The Legions

Wooden Crosses

March 1932 •French

The young and patriotic student Demachy joins the French army in 1914 to defend his country. But he and his comrades soon experience the terrifying, endless trench war in Champagne, where more and more wooden crosses have to be erected for this cannon fodder.

For Love of Liberty: The Story of America's Black Patriots

January 2010 •English

This High Definition, PBS miniseries uses letters, diaries, speeches, journalistic accounts, historical text and military records to document and acknowledge the sacrifices and accomplishments of African-American service men and women since the earliest days of the republic.

Charcot: Secret Poles

October 2016 •French

The adventures and exploits of Jean-Baptiste Charcot (1867-1936), an intrepid scientist and explorer who laid the foundations of modern oceanography.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

March 1921 •English

Set in the years before and during World War I, this epic tale tells the story of a rich Argentine family, one of its two descending branches being half of French heritage, the other being half German. Following the death of the family patriarch, the man's two daughters and their families resettle to France and Germany, respectively. In time the Great War breaks out, putting members of the family on opposing sides.

Tolkien

May 2019 •English

England, early 20th century. The future writer and philologist John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892-1973) and three of his schoolmates create a strong bond between them as they share the same passion for literature and art, a true fellowship that strengthens as they grow up, but the outbreak of World War I threatens to shatter it.

Beyond Victory

April 1931 •English

Four battle-weary American soldiers under fire reflect on the women they left behind.

The Epidemic

April 1972 •Polish

Based on a true outbreak of smallpox in Wroclaw. A young doctor picks up a girl and they go to bed, but the night is ruined by the doctor being called to the epidemic. The doctor has to leave, and when it is all over, runs into her with another man.

Osudy dobrého vojáka Švejka – Švejkova budějovická anabase

September 1956 •Czech

Osudy dobrého vojáka Švejka – Švejkovy nehody ve vlaku

January 1955 •Czech

Osudy dobrého vojáka Švejka – Z Hatvanu na hranice Haliče

July 1954 •Czech

The Good Soldier Schweik

January 1932 •Czech

Joint montage of the first three silent films about Švejk: Good Soldier Švejk (1926, director: Karel Lamač), Švejk on the Front (1926, director Karel Lamač) and Švejk in Russian Captivity (1926, director: Svatopluk Innemann, model Karel Vaněk). The lead role was played by Karel Noll, who was very popular at the time. The last silent sequel Švejk v civilu (1927) exists independently, but the copy of the film is badly damaged.

The Concert

May 1954 •

Celebrating the end of World War II and liberation of their city, a group of students is set on holding a cultural evening. They invite Ema, a reclusive piano teacher from the same building, to play for them. Ema declines, but starts reminscing back on her own life and the historical events that have seemingly overshadowed it.

The Man Without a Name

June 1932 •German

Children of Dust

June 1923 •English

Young Terwilliger, an orphan boy in New York City, "adopts" Old Archer, the caretaker of Gramercy Park, after the man is arrested for beating Terwiliger for picking a flower for his dead mother. As Terwilliger grows up, he falls in love with Helen Raymond, a pretty neighborhood girl, but finds a rival for her in Harvey Livermore. When World War I breaks out both boys enlist in the army and are sent to the front lines. Complications ensue.

A Real Pain

November 2024 •English

Mismatched cousins David and Benji reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn when the pair's old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history.

The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel

Invalid date •English

Rudolf Diesel, one of history’s greatest inventors, vanished into thin air on the eve of World War I. His revolutionary invention, the Diesel engine, was highly sought after by global industries and political figures around the world. It had the power to threaten empires and change the fate of nations, turning him and his technology into both a prized asset and a potential threat.

Testament of Youth

January 2015 •English

Testament of Youth is a powerful story of love, war and remembrance, based on the First World War memoir by Vera Brittain, which has become the classic testimony of that war from a woman’s point of view. A searing journey from youthful hopes and dreams to the edge of despair and back again, it’s a film about young love, the futility of war and how to make sense of the darkest times.

Mata Hari

February 1971 •Czech

The Green Room

April 1978 •French

A WWI veteran decides to build a memorial to all of the people who have mattered to him but are now dead.

The Red Baron

March 2008 •German

Richthofen goes off to war like thousands of other men. As fighter pilots, they become cult heroes for the soldiers on the battlefields. Marked by sportsmanlike conduct, technical exactitude and knightly propriety, they have their own code of honour. Before long he begins to understand that his hero status is deceptive. His love for Kate, a nurse, opens his eyes to the brutality of war.