Best movies like Ambrose Bierce: Civil War Stories
A country divided, one man at a time...
A unique, carefully handpicked, selection of the best movies like Ambrose Bierce: Civil War Stories Starring Campbell Scott, Vivian Schilling, Nathan Darrow, T. Max Graham, and more. If you liked Ambrose Bierce: Civil War Stories then you may also like: Tunnel Rats, Young Winston, Zulu, Wicked Spring, News of the World and many more popular movies featured on this list. You can further filter the list even more or get a random selection from the list of similar movies, to make your selection even easier.
Legendary writer Ambrose Bierce was known to be brilliant, cantankerous and romantic in all his life's passions, and was revered as one of the top storytellers of the late 19th Century. In 1890, he presented his recently published collection of Civil War Stories to novelist Gertrude Atherton and fledgling young publisher William Randolph Hearst during an infamous meeting in Sonol, California. This meeting sets the forum for the presentation of three of Bierce's most popular stories including "One Kind Of Officer", "Story Of A Conscience" and "An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge." This acclaimed collection features epic battle sequences, deeply conflicted drama and the signature "surprise endings" that characterized most of the short stories by Ambrose Bierce.
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Young Winston
This historical drama is an account of the early life of British politician Winston Churchill, including his childhood years, his time as a war correspondent in Africa, and culminating with his first election to Parliament.
Wicked Spring
During the 1864 battle of the Wilderness, three Union soldiers and three Confederate Soldiers get seperated from their units as twilight engulfs the ravaged battlefield. The men wander alone through the dangerous woods, separate of each other, until they meet by chance on the banks of a quiet creek. The men meet and spend the night around a campfire, not realizing they are enemies until the next morning when the sun rises and a new day of battle begins.
News of the World
A Texan traveling across the wild West bringing the news of the world to local townspeople, agrees to help rescue a young girl who was kidnapped.
Only The Brave
A searing portrait of war and prejudice, 'Only the Brave' takes you on a haunting journey into the hearts and minds of the forgotten heroes of WWII - the Japanese-American 100th/442nd.
The Keeping Room
In this radically reimagined American Western set towards the end of the Civil War, Southerner Augusta encounters two renegade, drunken soldiers who are on a mission of pillage and violence. After escaping an attempted assault, Augusta races back to the isolated farmhouse that she shares with her sister Louise and their female slave Mad. When the pair of soldiers track Augusta down intent on exacting revenge, the trio of women are forced to take up arms to fend off their assailants, finding ways to resourcefully defend their home––and themselves––as the escalating attacks become more unpredictable and relentless.
Cold Mountain
In this classic story of love and devotion set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, a wounded Confederate soldier named W.P. Inman deserts his unit and travels across the South, aiming to return to his young wife, Ada, who he left behind to tend their farm. As Inman makes his perilous journey home, Ada struggles to keep their home intact with the assistance of Ruby, a mysterious drifter sent to help her by a kindly neighbor.
The Crossing
A made-for-TV dramatization of George Washington's perilous gamble of crossing the Delaware River and attacking the British forces at Trenton.
Gettysburg
In the summer of 1863, General Robert E. Lee leads the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia into Gettysburg, Pennsylvania with the goal of marching through to Washington, D.C. The Union Army of the Potomac, under the command of General George G. Meade, forms a defensive position to confront the rebel forces in what will prove to be the decisive battle of the American Civil War.
The Undefeated
After the Civil War, ex-Union Colonel John Henry Thomas and ex-Confederate Colonel James Langdon are leading two disparate groups of people through strife-torn Mexico. John Henry and company are bringing horses to the unpopular Mexican government for $35 a head while Langdon is leading a contingent of displaced southerners, who are looking for a new life in Mexico after losing their property to carpetbaggers. The two men are eventually forced to mend their differences in order to fight off both bandits and revolutionaries, as they try to lead their friends and kin to safety.
Shenandoah
Charlie Anderson, a farmer in Shenandoah, Virginia, finds himself and his family in the middle of the Civil War he wants nothing to do with. When his youngest boy is taken prisoner by the North, the Civil War is forced upon him.
Emancipation
Inspired by the gripping true story of a man who would do anything for his family—and for freedom. When Peter, an enslaved man, risks his life to escape and return to his family, he embarks on a perilous journey of love and endurance.
The Eagle
In 140 AD, twenty years after the unexplained disappearance of the entire Ninth Legion in the mountains of Scotland, young centurion Marcus Aquila arrives from Rome to solve the mystery and restore the reputation of his father, the commander of the Ninth. Accompanied only by his British slave Esca, Marcus sets out across Hadrian's Wall into the uncharted highlands of Caledonia - to confront its savage tribes, make peace with his father's memory, and retrieve the lost legion's golden emblem, the Eagle of the Ninth.
Major Dundee
During the last winter of the Civil War, cavalry officer Amos Dundee leads a contentious troop of Army regulars, Confederate prisoners and scouts on an expedition into Mexico to destroy a band of Apaches who have been raiding U.S. bases in Texas.
The Horse Soldiers
A Union Cavalry outfit is sent behind confederate lines in strength to destroy a rail supply center. Along with them is sent a doctor who causes instant antipathy between him and the commander. The secret plan for the mission is overheard by a southern belle who must be taken along to assure her silence.
Taras Bulba
Ukraine, 16th century. While the Poles dominate the Cossack steppes, Andrei, son of Taras Bulba, a Cossack leader, must choose between his love for his family and his folk and his passion for a Polish woman.
Field of Lost Shoes
A group of teenage cadets sheltered from war at the Virginia Military Institute must confront the horrors of an adult world when they are called upon to defend the Shenandoah Valley.
Journey to Shiloh
At the beginning of the Civil War, seven friends embark on a cross-country journey in order to join the Confederate army.
The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams
Amid the bitter divisiveness of the Civil War, Confederate Capt. Robert Adams (Julian Adams) feels the rift within his soul. Steadfastly loyal to the South, Adams also holds an unshakable love for his Northerner wife, Eveline McCord (Gwendolyn Edwards). Based on the true story of Robert Adams and produced by his descendents, this stirring historical drama -- a film festival favorite -- delves into the themes of honor, patriotism and love.
Gettysburg
An examination of the Battle of Gettysberg on both the personal and strategic level.
Gods and Generals
The film centers mostly around the personal and professional life of Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, a brilliant if eccentric Confederate general, from the outbreak of the American Civil War until its halfway point.
Macho Callahan
A man tricked into enlisting in the Confederate army is later thrown into a hellish stockade on desertion charges. He eventually breaks out of the prison camp, reunites with his old partner and sets out to kill the man who was responsible for his being in the camp in the first place. However, after accidentally killing a Confederate officer, he finds himself pursued by a gang of vicious bounty hunters intent on collecting the reward put up by the dead officer's widow.
The Retrieval
On the outskirts of the Civil War, a boy is sent north by a bounty hunter gang to retrieve a wanted man.
Antebellum
Successful author Veronica finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it's too late.
The Birth of a Nation
Nat Turner, a former slave in America, leads a liberation movement in 1831 to free African-Americans in Virginia that results in a violent retaliation from whites.
Alvarez Kelly
In 1864, during the American Civil War, Mexican cattleman Alvarez Kelly supplies the Union with cattle until unexpected circumstances force him to change his customers.
Operator 13
American Civil War, 1862. After the disaster of the Second Battle of Bull Run, Major Allen, chief of the Secret Service of the Union, asks actress Gail Loveless to become one of his operators and infiltrate enemy territory.
Friendly Persuasion
The story of a family of Quakers in Indiana in 1862. Their religious sect is strongly opposed to violence and war. It's not easy for them to meet the rules of their religion in everyday life but when Southern troops pass the area they are in real trouble. Should they fight, despite their peaceful attitude?
The Legend of Custer
Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer has been reinstated and assigned to command the 7th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Hays. The regiment has become a ragtag outfit of thieves and ruffians and Custer must whip the soldiers into shape to fight, the Kiowa, Sioux and Blackfoot tribes who confront them. These tribes are being supplied shotguns by a white gunrunner and Custer and his men must rescue General Terry and the Fifth Cavalry Regiment from annihilation when they are ambushed and trapped by a large Kiowa war party.
Custer of the West
Biopic of General George Armstrong Custer from his rise to prominence in the Civil War through to his "last stand" at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
My Boy Jack
Author Rudyard Kipling and his wife search for their 17-year-old son after he goes missing during WWI.
Killing Lincoln
April 14, 1865. One gunshot. One assassin hell-bent on killing a tyrant, as he charged the 16th President of the United States. And in one moment, our nation was forever changed. This is the most dramatic and resonant crime in American history—the true story of the killing of Abraham Lincoln.
The Man from Colorado
Two friends return home after their discharge from the army after the Civil War. However, one of them has had deep-rooted psychological damage due to his experiences during the war, and as his behavior becomes more erratic--and violent--his friend desperately tries to find a way to help him.
The Heart of Maryland
At the outbreak of the War Between the States, Maryland Calvert is loved by Maj. Alan Kendrick, son of a Virginia general, and Capt. Fulton Thorpe. Nancy, whom Thorpe has loved unwisely, follows him to Washington and commits suicide when she learns he will not marry her; as a result, Alan is forced to request his resignation. When Fort Sumter is fired upon, Alan, who admires Lincoln's principles, joins the Union Army though his father is among the Secessionist leaders; as a result, he is estranged from Maryland. Thorpe, who has joined the Confederacy as a spy, is responsible for Alan's arrest, but Maryland victoriously comes to his aid by ringing the alarm bell.
Secret Service
In 1864 a Secret Service agent for the Union army goes undercover in Richmond and pretends to be a Confederate captain.
Court-Martial
During the American Civil War, A Union-Army officer is ordered by U. S. President Abraham Lincoln to bring in Belle Starr, the leader of a Missouri guerrilla band, dead or alive. However, he falls in love with her, does not bring her in, and is facing a court-martial.
South of St. Louis
With the advent of the American Civil War, three partners in a ranch see how this is destroyed. Needing money, will join the Confederate troops, each for their particular motivations.
Fort Defiance
It's just after the Civil War and Ben Shelby arrives looking for Johnny Tallon whom he plans to kill. Shelby was the only survivor of a battle due to the cowardice of Tallon. Thinking Tallon dead, another man who lost a brother at the same battle arrives to kill Tallon's blind brother. Tallon arrives to find Shelby and his brother fleeing. Then they are attacked by Indians and Shelby and Tallon must now fight together postponing the inevitable showdown.
The Proud and Damned
A group of five Confederate mercenaries led by Sergeant Will Hansen must choose sides carefully in a small village where they find themselves trapped in the middle of a rebellion. The group is torn as to whether they should honor the powerful military dictator who forces them to spy for him or help the local village fight for its independence. Follow Sergeant Hansen and his men as they make a decision that could cost them their lives.
Class of '61
Three West Point 1861 generation cadets and friends go on opposite sides after the breakout of The Civil War, with tragic consequences. A subplot involves Lucius, a Shelby Peyton's slave, who kills a slave trader and goes on the run.
The Colt
During the heat of battle in the midst of the Civil War, a beguilingly innocent colt is born to Union Jim Rabb's beloved mare. Refusing the orders to shoot it, lest it prove a hindrance, Rabb keeps the colt as a consolation in these desperate times-a symbol of hope that leads the men of the First Cavalry on a journey of self-discovery and newfound brotherhood.
Red Mountain
Towards the end of the American Civil War, a rebel captain flees to Colorado to join a band of Southern mercenaries. He drags an innocent gold prospecting couple into trouble when the husband is accused of a murder he committed.
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge
It is the War Between the States and Peyton Farquhar stands at the end of a plank a noose around his neck. He has been betrayed by a stranger, a scout for the Union Army, and now he faces death. He stands to lose a beautiful young wife, family and home. The soldiers make preparations for his death, it is routine for them. Peyton's mind races, he must escape. If only he can free his hands. The plank falls and incomprehensibly the rope breaks. He manages to swim away and evade the gunshots from the soldiers. He unbelievably finds himself on shore running towards home. After what seems like days of weary travel he arrives.
Across Five Aprils
Jethro Creighton (Todd Duffey) is a young man of nine years from Southern Illinois who is growing up during the outbreak of the American Civil War. Helping his father farm is all he really knows. This makes things difficult when his kin fights for the Union Army, as well as the Rebel cause. He doesn't know who what to do. Should he fight for the Yankees, the Rebs, or just continue working on the farm? He has a cousin who is a deserter which he helps with food and a blanket; this is a crime not taken lightly. He writes Abraham Lincoln for advice on the matter. The president responds in a letter which guides him some, but more or less provides him with comfort; when a nine year old is in the midst of war, what is more important?
Incident at Phantom Hill
At the end of the Civil War, a major shipment of gold has been stolen and buried in the desert. Only one man knows the whereabouts of gold and the army sends captain Matt Martin to arrest him and come back with the gold. Martin, his prisoner and a handful of men enter Indian territory in search of the precious cargo. The Apaches, outlaws and storms will make it not too easy.
Tunnel Rats
During the Vietnam War [1959-1975] a special US combat unit is sent out to hunt and kill the Viet Cong soldiers in a man-to-man combat in the endless tunnels underneath the jungle of Vietnam. Suicide squads of a special kind.