A historical drama (also period drama , period piece or just period ) is a dramatic work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fictional elements such as creative dialogue or fictional scenes which aim to compress separate events or illustrate a broader factual narrative. The biographical film is a type of historical drama which generally focuses on a single individual or well-defined group. Historical dramas can include romances , adventure films , and swashbucklers .
4-472: The Lyons Mail is a 1931 British historical mystery adventure film directed by Arthur Maude and starring John Martin Harvey , Norah Baring , and Ben Webster . It was based on the 1877 play The Lyons Mail by Charles Reade which in turn was based on his 1854 play The Courier of Lyons . The film was also released under the alternative title Courrier de Lyon . It had previously been made into
8-671: A 1916 silent film The Lyons Mail . The story is based on the Courrier de Lyon case . It was shot at the Twickenham Studios in London . Filmed in 1930, it was to be leading actor John Martin-Harvey's only sound film. This article related to a British film of the 1930s is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Historical film Historical drama can be differentiated from historical fiction , which generally present fictional characters and events against
12-832: A backdrop of historical events. A period piece may be set in a vague or general era such as the Middle Ages , or a specific period such as the Roaring Twenties , or the recent past. In different eras different subgenres have risen to popularity, such as the westerns and sword and sandal films that dominated North American cinema in the 1950s. The costume drama is often separated as a genre of historical dramas. Early critics defined them as films focusing on romance and relationships in sumptuous surroundings, contrasting them with other historical dramas believed to have more serious themes. Other critics have defended costume dramas, and argued that they are disparaged because they are
16-545: A genre directed towards women. Historical dramas have also been described as a conservative genre, glorifying an imagined past that never existed. Historical drama may include mostly fictionalized narratives based on actual people or historical events, such as the history plays of Shakespeare , Apollo 13 , The Tudors , Braveheart , Chernobyl , Enemy at the Gates , Les Misérables , and Titanic . Works may include references to real-life people or events from
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