Historical films can be many things—fiction or nonfiction, literary adaptations or original concepts. Perhaps the most rewarding type of historical film is the period piece , which not only takes place in the past but, through its plot, communicates the spirit of the era in which it takes place. While many of these pieces are long, sweeping epics, others are more personal, small-scale intimations that speak to their periods by delving into the inner worlds of their inhabitants.

As with all films, not all period pieces are built quite the same. Furthermore, just because a film takes place in the past, doesn't mean that it truly gets to the heart of the society that it depicts. Ahead are ten period pieces that, wholly accurate or not, use art to humanize and flesh out the enigmatic past

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