The best Martin Sheen’s history movies
Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez (born August 3, 1940), better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is a film actor best known for his performances in the films Badlands (1973) and Apocalypse Now (1979), and in the television series The West Wing from 1999 to 2006. In film he has won the Best Actor award at the San Sebastián International Film Festival for his performance as Kit Carruthers in Badlands. His portrayal of Capt. Willard in Apocalypse Now earned a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor. Sheen has worked with a wide variety of film directors, such as Richard Attenborough, Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Mike Nichols, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Oliver Stone. He has had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 1989. In television he has won both a Golden Globe and two Screen Actors Guild awards for playing the lead role of President Bartlet in The West Wing, and an Emmy for guest acting in the sitcom Murphy Brown. Born and raised in the United States to immigrant parents, a first-generation Irish mother, Mary-Anne Phelan from Borrisokane in County Tipperary and a Galician father, Francisco Estévez from Vigo in Galicia (Spain), he adopted the stage name Martin Sheen to help him gain acting parts. He is the father of actors Emilio Estevez, Ramón Estevez, Carlos Irwin Estevez (Charlie Sheen), and Renée Estevez. His younger brother Joe Estevez is also an actor. Although known as an actor, he has also directed one film, Cadence (1990), appearing alongside sons Charlie and Ramon. He has also narrated, produced and directed in documentary television, earning two Daytime Emmy awards in the 1980s. In addition to film and television, Sheen has also become notable for his activism in liberal politics.
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Gettysburg
7.6/10
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.
JFK
8/10
Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.
Gandhi
8/10
In the early years of the 20th century, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a British-trained lawyer, forsakes all worldly possessions to take up the cause of Indian independence. Faced with armed resistance from the British government, Gandhi adopts a policy of 'passive resistance', endeavouring to win freedom for his people without resorting to bloodshed.
Judas and the Black Messiah
7.4/10
Bill O'Neal infiltrates the Black Panthers on the orders of FBI Agent Mitchell and J. Edgar Hoover. As Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton ascends—falling for a fellow revolutionary en route—a battle wages for O’Neal’s soul.
12 Mighty Orphans
6.9/10
Haunted by his mysterious past, a devoted high school football coach leads a scrawny team of orphans to the state championship during the Great Depression and inspires a broken nation along the way.
Selma
7.5/10
"Selma," as in Alabama, the place where segregation in the South was at its worst, leading to a march that ended in violence, forcing a famous statement by President Lyndon B. Johnson that ultimately led to the signing of the Voting Rights Act.
The Whale
6.3/10
Dramatic retelling of the fateful last voyage of the Nantucket whaleship Essex. When the Essex is attacked and sunk by a sperm whale in November 1820, her crew take to three fragile whalers. Alone in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the men must decide whether to head for the nearest islands - a thousand miles downwind to the west - or set out on an epic journey of almost three thousand miles to reach the South American mainland. Fear of cannibals forces them to choose South America. Almost three months later, the first whaler is rescued by another whaleship. Only three men are still alive. A week later the captain's whaler is also rescued, with just two men aboard. The third whaler is never found. This is a story of human endurance and what men in extremis will do to survive.
One Hundred and One Nights
6.5/10
Monsieur Cinema, a hundred years old, lives alone in a large villa. His memories fade away, so he engages a young woman to tell him stories about all the movies ever made. Also a line of movie stars comes to visit him giving him back the pleasure of life - but amongst them there are also some young students only striving after his money for the realization of their film projects. The two stories - Monsieur Cinema's and the young people's life - are told in parallel until they come together in the end when the old man plays a role in the film made by the students.
A Prayer for Rain
7.1/10
Thirty years on from the 1984 Union Carbide plant malfunction, the consequences of which are tragically ongoing, A Prayer for Rain is the powerful and moving story of the Bhopal tragedy, one of the great corporate and environmental scandals of the last half-century. It dramatises the dependence of the local community on the chemical plant that will eventually cause catastrophe, and the series of oversights that led to an event that stands as a benchmark for corporate irresponsibility in the developing world.
On Great White Wings: The Wright Brothers and the Race for Flight
The Wings the Wright Brothers Built! On Great White Wings is the amazing story of the Wright brothers and their quest to fly. It is also the theater presentation at Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park in Dayton, Ohio where the Wright brothers built, tested and flew what would become the world’s first practical airplane. Self-taught scientists and engineers, Wilbur and Orville taught the world how to fly and are one of America’s greatest success stories. Produced by Aperture Films, Ltd. for the National Park Service. The Sky is No Longer the Limit For over four years, the Wright brother’s struggled with the race for flight. Beginning with just wood and fabric gliders at Kitty Hawk and transforming into the fully functional 1905 Wright Flyer III in Dayton, this inspiring film documents the Wright Brother’s path to make their dream of human flight a reality.
