Let's discuss some of our favorite historical fiction in media. Historical fiction being a story that deals with real historical events that have been dramatized for entertainment purposes. Please note that not all entries here will be entirely accurate to history if one really cares about that. We're here more for how good the thing is as a piece of entertainment.
Let me start with my list:
Inigo Balboa: He was not the most honest or pious of men, but he was courageous. His name was Diego Alatriste y Tenorio, and he had fought in the ranks during the Flemish wars.
The Adventures of Captain Alatriste (book series 1996-2011) - Written by Arturo Perez Reverte, who was inspired by the lack of fiction set in Spain's Golden Age. I love these books. They're classic swashbuckling tales that have a darker edge to them and characters who are rougher than usual but nonetheless possess a code of honor that makes them likable. For me, Diego Alatriste is one of fiction's great anti-heroes and his adventures provide a great window to this era of Spain.
Some you might be familiar with the series already from the 2006 film Alatriste starring Viggo Mortensen. In some countries the film has the subtitle The Spanish Musketeer and there's no denying that the work of Alexandre Dumas was an influence to Reverte's novels (he even says so himself). And speaking of Dumas...
Athos: The Musketeers' motto, young man, is "All for One and One for All", which loosely translated means ten for him, ten for him, ten for you, and ten for me. My dear Aramis needs ten to impress his latest mistress. My good Porthos needs ten to enable himself to dress decently. And you, need ten for lodgings and a servant, I would suggest. And I...
D'Artagnan: And you?
Athos: I need a drink.
The Three Musketeers/The Four Musketeers (film series 1973-1974) - There've been numerous film adaptations of Alexandre Dumas' classic novel The Three Musketeers. But for me, none have come close to director Richard Lester's two film adaptation which blends realistic swordplay with slapstick comedy. With an all star cast that includes Michael York as D'Atagnan; Oliver Reed, Richard Chamberlain and Frank Finlay as the titular Musketeers; and a chilling turn by Faye Dunaway as Milady de Winter. Add to that Christopher Lee as Rocherfort and a surprisingly solid turn from Charlton Heston as Cardinal Richelieu, and you have a classic swashbuckling movie that's gleefully free of any sort of modern attitudes courtesy of screenwriter George Macdonald Fraser, who is not afraid of portraying the Musketeers as the hedonistic bastards that they are.
And while we're on the subject of Fraser...
Harry Flashman: This myth called bravery, which is half-panic, half-lunacy (in my case, all panic), pays for all; in England you can't be a hero and bad. There's practically a law against it.
The Flashman Papers (book series 1969-2005) - Imagine if you will Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe novel series. But instead of a heroic Richard Sharpe as played by Sean Bean in the ITV adaptation, you get Harry Flashman, a self confessed scoundrel, liar, cheat, thief, coward and toady. Flashman (who was a bully antagonist in the 1852 novel Tom Brown's School Days by Thomas Hughes) would rather run from a fight and preserve his skin while indulging his favorite pastimes, whoring and gambling. Yet time and again, events conspire to turn Harry Flashman into an unlikely hero during some of the most historic military campaigns in in the 19th century. These include the doomed British War in Afganistan, the Charge of the Light Brigade and even the Battle of Little Bigfoot, where he witnesses the death of Colonel George Custer.
These novels by George Macdonald Fraser are fantastic reads and provide an unwashed portrayal of the British Empire at the height of it's power. While Harry Flashman himself is not an easy character to like, his arrogant womanizing ways would not be out of place at the time, as his fellow British soldiers are portrayed in equal contemptible measure. Racist attitudes run rampant coupled with incompetence (except for a select few, such as the Duke of Wellington), yet despite this, it's refreshing to see such a politically incorrect view of history that would otherwise get sanitized in today's landscape for the sake of being 'sensitive.' I heartily recommend the Flashman Papers to anyone who's a fan of history and adventure with a dash of satire.
Hawkeye: No! You stay alive! If they don't kill you, they'll take you north up to the Huron lands. Submit, do you hear? You're strong! You survive! You stay alive, no matter what occurs! I will find you! No matter how long it takes, no matter how far. I will find you!
The Last of the Mohicans (movie 1992) - The definitive Colonial America movie for me from Michael Mann (Heat, Miami Vice). It's got awesome battle scenes (particularly the Massacre at Fort William Henry), spectacular vistas of the American Frontier, and solid performances from Daniel Day Lewis as Hawkeye, Madeline Stowe as Cora Monroe and a scene stealing turn by Wes Studi as Magua. If you all wonder why I was excited to play Assassin's Creed 3, it's because of this film.
Welp, those are my choices so far. I have more but I'd like to hear more of your choices D-Pad.
Let me start with my list:
Inigo Balboa: He was not the most honest or pious of men, but he was courageous. His name was Diego Alatriste y Tenorio, and he had fought in the ranks during the Flemish wars.
The Adventures of Captain Alatriste (book series 1996-2011) - Written by Arturo Perez Reverte, who was inspired by the lack of fiction set in Spain's Golden Age. I love these books. They're classic swashbuckling tales that have a darker edge to them and characters who are rougher than usual but nonetheless possess a code of honor that makes them likable. For me, Diego Alatriste is one of fiction's great anti-heroes and his adventures provide a great window to this era of Spain.
Some you might be familiar with the series already from the 2006 film Alatriste starring Viggo Mortensen. In some countries the film has the subtitle The Spanish Musketeer and there's no denying that the work of Alexandre Dumas was an influence to Reverte's novels (he even says so himself). And speaking of Dumas...
Athos: The Musketeers' motto, young man, is "All for One and One for All", which loosely translated means ten for him, ten for him, ten for you, and ten for me. My dear Aramis needs ten to impress his latest mistress. My good Porthos needs ten to enable himself to dress decently. And you, need ten for lodgings and a servant, I would suggest. And I...
D'Artagnan: And you?
Athos: I need a drink.
The Three Musketeers/The Four Musketeers (film series 1973-1974) - There've been numerous film adaptations of Alexandre Dumas' classic novel The Three Musketeers. But for me, none have come close to director Richard Lester's two film adaptation which blends realistic swordplay with slapstick comedy. With an all star cast that includes Michael York as D'Atagnan; Oliver Reed, Richard Chamberlain and Frank Finlay as the titular Musketeers; and a chilling turn by Faye Dunaway as Milady de Winter. Add to that Christopher Lee as Rocherfort and a surprisingly solid turn from Charlton Heston as Cardinal Richelieu, and you have a classic swashbuckling movie that's gleefully free of any sort of modern attitudes courtesy of screenwriter George Macdonald Fraser, who is not afraid of portraying the Musketeers as the hedonistic bastards that they are.
And while we're on the subject of Fraser...
Harry Flashman: This myth called bravery, which is half-panic, half-lunacy (in my case, all panic), pays for all; in England you can't be a hero and bad. There's practically a law against it.
The Flashman Papers (book series 1969-2005) - Imagine if you will Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe novel series. But instead of a heroic Richard Sharpe as played by Sean Bean in the ITV adaptation, you get Harry Flashman, a self confessed scoundrel, liar, cheat, thief, coward and toady. Flashman (who was a bully antagonist in the 1852 novel Tom Brown's School Days by Thomas Hughes) would rather run from a fight and preserve his skin while indulging his favorite pastimes, whoring and gambling. Yet time and again, events conspire to turn Harry Flashman into an unlikely hero during some of the most historic military campaigns in in the 19th century. These include the doomed British War in Afganistan, the Charge of the Light Brigade and even the Battle of Little Bigfoot, where he witnesses the death of Colonel George Custer.
These novels by George Macdonald Fraser are fantastic reads and provide an unwashed portrayal of the British Empire at the height of it's power. While Harry Flashman himself is not an easy character to like, his arrogant womanizing ways would not be out of place at the time, as his fellow British soldiers are portrayed in equal contemptible measure. Racist attitudes run rampant coupled with incompetence (except for a select few, such as the Duke of Wellington), yet despite this, it's refreshing to see such a politically incorrect view of history that would otherwise get sanitized in today's landscape for the sake of being 'sensitive.' I heartily recommend the Flashman Papers to anyone who's a fan of history and adventure with a dash of satire.
Hawkeye: No! You stay alive! If they don't kill you, they'll take you north up to the Huron lands. Submit, do you hear? You're strong! You survive! You stay alive, no matter what occurs! I will find you! No matter how long it takes, no matter how far. I will find you!
The Last of the Mohicans (movie 1992) - The definitive Colonial America movie for me from Michael Mann (Heat, Miami Vice). It's got awesome battle scenes (particularly the Massacre at Fort William Henry), spectacular vistas of the American Frontier, and solid performances from Daniel Day Lewis as Hawkeye, Madeline Stowe as Cora Monroe and a scene stealing turn by Wes Studi as Magua. If you all wonder why I was excited to play Assassin's Creed 3, it's because of this film.
Welp, those are my choices so far. I have more but I'd like to hear more of your choices D-Pad.
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