2004 Movies : Historical

With Viggo Mortensen • Malcolm McDowell • Peter Mensah • Casey Silver • Omar Sharif • Zuleikha Robinson • Adam Alexi-Malle • Joe Johnston • John Fusco

Based on the true story of the greatest long-distance horse race ever run, "Hidalgo" is an epic action-adventure and one man's journey of personal redemption. Held yearly for centuries, the Ocean of Fire - a 3,000 mile survival race across the Arabian Desert - was a challenge restricted to the finest Arabian horses ever bred, the purest and noblest lines, owned by the greatest royal families. In 1890, a wealthy Sheik invited an American and his horse to enter the race for the first time. Frank T. Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) was a cowboy and dispatch rider for the US cavalry who had once been billed as the greatest rider the West had ever known. The Sheik (Omar Sharif) would put his claim to the test, pitting the American cowboy and his mustang, Hidalgo, against the world's greatest Arabian horses and Bedouin riders - some of whom were determined to prevent the foreigner from finishing the race. For Frank, the Ocean of Fire becomes not only a matter of pride and honor, but a race for his very survival as he and his horse, Hidalgo, attempt the impossible.

With Tom Hardy • Willem Dafoe • Matthew Macfadyen • Vincent Cassel • Jared Harris • Paul Bettany • Simon McBurney • Ewen Bremner • Brian Cox • Gina McKee • Luke de Woolfson • Mark Benton • Elvira Minguez • Stuart Wells • Tom Georgeson • Caroline Wood • Mark Mills

In 14th Century England, this powerful tale of redemption follows a fugitive priest (Paul Bettany) who falls in with a troupe of travelling actors (led by Willem Dafoe). As they arrive in a small town, the actors encounter a woman being sentenced to death for witchcraft and murder. Discarding the expected bible stories, the actors stage a performance based on the crime. Through the performance of the play, they discover that the townspeople know the woman did not, in fact, commit the murder. The stage becomes a place where vital human truth is told. The fugitive priest comes to terms with his own crime and makes a powerful sacrifice, thereby redeeming himself.

With Derek Jacobi • Paul Bayfield • John Henderson • Julian Glover • Kenneth Cranham • Leo Bill • Rosanna Lavelle • Phyllida Law • Beth Cordingly • Ira Trattner • Pat Harding

This is the true story of two members of England's Army Dental Corps, Sgt. Peter King (Kenneth Cranham), a World War I veteran looking to keep on fighting, and Private Leslie Cuthbertson (Leo Bill), a wet-behind-the-ears trainee, whose dedication to helping the war effort during World War II inspired them to leave their posts and attempt to join the war effort in France. Sneaking into occupied territory in 1942, the two dentists found a German radar station, a part of which they successfully destroyed, but their efforts caused them to be chased by the enemy through dangerous territory. The most dangerous opposition to their patriotism manifested itself, however, when they made their way back to English territory, where they were now branded as deserters and liars...