perturbed alligators.

[@haraldf5793]

Would you make a review about the movie the kings choice

[@cromcruach5035]

By rating the Death of Stalin, the Lost City of Z and American Made as bad but 15:17 to Paris as good, it just goes to show accuracy doesn't necessarily equal good cinema.

[@jaybone23]

I'm a fan of Armando Iannucci's work, but I was disappointed by "The Death of Stalin", and for reasons that have nothing to do with the absence of historical accuracy. And while we're on the subject, my all-time least favorite "based on a true story" film has got to be "A Beautiful Mind". The only thing good about that film was Jennifer Connelly being in it.

[@kellyalves756]

I’ve watched Novitiate three times. I’m probably going to go off and watch it right now since you mentioned it.

[@kellyalves756]

And Dunkirk was amazing. You’re right about the war as a character.

[@samueljones1146]

Boi I loved the darkest hour

[@mikesands4681]

Thank you for this list

[@lesliesylvan]

Just finished watching Legend of Hall. It was good, but I'd rank it a solid 3 star movie. Nothing more, 'fraid to say.

[@philingrouille7198]

I still really enjoyed Marshall, it's a compelling movie. At least now though I know the humbuggery that are the inaccuracies.

[@WolfGeek64]

The Greatest Showman could've been a fine enough movie had they just not based it on PT Barnum. They could've made it about a fictional person wanting to start a circus, but no it had to be based on a greedy animal abuser.

[@CynicalHistorian]

I've actually already recorded the video for that review. Gotta say though, "animal abuser" is not an apt phrase to use when describing his life. Though he was greedy beyond the shadow of a doubt, and he happily proclaimed that himself. He very much akin to Ben Franklin if you read their autobiographies. My qualms with the movie are very different

[@ingwerschwensen8115]

"And just think, two people died during filming. So, the film has blood on its hands in order to construct a conspiracy theory." (13:27, Cypher about "American made" with Tom Cruise). Now, it should be clear, that the quality of the movie, and the tragedy of the deadly plane accident during its production, are actually two separate things. Or do you think, if these two people had died for a great movie, it would make their deaths less devastating? Vigorously pursuing historical inaccuracies in movies "based on a true story", maybe even condemning a movie for one false line of text, is imo doing a kind of public service. But in this case your overzealous undertones got the better of you.

[@Starwarsgeek-98]

I actually loved Marshal I agree with you on the rest

[@angusyang5917]

90% of comments: Death of Stalin and the 15:17 to Paris should have switched roles

[@troodon1096]

Those people are making such comments not based on the historical accuracy of the films, but on how entertaining they were according to their personal tastes. They seem to forget this is primarily a HISTORY channel.

[@jonathanramos902]

You should tackle more historical films set in Latin America. Like Frida for example. It's about the famous Mexican painter from the 20th century.

[@derekhenschel3191]

You should do a video on fly boys from..... 2003 I believe I have to look into that. Edit: 2006

[@derekhenschel3191]

Nope I'm 3 years off. It's 2006

[@rayceeya8659]

They should have called "American Made", "JFK 2"

[@johngoin707]

Ever thought of making a video on All Eyez On Me, the biopic about Tupac Shakur? It came out in 2017.

[@herkles1]

I am curious of your opinions on the Young Karl Marx. :)

[@andrebattiste3305]

Detroit was full a crap and that the film was totally inaccurate. I like Marshall despite some inaccurate scenes but still love the film.

[@ogresoungs]

Hey man love you’re videos been watching since 3k subs if you’re ever in New York let me buy you a beer

[@CynicalHistorian]

hooah!

[@USSAnimeNCC-]

14:15 I'm think I'm going to a website lol

[@samculp9468]

Do pirates of Somalia. I thought it was decent.

[@laurajoy1180]

Is that Chadwick? :'(

[@isaacmartinez6904]

With all due respect to The Cynical Historian, 15:17 To Paris sucks, but The Death Of Stalin was awesome.

[@estebancastellino3284]

it's not an american movie but if you have some spare time, I'd suggest you watch "Contergan". I'd love to see you make a review of that movie. Thanks for the great videos.

[@alshnevermore3741]

Conspiracy Theorist: Well of course Cyber would defend the G-man before the american people. He put a circle and line in between the fire. He's very much involved with Liberty sixty-six. The US knew something was going bad between Russia Afghanistan before the Olympics. Don't tell me 'the facts'. #NotMyHistory

[@Tosei0816]

I, Tonya was worth watching.

[@scrambled5948]

In my opinion, just because a historical movie is historically inaccurate, doesn't mean it's bad. For instance, I like 1941 even though I well know it's incredibly inaccurate but I don't care.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

This is a channel devoted to history - therefore you need to take into account he's judging movies specifically on their historicity in most instances. Other concerns are primary. A historical movie can be a good movie while STILL being a bad historical movie.

[@DuelJ007]

that makes it a good movie, not a good history movie.

[@Mahbu]

Is. . Potential and Cynical the same person? Or am I going crazy.

[@CynicalHistorian]

We're just one person moving so quickly that we look like two, mwahaha. catch us if you can

[@Mahbu]

That's. . what kind of answer is that!

[@BrendanGeormer]

"this year"

[@jacksonreesman3838]

Better late than never

[@annoythedonkey]

I thought 6 days was decent.

[@compassionatetraveler8625]

The Death Of Stalin was a British film and there humor is very dark and to a lot of Americans it can be unfunny, I didn't find it funny you didn't find it funny but I can understand the actions of the filmmakers to please there audience

[@soakedmovie9231]

How you doing?

[@nicksiegfried4906]

TALK ABOUT RED TAILS!!

[@nqk_0662]

World war z is the best history movie

[@wesstover3135]

1. 15:17 was a 2018 release 2. It was atrociously acted.

[@CynicalHistorian]

1) thanks for pointing that out. you're right 2) that wasn't really acting, which is why I enjoyed it, but I get why you didn't

[@gumgumdookuin7963]

CIA: Just ask yourselves, people of the comment section: would I lie?

[@offsetbyte3667]

"the film had blood on its hands" okay, stop.

[@williamsledge3151]

Top movies of 2018?

[@command_unit7792]

Do the movie "Salyut 7" one of the best Russian movies ever! While its based on history to make it an amazing movie they had to blow stuff up and it was great watched it 5 times already cried every time! kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4PLmoudqcifo6M

[@louisbarrass611]

I loved the death of stalin it was funny and historical comedy is always iffy as its difficult.It did make stuff up be should not be thaf far down. Its deffinatly better than marshall

[@miklorr]

Just watched The assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. It has ambiguity and nuance out the ass but it is lonnng. great Western

[@rerooar]

Dunkirk was utter and complete shit.

[@princelorian]

*cypher please do Wardogs. Ill give you 0.3 bitcoins or $50 paypal*