Best tv shows like World War II: When Lions Roared
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Based upon the actual cables between Washington, London and Moscow during the Second World War, this TV-movie examines the relationship between the leaders of these countries throughout the conflict. Franklin D. Roosevelt (John Lithgow), Winston Churchill (Bob Hoskins) and Joseph Stalin (Michael Caine), spring to life as real but imperfect people who nevertheless are great leaders fighting a great war.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 622
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 194 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, clever, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing, contemplative, talky
Best tv shows and movies like World War II: When Lions Roared (1994):
Similar in 78%
Fortunes of War (1987)
Plot Summary:
Fortunes of War is a 1987 BBC television adaptation of Olivia Manning's cycle of novels Fortunes of War. It stars Kenneth Branagh as Guy Pringle, lecturer in English Literature in Bucharest during the early part of the Second World War, and Emma Thompson as his wife Harriet. Other cast members included Ronald Pickup, Robert Stephens, Alan Bennett, Philip Madoc and Rupert Graves. The series stays relatively faithful to the original novels, with no notable departures from their plot.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 863
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK
Duration: 407 min
Plot tags: tense, clever, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, contemplative, gloomy, period drama
Similar in 79%
The World Wars (2014)
Plot Summary:
The World Wars tells the story of three decades of war told through the eyes of various men who were its key players: Roosevelt, Hitler, Patton, Mussolini, Churchill, Tojo, DeGaulle and MacArthur. The documentary examines the two wars as one contiguous timeline starting in 1914 and concluding in 1945 with these unique individuals coming of age in World War I before ultimately calling the shots in World War II.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Documentary, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 270 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 90%
Nuremberg (2000)
Plot Summary:
Justice Robert H. Jackson leads Allied prosecutors in trying 21 Germans for Nazi war crimes after World War II.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 180 min
Plot tags: captivating, disturbing, sincere, serious, political, detective, bleak, realistic, mad
Similar in 81%
Speer & Hitler: The Devil's Architect (2005)
Plot Summary:
A reassessment of the role Albert Speer played in the Third Reich. Speer, who was ultimately convicted at the Nuremburg trials and served a 20-year prison sentence, was known for designing many of the Third Reich's buildings and for being Hitler's minister for war production.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 789
Genere: Biography, Drama, War
Country: Germany
Duration: 270 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, contemplative, thought provoking, captivating, realistic, historical drama, intellectual
Similar in 84%
The Empty Mirror (1996)
Plot Summary:
Adolf Hitler faces himself and must come to terms with his infamous career in an imaginary post-war subterranean bunker where he reviews historical films, dictates his memoirs and encounters Eva Braun, Josef Goebbels, Hermann Göring and Sigmund Freud.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 351
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, sincere, thought provoking, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, surreal, contemplative
Similar in 86%
The Only Way (1970)
Plot Summary:
In April 1940, the armies of Nazi Germany invaded Denmark. The Danish government promised peaceful cooperation on the condition that Denmark s Jews remain free. The Nazi s agreed. In October, 1943, the agreement was broken...This is the true and magnificent saga of Denmark s valorous actions to save Danish Jews from Nazi extermination at peril of death!.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 306
Genere: Drama, War
Country: USA, Denmark, Panama, UK
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: uplifting, thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 75%
Tokyo Trial (2016)
Plot Summary:
In the wake of World War II, 11 Allied judges are tasked with weighing the fates of Japanese war criminals in a tense international trial.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: Canada, Japan, Netherlands
Duration: 200 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, tense, captivating, disturbing, political, historical drama
Similar in 90%
Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)
Plot Summary:
Hitler: The Last Ten Days takes us into the depths of der Furher’s Berlin bunker during his final days. Based on the book by Gerhard Boldt, it provides a bleak look at the goings-on within, and without.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK, Italy
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: independent film, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing, contemplative
Similar in 78%
The Last Lieutenant (1993)
Plot Summary:
Norwegian war drama. The old sea-captain retires, but the next day German WWII occupation of Norway begins. He then kisses his wife good-bye and is off to Army HQ. There he finds a lack of leadership and morale that offends him. They even laugh at him and his out-dated uniform and officer-rank. Secondloitnanten then finds and leads his private troop of volunteers against the German attack. The movie tells the story of a man that refuses to give up, even when everybody else leaves. He will fight for the country he loves and do his duty.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 365
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Norway
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 89%
War and Remembrance (1988)
Plot Summary:
War and Remembrance is an American miniseries based on the novel of the same name by Herman Wouk. It is the sequel to highly successful The Winds of War.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: USA
Duration: 1620 min
Plot tags: historical drama, exciting, serious, captivating, realistic, saga, epic, vintage
Similar in 85%
Ike: Countdown to D-Day (2004)
Plot Summary:
This is the story of the senior-level preparations for the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944 from the time of Dwight D. Eisenhower's appointment as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, to the establishment of the beachhead in Normandy. The film recounts many of the trials and tribulation Ike had to face, not the least of which were the many prima donnas surrounding him (Patton, Montgomery and especially de Gaulle) and the need for tact and diplomacy to bring all sides together for what would be the largest amphibious assault ever attempted.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: tense, rough, serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, political
Similar in 76%
Sons of Liberty (2015)
Plot Summary:
The story of a group of very different men fighting in the American Colonies for freedom, and how they will shape the future for the United States of America.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 270 min
Plot tags: captivating, historical drama, exciting, serious, realistic, tense, suspenseful, political, period drama
Similar in 87%
MacArthur (1977)
Plot Summary:
The film portrays MacArthur's (Gregory Peck) life from 1942, before the Battle of Bataan, to 1952, the time after he had been removed from his Korean War command by President Truman (Ed Flanders) for insubordination, and is recounted in flashback as he visits West Point.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 130 min
Plot tags: melancholic, epic, intense, realistic, serious, political, exciting, tense, sincere, rough
Similar in 83%
Lincoln (1988)
Plot Summary:
After arriving in Washington in 1861 after his election, Abraham Lincoln struggles with personal and political problems during his Presidency. Originally titled "Lincoln", the name of this miniseries was changed to "Gore Vidal's Lincoln" when it was released for home entertainment.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 444
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 188 min
Plot tags: historical drama, clever, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, talky
Similar in 89%
Beyond the Front Line (2004)
Plot Summary:
A movie based on real wartime diaries tells the story of the Swedish speaking Finns' infantry regiment 61. The story follows the regiment during the Continuation War from 1942 to 1944 and from Syväri to the Karelian Isthmus where they faced some of the most grueling battles against the Soviet Union.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Finland
Duration: 127 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, tense
Similar in 82%
Mussolini and I (1985)
Plot Summary:
A compelling drama/documentary chronicling the life and death of Il Duce himself, from his days as a terrorist to his alliance with Hitler to the betrayal of his son-in-law and untimely demise.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 442
Genere: Biography, Drama, War
Country: Italy, France, West Germany, Switzerland, USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, bleak, serious, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 79%
Texas '46 (2002)
Plot Summary:
Based on a true story its the untold story of Italian World War II POW"S in Jan 1946. Luca Zingaretti stars as one of over 50,000 Italian Prisoners of War detained at POW camps in the U.S. Roy Schneider stars as Colonel Gartner, the Commander of the camp. Things take a turn for the worse when Manin is brought back from his most recent escape by a patrol force, only to realize that the camp has been evacuated while he was gone. Gartner is forced to keep Manin at the camp until another patrol force can come pick him up. However, no one ever comes. The phone lines get cut, and the two men realize they are completely isolated from the outside world. It is up to each man now to escape the camp.An untold and rarely known fact of US held Italian POW"S.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 235
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA, Italy
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: rough, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing, exciting, bleak, serious, captivating
Similar in 81%
The Diary of Anne Frank (2009)
Plot Summary:
Called the most accurate adaptation of Anne Frank’s moving diary, the film chronicles the Frank family as they flee from the Nazis in Amsterdam. Hiding behind a bookcase in a secret annex with random bombs exploding, Anne faces friction with her family, a desire for independence and the first stirrings of young love. It’s a remarkable record of a young woman’s first-hand observations of the Holocaust.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK
Duration: 150 min
Plot tags: touching, sincere, serious, realistic, historical drama, bleak, captivating, period drama
Similar in 79%
Ike: The War Years (1979)
Plot Summary:
Ike is a 1979 television miniseries about the life of Dwight D. Eisenhower. The screenplay by Melville Shavelson was based on Kay Summersby's 1948 memoir Eisenhower Was My Boss and her 1975 autobiography, Past Forgetting: My Love Affair. Directed by Boris Sagal and Melville Shavelson, the production starred Robert Duvall as Eisenhower and Lee Remick as Kay Summersby. Film editors John Woodcock and Bill Lenny won an Eddie Award for their work and the series garnered five Emmy Award nominations.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 456
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 291 min
Plot tags: exciting, sincere, serious, realistic, saga
Similar in 89%
The Saboteurs (2015)
Plot Summary:
The story about the heavy water war unfolds during the prolouge, eruption and the end of the second world war. We follow the story of the the key personnel in the race of who develops the atomic bomb first.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Norway, Denmark, UK, Czech Republic, Sweden
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, tense, period piece
Similar in 90%
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb (1980)
Plot Summary:
Well-intentioned history lesson; the decision to drop the atom bomb, the secrecy surrounding the mission, and the men who flew it.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 317
Genere: Adventure, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 156 min
Plot tags: rough, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 82%
The Color of War (2001)
Plot Summary:
A series featuring actual color footage of World War II.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 156
Genere: History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 780 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, disturbing, realistic, bleak, contemplative
Similar in 89%
The Attic: The Hiding of Anne Frank (1988)
Plot Summary:
During the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam, Otto Frank decides to hide his family, who are Jewish, after his daughter Margot is called to appear for transport to a Nazi labour camp. Miep Gies, Otto Frank's office assistant hides them in the attic above the office. The film tells the true story of Gies' struggle to keep the family hidden and safe, as the Nazis turn Amsterdam upside-down. Based upon Gies' memoirs and Anne Frank's famous diary.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 483
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, bleak, serious, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 80%
Hitler: The Rise of Evil (2003)
Plot Summary:
A unique slant, profiling the life of Adolf Hitler as a child and his rise through the ranks of the National German Workers' Party prior to World War II.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 186 min
Plot tags: serious, bleak, captivating, realistic, disturbing, political, factual, suspense, rough, suspenseful
Similar in 82%
Manhattan (2014)
Plot Summary:
Set against the backdrop of the greatest clandestine race against time in the history of science with the mission to build the world's first atomic bomb in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Flawed scientists and their families attempt to co-exist in a world where secrets and lies infiltrate every aspect of their lives.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: clever, serious, captivating, realistic, melancholic, historical drama, independent film, period drama
Similar in 88%
Into the Storm (2009)
Plot Summary:
This powerful follow-up to “The Gathering Storm” follows Churchill from 1940 to 1945 as he guided his beleaguered nation through the crucible of the war years--even as his marriage was encountering its own struggles.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, sincere, political, historical drama, historically accurate, gloomy, period drama, political drama
Similar in 87%
Copenhagen (2002)
Plot Summary:
No one knows for sure what transpired when German physicist Werner Heisenberg met with his Jewish Danish counterpart, Niels Bohr, in Copenhagen -- the event became the stuff of modern scientific mythology. Director Howard Davies puts his spin on the momentous meeting that occurred one night in September 1941, during which the longtime friends entered into a dangerous discussion about physics and politics.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: UK
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: captivating, thought provoking, serious, disturbing, realistic, contemplative, talky
Similar in 75%
The Gathering Storm (2002)
Plot Summary:
A love story offering an intimate look inside the marriage of Winston and Clementine Churchill during a particularly troubled, though little-known, moment in their lives.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, realistic, talky, political, historical drama, historically accurate, contemplative, gloomy, pre war
Similar in 81%
Day One (1989)
Plot Summary:
Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard leaves Europe, eventually arriving in the United States. With the help of Einstein, he persuades the government to build an atomic bomb. The project is given to no-nonsense Gen. Leslie Groves who selects physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer to head the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico, where the bomb is built. As World War II draws to a close, Szilard has second thoughts about atomic weapons, and policy makers debate how and when to use the bomb.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 494
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 141 min
Plot tags: tense, thought provoking, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 81%
Oppenheimer (1980)
Plot Summary:
Biography of the American physicist who led the U.S. effort to develop the atomic bomb during World War II, only to find himself suspected as a security risk in the 1950s because of his increasing ambivalence about the effect of his life's work.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 653
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 420 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing