< Back to Genre List
Banner: the 59th Chicago International Film Festival

Genre: Historical


In-Person
The black and white image of a woman leaning against a wall, the city street with a vintage car can be seen beyond.

The Battle (A Batalha da Rua Maria Antônia)

Vera Egito  |   Brazil
Portuguese  
Drama, Historical, LGBTQ, Political

On a pivotal night during Brazil’s dictatorship, a leftist student movement braces for violent conflict in this moody, stylized nod to history.

In-Person
A black and white image of a man riding a motorcycle over a bridge. He looks at something behind him.

The Bikeriders

Jeff Nichols  |   United States
English  
Crime, Drama, Historical

From writer-director Jeff Nichols comes a furious drama following the rise of a fictional 1960s Midwestern motorcycle club through the lives of its members.

In-Person
A clergyman sits on a golden throne, holding an alterboy in his lap. They are surrounded by more members of the clergy.

Kidnapped: The Abduction of Edgardo Mortara (Rapito)

Marco Bellocchio  |   Italy, France, Germany
Hebrew, Italian  
Drama, Historical, Religion

The true story of a six-year-old boy who was stolen from his Jewish parents and raised by the Catholic Church, told in shocking, stately style.

In-Person
A young boy, wearing smeared red lipstick, lays back in bed holding back tears. A older woman lay next to him, comforting.

Lost Country

Vladimir Perišić  |   Serbia, France, Luxemburg, Croatia
Serbian  
Coming of Age, Drama, Historical, Political

Serbia, 1996. When an election is stolen, 15-year-old Stefan is forced to confront his mother, a television spokesperson for the corrupt Milosevic regime.

In-Person
A person with a mustache, wearing blush and frills, smiles over their shoulder behind them.

Lubo

Giorgio Diritti  |   Italy, Switzerland
Italian, Jenisch, Swiss-German  
Drama, Historical, Literary Adaptation, Political

1939. The nomadic Lubo is conscripted into the Swiss army. When his children are taken by the state, he begins a desperate search to reunite his family.

In-Person
A child in a snowsuit lays down on a snowy hill surrouded by people going up and down with sleds.

Occupied City

Steve McQueen  |   The Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States
Dutch, English  
Documentary, Historical, Political, Social Commentary

From the streets of Amsterdam, McQueen creates two interlocking portraits: a vivid journey through the last years of pandemic and protest, and a door-to-door excavation of the Nazi occupation that still haunts his adopted city.

In-Person
A close up of actor Mads Mikkelsen.

The Promised Land (Bastarden)

Nikolaj Arcel  |   Denmark, Germany, Sweden
Danish  
Biopic, Drama, Historical, Thriller

A retired soldier (Mads Mikkelsen) embarks on a quest to tame the unforgiving Danish Jutland, where he violently clashes with a local landowner.

In-Person
A civil rights march. People standing arm in arm and walk in unity.

Rustin

George C. Wolfe  |   United States
English  
Biopic, Historical, LGBTQ, Political
The architect of 1963’s momentous March on Washington, Bayard Rustin was one of the greatest activists and organizers the world has ever known. He challenged authority, never apologized for who [...]
In-Person
Astronaut Ronald McNair smiles while holding a film slate. He wears a name badge that says Cecil B. McNair.

The Space Race

Lisa Cortés, Diego Hurtado de Mendoza  |   United States
English  
Documentary, Historical, Political, Social Commentary

Pioneers in civil rights and outer space, Black astronauts boldly ventured where no Black Americans had ever gone before. This is their untold story.

In-Person

Stamped from the Beginning

Roger Ross Williams  |   United States
English  
Documentary, Historical, Political, Social Commentary

Based on the book by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi (How to Be An Antiracist), this searing documentary explores the roots of anti-Black racism in America.

In-Person
A very disheveled pregnant woman sits on a rock by a waterfall, looking at the shirtless man lounging next to her.

Sweet Dreams

Ena Sendijarević  |   The Netherlands, Sweden, Indonesia
Dutch, Indonesian  
Drama, Historical, Social Commentary, Women Centered

A Dutch plantation owner’s death sparks a rancorous clash over his estate in this surreal satire of the end of Indonesia’s colonial era.

In-Person
In a kitchen, four people smile and talk as a man in an apron places meat onto a table holding fresh herbs.

The Taste of Things (La passion de Dodin Bouffant)

Tran Anh Hung  |   France
French  
Culinary, Drama, Historical, Romance

Juliette Binoche and Benoît Magimel star in this mouthwatering romantic drama, about a gourmand wooing his longtime love with a decadent meal.

In-Person
Black and white image of men at table, cigarette smoke curling around them. An older man stands behind the table, watching.

The Universal Theory (Die Theorie Von Allem)

Timm Kröger  |   Germany, Austria, Switzerland
French, German, Swiss-German  
Environmental, Historical, Noir, Thriller

1962. A PhD student investigates a dark secret in the Swiss Alps after a scientist goes missing and bizarre cloud formations appear in the sky.

In-Person
An idilic scene of a forest and a lake. A family lounges on the shore nearby, while some swim.

The Zone of Interest

Jonathan Glazer  |   United Kingdom, Poland, United States
German  
Drama, Historical, Political

The commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife Hedwig strive to build a dream life for their family in a house next to the camp.