The 40 most popular chinese history movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


Hero
2002 · 1h 39m · HK
During China's Warring States period, a district prefect arrives at the palace of Qin Shi Huang, claiming to have killed the three assassins who had made an attempt on the king's life three years ago.


Dunhuang Warriors
2026 · 2h 3m · CN
During a time of unrest in Shazhou, a once-prosperous Tang Dynasty outpost now under Tibetan control, a rebellion led by Zhang Yichao sparks hope for liberation. As the conflict intensifies, a group of unlikely heroes—including a thief, a deserter, and a general’s daughter—unite to fight for their people’s freedom.


Legends of the Condor Heroes: The Gallants
2025 · 2h 27m · CN
Under Genghis Khan, the Mongolian army pushes west to destroy the Jin Dynasty, setting its sights on the Song Dynasty next. Amid internal conflicts among martial arts schools, Guo Jing unites the Central Plains' warriors to defend Xiangyang, embodying courage and loyalty in the fight for the nation.


Red Cliff
2008 · 2h 25m · CN
In 208 A.D., in the final days of the Han Dynasty, shrewd Prime Minster Cao convinced the fickle Emperor Han the only way to unite all of China was to declare war on the kingdoms of Xu in the west and East Wu in the south. Thus began a military campaign of unprecedented scale. Left with no other hope for survival, the kingdoms of Xu and East Wu formed an unlikely alliance.


Ip Man 3
2015 · 1h 45m · CN
When a band of brutal gangsters led by a crooked property developer make a play to take over the city, Master Ip is forced to take a stand.


Red Cliff II
2009 · 2h 21m · CN
The battle of Red Cliff continues and the alliance between Xu and East Wu is fracturing. With Cao Cao's massive forces on their doorstep, will the kingdoms of Xu and East Wu survive?


The Eight Hundred
2020 · 2h 27m · CN
In 1937, eight hundred Chinese soldiers fight under siege from a warehouse in the middle of the Shanghai battlefield, completely surrounded by the Japanese army.


Dead to Rights
2025 · 2h 17m · CN
During the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, a postman poses as a photo developer, helping Japanese forces while secretly sheltering Chinese refugees. He later risks his life evacuating them and revealing evidence of the atrocities.


The Warlords
2007 · 2h 6m · CN
The civil war in China has ruined many lives including General Pang's. A wounded General Pang is saved by a beautiful young woman along with two other men. Together they vow to eradicate the rebels.


The Flowers of War
2011 · 2h 26m · CN
A Westerner finds refuge with a group of women in a church during Japan's rape of Nanking in 1937. Posing as a priest, he attempts to lead the women to safety.


Ip Man
2008 · 1h 46m · CN
A semi-biographical account of Yip Man, the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun. The film focuses on events surrounding Ip that took place in the city of Foshan between the 1930s to 1940s during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Directed by Wilson Yip, the film stars Donnie Yen in the lead role, and features fight choreography by Sammo Hung.


Dragon Blade
2015 · 2h 7m · HK
Huo An, the commander of the Protection Squad of the Western Regions, was framed by evil forces and becomes enslaved. On the other hand, a Roman general escapes to China after rescuing the Prince. The heroic duo meet in the Western Desert and a thrilling story unfolds.


Ip Man 4: The Finale
2019 · 1h 45m · CN
Following the death of his wife, Ip Man travels to San Francisco to ease tensions between the local kung fu masters and his star student, Bruce Lee, while searching for a better future for his son.


The Founding of a Republic
2009 · 2h 18m · CN
The tale of one man who fought against the tyranny of a ruler and led his people in battle in the ultimate sacrifice for his country.


Red Sorghum
1988 · 1h 31m · CN
An old leper who owned a remote sorghum winery dies. Jiu'er, the wife bought by the leper, and her lover, identified only as "my Grandpa" by the narrator, take over the winery and set up an idealized quasi-matriarchal community headed by Jiu'er. When the Japanese invaders subject the area to their rule and cut down the sorghum to make way for a road, the community rises up and resists as the sorghum grows anew.


The Battle at Lake Changjin II: Water Gate Bridge
2022 · 2h 29m · CN
Commander Wu Qianli leads the 7th Infantry Company soldiers to Funchilin Pass where they are tasked to destroy a bridge to stop enemy troops from retreating.


Bodyguards and Assassins
2009 · 2h 19m · CN
In 1905, revolutionist Sun Yat-sen came to Hong Kong to meet revolutionary comrades. The Qing government sent a group of killers to murder him. Ordinary citizens from all walks of life joined together, blocking the streets and fighting off the assassins to keep Sun Yat-sen safe.


Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon
2008 · 1h 41m · CN
The aging Zhao embarks on his final and greatest campaign, a road to adventure that will crown his name in glory for all time.


Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen
2010 · 1h 45m · HK
The Japanese forces occupy Shanghai and slowly start spreading terror in the city. Chen Zhen, who was presumed dead, returns to fight against the Japanese and put an end to their tyrannical rule.


Brotherhood of Blades II: The Infernal Battlefield
2017 · 2h · CN
An imperial guard searches for the truth behind a conspiracy that framed him and his partners. The proof of his innocence lies with a wanted woman named Bei Zhai... but will she reveal what she knows? In this intense prequel to BROTHERHOOD OF BLADES, the only thing he can truly trust is his sword.


An Empress and the Warriors
2008 · 1h 39m · CN
After the death of her father, a woman is forced to take over as empress and fight to save her kingdom.


Ip Man: The Awakening
2021 · 1h 16m · CN
When a young Master Ip stops a kidnapping, he ignites a turf war with a ruthless human-trafficking ring. In retaliation, the gang kidnaps one of Ip Man's close friends, forcing him to face the group's brutal boxing champion head-on.


Air Strike
2018 · 2h 7m · CN
An American pilot is sent to a Chinese province to teach a crew of would-be pilots how to fly war planes against the Japanese during World War II.


Full River Red
2023 · 2h 37m · CN
During China's Song Dynasty, a mysterious murder occurs at Chancellor Quin Hui's palace after meeting delegates from the neighboring Jin Dynasty. The members become embroiled not just in a murder mystery, but a larger conspiracy concerning the fate of the empire.


The Lychee Road
2025 · 2h 2m · CN
A Tang Dynasty minor official risks everything to deliver lychees across China. Li Shande, middle-aged and struggling, sees this dangerous mission as his last chance for success.


Break Through the Wu River
1961 · 1h 29m · CN
Story of the leading regiment of the First Branch of the Chinese Red Army for Workers and Peasants who defeats a brigade of enemy on the Wu River and conquers the river by 3 days of intelligent combat.


1911
2011 · 1h 39m · CN
China's first President Sun Yat-Sen and military commander Huang Xing lead the revolutionary Wuchang Uprising in a bid to put an end to the reign of the Qing Dynasty.


The Volunteers: The Battle of Life and Death
2024 · 2h 24m · CN
The movie focuses on the battle of Cheolwon, where the 63rd Army of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPVA) was ordered to enter the battlefield of Cheolwon in May 1951, just after a month-long battle, to fight against four divisions of the United Nations Army (UNA). The volunteers fought with bloodshed and finally brought the enemy to the negotiation table.


The Chinese Widow
2017 · 1h 37m · CN
It’s 1941 and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor has destroyed America’s morale. The US President Franklin D. Roosevelt then decides to risk it all by bombing Tokyo and raise more hope for his citizens. After completing its mission, a unit of the US Air Force is forced to make an emergency landing in China. Its commander Jack Turner (Emilie Hirsch) barely survives but gets rescued by Ying (Crystal Liu), a local widow who will stop at nothing to hide him from the Japanese occupant.


The Banquet
2006 · 2h 11m · CN
Crown Prince Wu Luan is in love with Little Wan but left heartbroken when she marries his father, the emperor. The emperor's brother, Li, kills him and Wu Luan tries to avenge his father's death.


Hibiscus Town
1987 · 2h 44m · CN
Based on a novel by the same name written by Gu Hua, a melodrama about the life and travails of a young woman who lives through the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution.


The Assassins
2012 · 1h 47m · CN
In his old age, Cao Cao assesses his former military tactics, love, and relationship with his son.


Assembly
2007 · 2h 3m · CN
Follows a soldier trying to gain recognition for comrades who died in 1948, at a turning point in the civil war between the communists and the nationalist forces of the Kuomintang.


Rescue at Dongji
2025 · 2h 14m · CN
Inspired by the real life rescue of over 300 British soldiers in 1942, Dongji Rescue is a rousing, action-packed story of heroism on the high seas. When the Japanese warship Lisbon Maru is torpedoed off the coast of Dongji Island, the lives of over 300 British POWs on board are at risk of being claimed by the sea. Their only hope is a small group of defiant Chinese fisherman who will do anything to rescue and protect them from their captors.


Youth
2017 · 2h 16m · CN
A group of performing art troupe members each face their own trials and tribulations in Chengdu; from escaping a family scandal to dealing with unrequited love, each experiences rejection that shapes their lives.


God of War
2017 · 2h 8m · CN
During the 16th century, pirates rule the Chinese coastline, pillaging the small villages and terrorizing the citizens. When maverick leader Commander Yu enlists the help of a sharp young general, they devise a plan to defeat the pirates. A violent clash of wit and weapons will decide who will rule the land.


Confucius
2010 · 2h 5m · CN
In 500 B.C., during Chinas famed 'Spring and Autumn Period', Kong Ze (Confucius), a commoner reverred for his outstanding wisdom, is made Minister of Law in the ancient Kingdom of Lu. Under his inspired leadership, Lu ascends to new heights but becomes a target of conquest for the warlike nation of Qi. Threatened with annihilation by their powerful neighbour, a desperate people turn to their greatest teacher to lead their most powerful army. When Confucius delivers a stunning victory against all odds, a jealous aristocracy sets out to destroy him, but they should never under-estimate a remarkable man whose wisdom is more powerful than the sword.


Chang'an
2023 · 2h 48m · CN
A few years after the Anshi Rebellion, Tang dynasty military commander Gao Shi suffers a defeat in a battle threatening Chang'an. Trapped in the besieged city, he recalls his lifelong friendship with the acclaimed poet Li Bai.


City of Life and Death
2009 · 2h 12m · CN
In 1937, during the height of the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Imperial Japanese Army has just captured Nanjing, then-capital of the Republic of China. What followed was known as the Nanking Massacre, or the Rape of Nanking, a six week period wherein tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers and civilians were killed.


The Last Tycoon
2012 · 1h 58m · CN
Cheng, a young man who is set up by the chief of police, must leave the life he knows and Qiu, the woman he loves, to start again. After escaping prison Cheng quickly and violently moves his way up the ladder of Shanghais criminal underworld to become on the most powerful mob bosses in Shanghais history. But fame and notoriety take their toll when Cheng finds himself stuck between the looming Japanese army and the scheming local secret service. Matters are only made worse when he bumps into the love of his life QIU, along with her writer husband. Will love re-kindle in the dusk of an era?
Chinese cinema encompasses the Fifth Generation directors who broke through internationally in the 1980s, the wuxia martial-arts epic, and one of the largest domestic box offices in the world.
Historical films reconstruct the past, whether faithfully or as deliberate myth-making. The genre attracts big budgets and big performances, and it reveals as much about the era that produced the film as the one on screen.