Welcome to Reel History! On this podcast we talk about historical movies and television shows, anything that claims to be based on a true story, and we check – how bad did they mess it up? What was life actually like during that time period? That’s why we’re here – to separate the real history from the Reel History!
Hosted by two Irish history buffs and a Swede who doesn’t know anything about history. Part of the Shows What You Know podcast network. Follow us @Reel_History and don’t forget to rate and review on Apple Podcasts!
ROME II | The Die is Cast (49 BC – 44 BC)
Jun 15, 2021
Show notes
You’ve heard of Julius Caesar right? Sure you have, you don’t live under a rock. That’s a good start as our second episode on Rome covers the First Triumvirate. Caesar and his pals – history’s richest man Crassus and the swashbuckling Pompey the Great – came together to run roughshod over the ailing Republic. But who were they before they took political control?
We talk about the life of Julius Caesar from dodging a death order for refusing a divorce and racking up just a frankly extraordinary debt to adventuring around the Mediterranean and being captured by pirates. Rome’s most famous man about town; Caesar went from being the most talked about style icon among the youth of Rome to a general who committed genocide, wiping out a million people in his (illegal) Gallic Wars.
One part Jeff Bezos, one part Tywin Lannister, Marcus Crassus Dives was history’s first evil property baron. We discuss his role in propping up the political alliance that would ruin the Republic. From putting down the Slave General Spartacus to an ill-fated invasion of modern-day Iraq. This is the man who once said ‘you aren’t really rich until you can afford your own army.’
And not to forget the Republic’s military darling! Join us as we discuss why Gnaeus Pompey would be known to history as ‘Pompey the Great.’ Once Caesar’s greatest friend and ally (as well as weirdly his son-in-law…don’t worry about it), by the time of Caesar’s ascent, Pompey’s star was on the wane. Would the strain this placed on their friendship lead to a break? Was Rome big enough for the both of them?
No. Obviously not.
It’s episode 2 of 4! Rome’s Republic was punch drunk from a century of civil strife and war. Would Cicero and the Senate manage to overcome the Gang of Three and restore democracy to the Eternal City or was it too late?
Illegal wars, intrigue, familial disputes and treachery. Caesar is at the Rubicon.
The lines are drawn. The die is cast.
Sources Tom Holland- Rubicon (2003) Plutarch- The Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans (Benediction Classics, Oxford 2015)
ROME I | Rise of the Republic (753 BC – 49 BC)
Jun 01, 2021
Show notes
Join us for the first episode of our deep dive on the history that inspired the BBC/HBO series Rome (2005-2017). Oh you say you know nothing about the Roman Empire? Perfect, this is the pod for you, citizen.
There’s plenty of
melodrama as we discuss how the familial feuds and incestuous
relationships among the Roman elite led to a critical break point
with the Royal family and Brutus (no, not that one) led a Republican
revolution, expelling the Kings forever.
Rome went from a
series of villages on 7 hills populated by runaway slaves, vagabonds
and women stolen from local tribes to become the most influential
empire in the history of the western world. Through existential
battles against local rivals, raids by savage Gauls and a cataclysmic
war against a Greek King, Rome survived it all.
Hannibal is at the
gates! Find out how Rome’s victory against the man who marched
elephants over the Alps led them to dominate the Mediterranean from
Spain to Greece. But final victory over Carthage was only the
beginning of the story; we wax lyrical about the lower classes rising
up against the increasing power of the rich nobles as societal issues
come to the fore. How does a government designed to run a city rule
over an empire?
Spoiler- Badly. It’s
terrible…people die. A lot.
This is Roman
history 101! We’ll give you an overview of 700 (yes, seven hundred)
years of Roman history, taking you from Romulus and Remus to the man
who’s name looms large over it all: Caesar.
It may have taken
them more than a day but we take about an hour.
Sources Mary Beard- SPQR (2016) Tom Holland- Rubicon (2003) Cassius Dio- Roman History (1989) Livy- The Early History of Rome (2002) Mike Duncan- The Storm Before the Storm (2017)
Inglourious Basterds (2009) | Vive La Résistance! (1940)
May 18, 2021
Show notes
Greetings, partisans, to episode 5 of Reel History Season 2!
Join us as we focus our lens on a bombastic and brilliant tale of ‘a bushwhacking gorilla army doing one thing and one thing only – killing Nazis’. These memorable opening lines are spoken in the southern drawl of Brad Pitt’s Lieutenant Aldo in the alternate history war film ‘Inglourious Basterds’ (2009).
Quentin Tarantino stamps his trademark style on this classic revenge flick set once upon a time in Nazi occupied France to the tune of David Bowie singing “putting out fire with gasoline”.
Expertly cast and shot, this film reels out several unforgettable, slow-boil scenes as we follow Jewish orphan Shosanna (Mélanie Laurent) on a quest for retribution, all while stalked by the ‘Jew hunter’ Col. Hans Landa – superbly played by Christopher Waltz. The plot thickens when Lt. Aldo’s rampaging crack troop of Jewish soldiers attempt a daring ambush of the Nazi high command in the very cinema where Shosanna plans her own revenge!
Now none of this plot happened, and the film doesn’t pretend it did, but we thought it was a worthy excuse to dive into the real history behind the era!
We learn if such a boisterous band of Jewish fighters existed and why France fell flat as a crêpe to the Nazis in just a few weeks, then discussing the murky world of Marshal Pétain’s Vichy puppet state and the heavy toll paid for the occupation.
We find out how the fire of resistance exploded to form ‘l’armée des ombres’ as the battle for the soul of France was fought between General De Gaulle’s Free French forces and communist partisans who held two very different visions for the future of France.
Sources: ‘Modern France’ by Jonathan Fenby. ‘Fighters in the Shadows’ by Robert Gildea.
Master and Commander (2003) | The Napoleonic Wars (1805)
May 04, 2021
Show notes
Welcome aboard for episode 4 of Reel History Season 2!
To quote Jakob – “this week we’ve gone nautical, lads” so all hands on deck as we man the canons and survey the horizon for dark sails in the epic period war drama “ Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” (2003).
Although it’s got Russell Crowe as the gregarious Captain “lucky” Jack Aubrey, this is far from just Gladiator on the sea. Peter Weir delivers a tense ocean-spanning, cat-and-mouse chase which immerses us in the claustrophobic, choppy waters of life on the damp and cramped – HMS Surprise.
This charming, critically acclaimed film is drawn from Patrick O’ Brian’s Aubrey Maturin novels. It contains a heady mix of explosive naval battles, deception, sea shanties, violin sessions and even a weird and wonderful stop off at the Galápagos Islands.
Set in 1805, all this is of course just a back drop to the wider global battle for supremacy between Britain and its allies against French dominated Europe. Napoleon is gearing up to carry out a naval invasion of Britain with 167,000 French troops hastily brushing up on their English to invade Kent at a moments notice.
Join us as we discuss this fight to the death, real life on a ship, Napoleons dastardly plans, the “Great Terror”, Trafalgar and much more as we learn why Admiral Nelson famously said ‘ I never trust a Corsican or a Frenchman’.
Sources ’The Age of Revolution 1789-1848’ by Eric Hobsbawn ‘Trafalgar : Countdown to Battle, 1803 -1805’ by Alan Schom ‘Napoleon the Great’ by Andrew Roberts
Akira Kurosawa has stood the test of time as one of the most influential filmmakers ever, and his 1954 big-budget historical film Seven Samurai is a huge part of that legacy. A t the time, Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai was the most expensive film ever made in Japan, and you can certainly see that money on the screen as outstrips most modern films in ambition and scope.
In this 1954 samurai epic, a farming village is beset by bandits and in desperation they hire a group of seven samurai to protect them.
While much of the filmmaking and story might seem commonplace to us now, that is because this film has been copied countless times (including the literal Western remake “The Magnificent Seven”) and indeed this is probably the archetype of all “getting the gang together” films, stretching from plucky space samurai in Star Wars to heist films like Ocean’s Eleven.
In episode three of Reel History season 2 we dive deep into Japanese history, zooming all the way back to the first emperor of Japan — supposedly the start of the oldest continuous hereditary monarchy in the world — and track the societal developments that led to the formation of a fearsome warrior class and the outbreak of Sengoku Jidai (“Warring states period”, 1467 – 1615″), the intense century of civil war during which Seven Samurai takes place.
Like last week’s Apocalypto we’re happy to move beyond the limits of European history but that’s not the only change this week! As a once-in-a-lifetime treat, Jakob has taken over the role of researcher and presenter for this era, guiding us from retired emperors to mongol invasions, colour-coded hats to bushido myths… It’s time to show what you know about Japanese history!
If you have a moment we would appreciate a review on Apple Podcasts and you can follow us/tell a friend about the show on Twitter @reel_history.
Sources “A History of Japan” by John Godwin Caiger and Richard Mason “Bushido” by Inazo Nitobe
We also recommend these three YouTube channels: Linfamy, Voices of the past, The Shogunate
This week we dust off our mics, clear our throats and try not to choke as we digest the 2006 smash hit ‘Apocalypto’.
Mel Gibson delivers a heart thumping tropical jungle chase that is one part Rambo, one part Predator with a double serving of his trademark dollop of historical inaccuracy.
Set in early 1500s pre-Spanish Yucatán Mexico, we follow our hero Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) as he seeks to reunite with his stricken family, crossing a Mayan world in the midst of violent end-of-days chaos. Hot on his heels are a bunch of vicious assassins led by Middle Eye (Gerardo Taracena) and the wily Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) who are determined to hunt Jaguar Paw mercilessly across a beautifully shot lush but perilous landscape.
Sounds great right? Well, not exactly. Whilst the film delivers on many fronts, Mel’s crimes against historical accuracy have never been so grave! Tune in to find out how bad did he mess it up.
Given this hiccup we decided to explore what was really going on in the valley of Mexico when in 1519 the Spanish pitched their tent on the turf of the powerful Aztec / Mexica Emperor Montezuma.
Join us as we cast an eye on a moment often heralded as the ´birth of modern history’. We find out how the infamous Hernan Cortez and his ragtag army used shock and awe tactics and good old fashioned treachery to bring this complex, sophisticated civilization to its knees.
On this whirlwind adventure we discuss everything from the Maya, the Aztecs, the truth behind human sacrifice, astronomical prophecies and how Cortez and his companions famously ´suffered from a disease of the heart that could only be cured by gold’. All this with the bonus of listening to Michael struggle to pronounce words like Huitzilopochtli and Quatzalcoatl in a Irish midlands flat accent.
Sources “Conquistador: Hernan Cortes, King Montezuma, and the Last Stand of the Aztecs ” by Buddy Levy
A Knight’s Tale (2001) | Feudal Europe (1372)
Mar 23, 2021
Show notes
Season 2 of Reel History starts today! We’re aiming to release episodes every other week so please subscribe, leave us a review and tweet your history puns at us @reel_history.
A Knight’s Tale from 2001 is a sport films about jousting and while it has a tenuous connection to any real history it serves as an excellent jumping off point for a discussion about knights, jousting, courtly romance and intrigue.
Did you know that Heath Ledger’s Sir Ulrich von Liechtenstein was actually a real person? And while Paul Bettany’s depiction of Geoffrey Chaucer is a riot of WWE proportions, what connection is there really between this film and Chaucer’s “The Knight’s Tale” from The Canterbury Tales? Answers to all this and more about feudal Europe can be found in our SEASON PREMIERE of SEASON 2 off Reel History!
Sources “The
Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, the Power
Behind Five English” by Thomas Asbridge
Reel History Season 1 FINALE
Apr 05, 2020
Show notes
With 10 episodes we’re closing out season 1 of Reel History! In this finale episode we follow a more loose structure, having general chats about history and answering listener questions that have cropped up throughout the season. If you have any questions for us to answer in future episodes, don’t hesitate to get in touch via showswhatyouknowshow@gmail.com.
We’ll be back with season 2 after we’ve built up a buffer of episodes to release bi-weekly. Please take the time in between seasons to tell a friend, review Reel History on Apple Podcasts and check out our many sibling shows at showswhatyouknow.com!
Outlaw King (2018) | Robert the Bruce at War (1304)
Mar 22, 2020
Show notes
Welcome to episode nine of Reel History: Shows What You Know About Braveheart! Join us as we delve into 14th Century Britain and come to terms with the feudal struggle between the Kingdoms of Scotland and England. How can a man falling off a horse lead to decades of bloodshed? How does Robert the Bruce go from Earl of Carrick to become first a folk hero and then a national icon?
Feudal Britain is brought to life in this Netflix medieval epic, pitting Edward Longshanks “The Hammer of Scots,” and his apparently lunatic son against the resisting Scotland in a winner takes all battle for supremacy in the north. Join as we dissect Chris Pine’s role playing the legendary Outlaw King, Robert the Bruce.
As this is a brand new podcast (part of the Shows What You Know network) we’d be delighted if you’d take the time to leave a review on Apple Podcasts or check us out on Spotify!
Sources “Robert the Bruce: King of Scots” by Ronald McNair Scot “A Great and Terrible King – Edward I and the Forging of Britain” by Marc Morris
The Irishman (2019) | The American Mafia (1975)
Mar 08, 2020
Show notes
Welcome to Cut to Black: A Reel History Special. This is a crossover between two of our Shows What You Know podcasts! On Cut to Black we discuss The Sopranos; on Reel History we dig into the historical context of movies and television.
This episode bridges the gap between both podcasts as we’ll be using Scorsese’s The Irishman as a jumping-off point to discuss the formation of the mafia in the USA, so whether you’re hearing this on our Cut to Black feed or Reel History feed we believe there will be something in it for you!
So, I heard you paint houses? This week we tackle the Martin Scorsese mobster masterpiece, The Irishman! Join us in our special crossover episode with sister show Cut to Black as we discuss the origins of the American Mafia. How did the organisation of the Mafia Commission lead to deals with Union boss Jimmy Hoffa and what was the role of WWII veteran “the Irishman,” Frank Sheeran in Hoffa’s infamous disappearance? From the Five Points Gang to the Bay of Pigs invasion, we track the influence of the mob on shaping the 21st century.
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so all hands on deck as we man the canons and survey the horizon for dark sails 
in the epic period war drama “ Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” (2003).
