Movies Similar to 1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year

Land Without Bread(1933)

An exploration —manipulated and staged— of life in Las Hurdes, in the province of Cáceres, in Extremadura, Spain, as it was in 1932. Insalubrity, misery and lack of opportunities provoke the emigration of young people and the solitude of those who remain in the desolation of one of the poorest and least developed Spanish regions at that time.

The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case(1976)

Fact-based story of the kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh Jr., son and namesake of the famed pilot, and ensuing trial of accused and convicted killer, Bruno Hauptmann.

Amelia Earhart: The Final Flight(1994)

In 1928, Amelia Earhart gains fame by undertaking a transatlantic flight as a passenger. In 1937, she and her navigator Fred Noonan undertake her longest flight: a round-the-world attempt. However, the plane disappears in the process.

The Imperial Lullaby(2020)

The armies of Fascist Italy conquered Addis Ababa, capital of Abyssinia, in May 1936, thus culminating the African colonial adventure of the ruthless dictator Benito Mussolini, by then lord of Libya, Eritrea and Somalia; a bloody and tragic story told through the naive drawings of Pietro Dall'Igna, an Italian schoolboy born in 1925.

Elemental: Hydrogen vs. Hindenburg(2018)

"Elemental" is the groundbreaking television event from Academy Award-winning executive producer Robert Zemeckis that reveals how the elements of the periodic table have controlled the outcome of human history. This one-hour drama tells the harrowing story of the Hindenburg disaster. Sophisticated cinematography, animation and spectacular visual effects bring this fiery saga to life in a way no audience has seen before.

Hitler's Forgotten Victims(1997)

The story of black and mixed race people in Nazi Germany who were sterilised, experimented upon, tortured and exterminated in the Nazi concentration camps. It also explores the history of German racism and examines the treatment of Black prisoners-of-war. The film uses interviews with survivors and their families as well as archival material to document the Black German Holocaust experience.

The Riddle of the Stinson(1988)

A true story. In 1937, a routine passenger and mail flight crashes during bad weather on a flight between Brisbane and Sydney. A local bushman begins his own search, and finds the wreckage and two survivors ten days after the crash.

The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story(1999)

There's not a person in the world who wouldn't recognize Mickey Mouse. But until now, not many knew the man who originally gave shape, movement and personality to the world's most beloved icon. "The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story" takes you behind the scenes to meet Walt Disney's best friend and chief animator.

Cinecittà Babilonia: Sex, Drugs and Black Shirts(2017)

The story of Italian cinema under Fascism, a sophisticated film industry built around the founding of the Cinecittà studios and the successful birth of a domestic star system, populated by very peculiar artists among whom stood out several beautiful, magnetic, special actresses; a dark story of war, drugs, sex, censorship and tragedy.

Hitler's Games, Berlin 1936(2016)

Summer 1936 - The Berlin Olympics, organized by the Nazi regime on the eve of World War II, acted as a grand showcase for a Germany that was athletic, peaceful and rejuvenated. The violence and hate that until then had reigned in the streets of Berlin suddenly vanished. Adolf Hitler became the triumphant host of European countries he would soon try to invade or face in a deadly global conflict.

Enid(2009)

A poignant biography of one of the most successful and wildly-read writers of the 20th century. Her stories enthralled children everywhere but her personal struggles often proved too much.

Something the Lord Made(2004)

A dramatization of the relationship between heart surgery pioneers Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas.

The Massie Affair(2005)

In the waning days of summer 1931, Honolulu's tropical tranquility was shattered when a young Navy wife made a drastic allegation of rape against five nonwhite islanders. What unfolded in the following days and weeks was a racially-charged murder case that would make headlines across the nation, enrage Hawai'i's native population, and galvanize the island's law enforcers and the nation's social elite.

Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical(2006)

From an ominous Lecturer, a small 1930s middle American community learns of the Harper Affair, in which young Jimmy Harper finds his life of promise turn into a life of debauchery and murder thanks to the new drug menace marijuana. Along the way, he receives help from his girlfriend Mary and Jesus Himself, but always finds himself in the arms of the Reefer Man and the rest of the denizens of the Reefer Den.

Best Actress(2000)

A Hollywood writer becomes embroiled while investigating into the lives of five fictitious actresses all nominated for the Academy Award for best actress.

Atatürk, père de la Turquie moderne(2023)

Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story(2018)

The life and career of the hailed Hollywood movie star and underappreciated genius inventor, Hedy Lamarr.

From Caligari to Hitler(2015)

Film journalist and critic Rüdiger Suchsland examines German cinema from 1919, when the Republic of Weimar is born, to 1933, when the Nazis come into power. (Followed by Hitler's Hollywood, 2017.)

My Family and Other Animals(2005)

An English family relocates to sunny Greece in the months before WWII.

The Naked Civil Servant(1975)

Story of the life of Quentin Crisp, an Englishman who was brave enough to live his life according to his own style even in the hostile days of WW2.