The Historical Movies Podcast

Ros and Bryce Evans

The podcast about historically inspired movies! In every bi-weekly episode hosts Ros and Bryce Evans romp through a historically inspired movie; exploring the history, celebrating the good, discussing the bad and asking a set list of questions of every film, all in around 40 minutes. As well as the intriguing history behind the blockbusters expect a lively chat about the pop culture impacts these films have, plus tales of production hell, on-set antics, directorial genius, box office bombs and everything in between. Your hosts are Ros Evans, a film editor who studied archaeology and Bryce Evans, Professor of Modern World History at Liverpool Hope University.

  1. 3d ago

    The Secret Agent (2025) the Meaning, the Ending, the CRUCIAL Historical Context & the Hairy Leg!!

    In this episode of Historical Movies, we unpack and explain The Secret Agent (2025) — breaking down its plot, characters, themes, and ending, while exploring the turbulent historical period of Brazil in the 1970s that gives the film its meaning. We also discuss why it won none of the 4 Oscars it was nominated for, why it represents the genius of filmmaking and the real life legend of the Hairy Leg! Kleber Mendonça Filho's The Secret Agent (2025) has been hailed as one of the year's most acclaimed films set against the backdrop of Brazil's military dictatorship. But it's also a deliberately elusive film, told through an unconventional narrative structure that withholds information, shifts perspectives, and gradually reveals the true shape of its story. We also explore the history behind the film, from political repression and censorship. Understanding this historical context is crucial to understanding what The Secret Agent is trying to say — and why its story is told the way it is. How does the film's fragmented storytelling work? Why does it reveal key events indirectly? And how does its atmosphere of paranoia, surveillance, and uncertainty reflect the realities of life under Brazil's military regime in the 1970s? We discuss: • How the film's unusual narrative won over critics but divided audiences • Brazil's military dictatorship and the political climate of the 1970s • The ending • Why the film's historical setting is essential to understanding its deeper meaning Plus: how filmmakers portray authoritarian societies on screen, why ambiguity can be a powerful storytelling tool, and whether The Secret Agent works best as a political thriller, a historical drama, or both at once. 📩 Have a different interpretation of the film's ending? Know more about the history of Brazil's military dictatorship? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us on @hmpodcast.bsky.social. #TheSecretAgent #BrazilianHistory #Brazil #MilitaryDictatorship #PoliticalThriller #FilmHistory #HistoricalMovies #KleberMendoncaFilho #HistoricalMoviesPodcast #Cinema

    44 min

  2. May 19

    Das Boot (1981) U-Boat Engineering, WWII History, Moral Complexity the Best Submarine Movie Ever!

    Wolfgang Petersen’s Das Boot (1981) is widely regarded as one of the greatest submarine films ever made: a claustrophobic, technically obsessive portrayal of life aboard a German U-boat during the Battle of the Atlantic. But how historically accurate is it really? Could a submarine actually survive the terrifying punishment shown in the film? Is it too sympathetic to the submariners fighting on the wrong side of history? And is it guilty of airbrushing out support for the regime? In this episode of Historical Movies, we dive deep into the history and engineering behind Das Boot — from the real experiences of German U-boat crews to the astonishing technical detail that made the film feel unlike any other WWII movie. How accurate were the cramped conditions, combat tactics, and mechanical systems aboard a Type VIIC submarine? Could U-96 really have survived those crushing depths and relentless depth-charge attacks? Or would the pressure hull have catastrophically failed long before? We also explore the real Battle of the Atlantic, the psychology of submarine warfare, and why veterans and naval historians still praise Das Boot more than 40 years later. We discuss: • The real history behind U-96 and Germany’s U-boat campaign • Life aboard a WWII Type VIIC submarine • Test depth, crush depth, and whether the film’s final dive is remotely survivable • Diesel-electric engines, battery systems, and underwater endurance • Historical inaccuracies, Hollywood exaggerations, and details the movie gets shockingly right • Why Das Boot still feels more authentic than most modern war films Plus: the morality of submarine warfare, the exhaustion and fear experienced by real crews, and whether Das Boot is ultimately an anti-war masterpiece disguised as a naval thriller. 📩 Think U-96 could really have survived the final dive? Have a favourite submarine film or historical movie we should cover? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us on @hmpodcast.bsky.social. #DasBoot #WWII #MilitaryHistory #Submarines #NavalHistory #WolfgangPetersen #UBoat #FilmHistory #HistoricalMovies #WarMovies

    1h 7m

  3. May 5

    Fitzcarraldo (1982) Is Werner Herzog’s ‘Masterpiece’ Overrated? Plus Klaus Kinski and the Production from HELL!

    Fitzcarraldo (1982), directed by Werner Herzog and starring Klaus Kinski, is one of the most infamous productions in film history — a movie about obsession that was itself created through obsession. But how much of this Amazonian fever dream is rooted in real history? We explore the true story behind Fitzcarraldo, from the rubber boom in Peru to the real-life figure who inspired the film, Carlos Fermín Fitzcarrald. What drove European entrepreneurs deep into the jungle in search of fortune? And how accurately does the film depict the brutal economic and colonial realities of the late 19th-century Amazon? We also go behind the scenes of Herzog’s legendary production — from hauling a real steamship over a mountain to the volatile relationship between Herzog and Kinski. Was this filmmaking genius, reckless ambition, or something closer to madness? And does the story of the film’s creation ultimately overshadow the story it’s trying to tell? Plus: opera in the jungle, cinematic obsession taken to the extreme, the fine line between art and exploitation, and whether Fitzcarraldo is the ultimate “impossible film” ever made. 📩 Think Herzog crossed the line — or created a masterpiece? Have a favourite story about chaotic film productions? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us on @hmpodcast.bsky.social.

    53 min

  4. Apr 21

    The Crying Game (1992) THAT Twist and why The Troubles is the perfect backdrop

    The Crying Game (1992), written and directed by Neil Jordan and starring Stephen Rea, Miranda Richardson, Forest Whitaker and Jaye Davidson, became one of the most talked-about films of the 1990s — largely because of a twist that audiences were begged not to reveal. But how well does it hold up, and how does it sit within the real history of The Troubles? We explore the historical background behind The Crying Game, from the IRA’s campaign in Northern Ireland to the politics of hostage-taking, informers and splintered loyalties in the late twentieth century. How accurately does the film depict the Provisional IRA? What does it get right about the psychology of paramilitarism — and where does it lean into thriller convention? We also dig into the famous twist: why it landed with such force in 1992, how it was marketed, and whether it overshadowed the film’s deeper themes of identity, performance and belonging. Was this really a shock for shock’s sake, or something more subversive? Plus: accidental love stories, 90s awards-season politics, the strange art of spoiler campaigns, and whether this is actually one of the most misunderstood historical films of its decade. 📩 Remember the first time you saw The Crying Game? Think the twist still works? Or want to talk about cinema and The Troubles more broadly? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us on @hmpodcast.bsky.social.

    50 min

  5. Apr 10 ·  Bonus

    Extra Episode: The Guns of Navarone (1961) was so good Alistair MacLean changed the book it was based on!

    An Extra few minutes discussing what we didn't get around to covering in the main episode. 📩 Stormed an island lately? Got thoughts on wartime ethics or your favourite men-on-a-mission classic? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us @hmpodcast.bsky.social.

    8 min

  6. Apr 7

    The Guns of Navarone (1961) The Greatest Commando Romp Ever was Supposed to be an Anti-War Movie

    The Guns of Navarone (1961) - the greatest commando movie ever made - was, despite the swashbuckling adventure and high body-count, conceived as an anti-war, pacifist movie. We uncover the little-know fact that producer Carl Foreman (blacklisted from Hollywood) wrote the screen play as a strongly anti-war movie and was backed-up by stars of the movie Gregory Peck and Stanley Baker who both wanted to make a pacifist film. Directed by J. Lee Thompson and also starring David Niven, Anthony Quail and Anthony Quinn we explore the real history behind The Guns of Navarone. From the Dodecanese Campaign in the Aegean during World War II to the real life inspiration for the gigantic guns themselves. Plus we look at the fantastic job Carl Foreman undertook in adapting Alistair McLean’s book for the big screen. Plus: Gregory Peck’s tortured eyebrow acting, David Niven weaponising sarcasm, exploding fortresses before CGI, and whether this really is the best commando movie ever. 📩 Stormed an island lately? Got thoughts on wartime ethics or your favourite men-on-a-mission classic? Email us at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us @hmpodcast.bsky.social.

    47 min

  7. Mar 24

    Eddington (2025) — What is this Movie all About? Politics, Pandemic & Paranoia

    We dissect the provocative 2025 film Eddington, written and directed by Ari Aster — the auteur behind Hereditary and Midsommar. Set in a fictional New Mexico town in May 2020, during the height of the COVID‑19 pandemic and national unrest, the movie stars Joaquin Phoenix as Sheriff Joe Cross and Pedro Pascal as Mayor Ted Garcia. The standoff between them becomes a micro-cosm of America’s deep divisions. We (try to) explain what Eddington is all about, look at the contemporary history behind this misunderstood film and ask whether Aster bit off more than he could chew for this movie. Plus: is this movie’s subject material too soon to appreciate, what is SolidGoldMagikarp and will this movie be regarded as a true classic in years to come? Got your own theories to the meaning of Eddington? Drop us a line at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us at @hmpodcast.bsky.social

    48 min

  8. Mar 10

    Thirteen Days (2000) — The Cuban Missile Crisis Movie with the Wrong Hero (feat. Shane Connolly)

    The Cold War comes to life in Thirteen Days (2000), directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Kevin Costner as advisor Kenneth O’Donnell during the Cuban Missile Crisis. We dive into the historical accuracy of Thirteen Days, how much Kenneth O’Donnell was actually responsible for ending the crisis (not much), the Excomm Tapes and the real players in JFK’s inner circle. We also look at how close the world truly came to nuclear disaster in 1962 and how this film doesn’t cover it. Plus: Why this movie wasn’t a hit, Kennedy family myth-making, and where is the nuclear bunker rom-com? ☢️ Think you can do a better Boston accent than Kevin Costner? Drop us a line at historicalmoviespodcast@gmail.com or find us on @hmpodcast.bsky.social.

    1h 5m
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About

The podcast about historically inspired movies! In every bi-weekly episode hosts Ros and Bryce Evans romp through a historically inspired movie; exploring the history, celebrating the good, discussing the bad and asking a set list of questions of every film, all in around 40 minutes. As well as the intriguing history behind the blockbusters expect a lively chat about the pop culture impacts these films have, plus tales of production hell, on-set antics, directorial genius, box office bombs and everything in between. Your hosts are Ros Evans, a film editor who studied archaeology and Bryce Evans, Professor of Modern World History at Liverpool Hope University.

Information

  • Creator
    Ros and Bryce Evans
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    50
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Ros and Bryce Evans
  • Show Website
    The Historical Movies Podcast

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