1. FDR: A Presidency Revealed
For twelve years he stood as America's 32nd President, a man who overcame the ravages of polio to pull America through the Great Depression and WWII. From his legendary Fireside Chats to his sweeping New Deal, Franklin Delano Roosevelt revolutionized the American way of life. FDR: A Presidency Revealed examines one of history's most compelling figures. Inspired by his cousin Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt rose to the nation's highest office during the depths of one of its darkest periods. A man of few words, he brought a nation together through his revolutionary Fireside Chats. He introduced vast reforms like Social Security and work relief for the unemployed. At the same time, his administration hid a dark underbelly teeming with covert maneuvers, spy rings, and powerful enemies.
2. Fyra dagar som skakade Sverige - Midsommarkrisen 1941 (Fyra dagar som skakade Sverige - Midsommarkrisen 1941)
At dawn on June 22, 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union. On the same morning, Germany demanded permission from the Swedish government to transport 18,000 German soldiers from Norway to Finland across Sweden by railway. This was a difficult problem for the Swedish government. On one hand remaining friendly with Germany at the height of its power, on the other maintaining a strict neutrality. The Swedish cabinet meet in Stockholm to decide upon the best reply to the German demands.
It has an average vote of 8.3 on TMDB.
3. Churchill's Toyshop
In Britain's darkest hour Winston Churchhill assembles a team of eccentric geniuses to fight the Nazi menace by building biizzarre brilliant weapons.
4. Jean Moulin, lettre à un inconnu (Jean Moulin, lettre à un inconnu)
(Jean Moulin, lettre à un inconnu)
5. Death of a Nation
Parallels are drawn between Abraham Lincoln's presidency and the presidency of Donald Trump. Not since 1860 have the Democrats so fanatically refused to accept the result of a free election. That year, their target was Lincoln. They smeared him. They went to war to defeat him. In the end, they assassinated him.
It has an average vote of 4.3 on TMDB.
6. Nazi Sunken Sub
For nearly seventy years the fate of the lost Nazi submarine U-745 remained a mystery. After a decade of painstaking research and exploration, a Finnish diving team has finally solved the riddle.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
7. 12th Hitlerjugend Panzer Division
The most implacable opponents of the British and Canadians fighting in Normandy were the largely teenage soldiers of the Hitlerjugend. From D+1 through to attacking back into the Falaise Pocket, this unique division constantly thwarted Montgomery's plans and exacted a terrible price on the Allies for every mile gained. Formed from 'volunteers' from the Hitler Youth Movement in the aftermath of Stalingrad, this division of boys, aged 17 on recruitment into the SS, came of age and were declared fully operational just before D Day. Coming from a fully militarized society they made exceptional and highly committed soldiers but with officers and non-commissioned officers from the Leibstandarte commanding them, they were to become a ruthless and brutal arm of the Nazi fighting machine that battled towards the Eastern Front. Both Hitlerjugend's alleged atrocities and their remarkable doggedness in battle made them a loathed but grudgingly respected opponent to all who fought them.
8. The Autobiography of a 'Jeep'
The invention and use of a jeep are described, from the viewpoint of one of the vehicles.
It has an average vote of 5.2 on TMDB.
9. Burma War Record (ビルマ戦記)
This film records the Japanese military's efforts to capture the Burma Road,one of the major supply lines to China, from the British beginning in December 1941. The film ends with the fall of Mandalay in May 1942.
10. Main Street on the March!
This Best Short Subject Academy Award winning film begins in the spring of 1940, just before the Nazi occupation of the Benelux countries, and ends immediately after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. It chronicles how the people of "Main Street America", the country's military forces, and its industrial base were completely transformed when the decision was made to gear up for war. Original footage is interspersed with contemporary newsreels and stock footage.
It has an average vote of 5.4 on TMDB.
11. Henry Browne, Farmer
Henry Browne, an African American farmer, and his family are profiled in this film. The important job of a farmer during times of war is highlighted, specifically his efforts growing peanuts and cotton. This role is made even more poingnant when they visit the eldest son who is a cadet in the 99th Pursuit Squadron.
It has an average vote of 4.8 on TMDB.
12. Little Belgium
A profile of the more than 2,000 Belgian refugees in the fishing port of Brixham.
It has an average vote of 5.5 on TMDB.
13. Witness 1939: When War Broke Out
WITNESS 1939 : THE DAY THE WAR BROKE OUT uses the words of interviewees, to add a personal insight into the events of 1939 and the beginning of the Second World War. From a Polish soldier we hear about the invasion of Poland and his experiences on the front line; we hear from an RAF pilot who scrambled to intercept a non-existent intruder, when the sirens sounded minutes after the announcement that Britain was at war. We also hear from the pilot who, two days later, took part in the 'friendly fire' incident that claimed the first RAF casualty of the war. Others give us a child's perspective of events. And what it was like to be evacuated. Their stories are illustrated using archive film. These are the untold stories of ordinary people, whose words convey a true sense of what it was like to be living at a time of momentous events.
14. Coming Out Under Fire
A historical account of military policy regarding homosexuality during World War II. The documentary includes interviews with several homosexual WWII veterans.
It has an average vote of 4.3 on TMDB.
15. La face cachée de Hiroshima (La face cachée de Hiroshima)
(La face cachée de Hiroshima)
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
16. The Computers
Six young women programmed the world's first all-electronic programmable computer, ENIAC, as part of a secret US WWII project. They changed the world, but were never introduced and never received credit. These pioneers deserve to be known and celebrated: Betty Snyder Holberton, Jean Jennings Barik, Kay McNulty Mauchly Antonelli, Marlyn Wescoff Meltzer, Ruth Lichterman Teitelbaum, and Frances Bilas Spence.
It has an average vote of 10 on TMDB.
17. Will It Happen Again?
An account of Adolf Hitler's rise and fall, his relationship with Eva Braun and their days of leisure at the Berghof, their Bavarian residence.
18. The DC-3 Story: The Plane That Changed the World (Die DC3 Story – Ein Flugzeug, das die Welt verändert hat)
There was a time when the DC-3 was the world's most successful aircraft and an indispensable tool: its military version became a crucial factor in achieving peace in various wars and helped many people rise from the ashes during the inevitable humanitarian crises that follow every conflict. But now the Basler factory located in Oshkosh, near Chicago, in the United States, seems to have become a sinister airplane boneyard.
It has an average vote of 6.7 on TMDB.
19. Night Witches
Documentary about the female fighter pilots in the 588th Night Bomber Regiment of the Soviet Union. In small planes made out of plywood and canvas they risked their lives every night during the last part of the second world war.
20. Vom Nazi zum englischen Fußballidol - Torwartlegende Bert Trautmann (Vom Nazi zum englischen Fußballidol - Torwartlegende Bert Trautmann)
How could a German Wehrmacht soldier become a celebrated soccer idol of the Britons in the post-war period? The documentary by Radio Bremen shows the moving life story of the soccer star of the 1950s in a torn Europe and how an enemy became a friend. With his legendary appearance in the English Cup Final 1956, in which he played until the end despite a broken neck, Bert Trautmann set up a memorial for himself in the history of sport. Already in the same year, he is chosen as England’s footballer of the year, and by his club Manchester City even as best player of all times. Bernhard “Bert” Trautmann is one of the most popular and best-known soccer players in England.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.