These are recommended MOVIES FOR AMERICAN AFFAIRS

To read about the movies: go to The International Movie Database and search for the movie To watch trailers: go to videodetective and search for the movie

To add to the list: mail me your movie and category at judy@kumagaku.ac.jp

Original list at: teachwithmovies.com

1629 - 1750; The Colonial Period

1750 - 1812: Creating the Nation

  • 1776 (U.S./1750 - 1812)
  • The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere (U.S./1750 - 1812)
  • The Frontier and The West
  • Barbary Coast
  • Fort Apache
  • High Noon (U.S./The Frontier & the West, 1865 - 1913)
  • The Ox-Bow Incident (U.S./The Frontier and the West; 1865 - 1913)

1812 - 1860: Manifest Destiny and Prelude to the Civil War

  • Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided
  • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
  • Amistad
  • Hawaii

1860 - 1865: The Civil War

  • Gettysburg
  • Glory
  • Gone With the Wind
  • Little Women 1994
  • The Red Badge of Courage 1951

1865 - 1913: Reconstruction and the Beginning of the Age of Invention

  • An American Tail 1986
  • The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman 1974

Edison: The Wizard of Light 1998 The Eleanor Roosevelt Story 1965 1975 Hester Street 1947 Life With Father 1962 The Music Man 1955 Oklahoma! 1957 Old Yeller 1943 The Ox-Bow Incident 1978 The Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk 1951 Show Boat 1999 Winslow Homer: An American Original

1913 - 1929: The First World War and the Roaring 20s

1949 no All The King's Men (U.S./1913 - 1941) 2005 tv no Boystown (U.S./1913 - 1929 & Nebraska;) 1953 no The Glenn Miller Story (Biography; Music/Popular; U.S.: 1929 - 1941 - 1945) 1960 yes Inherit the Wind (Cinema; U.S./1913 - 1929, 1945 - 1991 & Tennessee) 1946 yes It's a Wonderful Life (U.S./1913 - 1945) 1980 no The Jazz Singer (Cinema; U.S./1913 - 1929, Diversity & New York) 1940 yes Knute Rockne -- All American (Sports/Football; U.S./1913 - 1929) 1987 yes Matewan (U.S./1913 - 1929, Diversity & West Virginia) 1962 yes To Kill A Mockingbird (U.S./1929 - 1941, the Law & Diversity;) 1945 no A Tree Grows In Brooklyn (U.S./1913 - 1929, Diversity & New York)

1929 - 1941: The Great Depression and the Clouds of War

1937 yes Captains Courageous (U.S./1929 - 1941 & Massachusets;) 1940 no The Grapes of Wrath (U.S./1929 - 1941) 1936 yes Modern Times (Cinema; U.S./1929-1941)

1941 - 1945: The Second World War

1942 yes Casablanca (U.S./1941 - 1945) 1989 no Fat Man and Little Boy (U.S./1941 - 1945) 1988 tv no Hiroshima Maiden (U.S./1941 - 1991) 1961 no Judgment at Nuremberg (U.S./1941 - 1945,) 1962 yes The Longest Day (U.S./1941 - 1945) 1990 yes Memphis Belle (Aviation; U.S./1941 - 1945) 1995 yes A Midnight Clear (U.S./1941-1945) 1976 yes Midway (U.S./1941 - 1945) 1970 yes Patton (Biography; U.S./1941 - 1945) 1958 no South Pacific (Drama/Musicals; U.S./1941 - 1945) 1970 yes Tora! Tora! Tora! (U.S./1941 - 1945) 1995 tv no Tuskegee Airmen (Aviation; U.S./1941 - 1945) 1949 yes Twelve O'Clock High (Aviation; U.S./1941-1945) 1999 yes Snow falling On Cedars

1945 - 1991: The Cold War, Korea and Vietnam; The Civil Rights Movement

1957 yes 12 Angry Men (U.S./1945 - 1991 & The Law) 1976 yes All the President's Men 1995 yes Apollo 13 1974 no Conrack 1986 yes Desert Bloom 1965 no Eleanor Roosevelt story 1964 yes Fail-Safe 1989 yes Field of Dreams (Sports/Baseball; U.S./1945 - 1991 & Iowa; Char. Dev.: Grieving; Father/Son; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness) [10+] 1947 yes A Gentleman's Agreement (U.S./1945 - 1991 & Diversity; Char. Dev.: Male Role Model; Female Role Model; Parenting; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness; Respect) [12+] 1996 yes Ghosts of Mississippi (U.S./1945 - Present, Diversity, the Law & Mississippi; Char. Dev.: Courage; Justice; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness, Responsibility; Citizenship) [12+] 1967 yes Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (U.S./ 1945 - 1991 & Diversity; Char. Dev.: Families in Crisis; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Respect) [10+; Captioned Version Available] 1952 yes High Noon (U.S./The Frontier & the West, 1865 - 1913 and 1945 - 1991; Char. Dev.: Marriage; Leadership; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness, Responsibility; Citizenship) [11+; Captioned Version Available] 1986 yes Hoosiers (Sports/Basketball; U.S. 1945 - 1991 & Indiana; Char. Dev.: Teamwork; Alcohol and Drug Abuse; Male Role Model; Father/Son; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness, Responsibility, Caring) [11+; Suggested Answers to Discussion Questions] 1993 no The Joy Luck Club (U.S./1945 - 1991, Diversity; California; World/China; Char. Dev.: Mother/Daughter/ Surviving; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Caring) [14+] 1990 yes The Long Walk Home (U.S./1945 - 1991, Diversity & Alabama; Char. Dev.: Female Role Model; Breaking Out; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness; Respect) [12+] 1995 no Mr. Holland's Opus (Music/Classical; U.S./1945 - 1991; Char. Dev.: Education; Male Role Model; Parenting; Father/Son; Mother/Son; Marriage; Disabilities; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility; Citizenship; Caring; Respect) [10+] 1986 yes Native Son (U.S./1945 - 1991, Diversity & Illinois; Literature/U.S.; Char. Dev.: Justice; Friendship; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Respect; Responsibility; Fairness) [15 ; Captioned Version Available] 1983 no Never Cry Wolf (Science-Technology, The Environment; U.S./1945 - 1991; Alaska; Char. Dev.: Caring for Animals; Courage; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Respect) [10+] 1999 yes October Sky (Space Exploration; U.S./1945 - 1991 & West Virginia; Science-Technology; Char. Dev.: Parenting; Father/Son; Mother/Son; Breaking Out; Friendship; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility; Caring) [10+] 1954 yes On The Waterfront (U.S./1945 - 1991 & New York; Cinema; Char. Dev.: Redemption, Breaking Out; Brothers; Romantic Relationships; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility) [12+; Captioned Version Available] 1994 no Quiz Show (U.S./1945 - 1991 & New York; Char. Dev.: Ambition; Father/Son; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness) [11+] 1961 yes A Raisin in the Sun (U.S./1945 - 1991, Diversity & Illinois; Drama/U.S; Char. Dev.: Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Marriage, Families in Crisis; Female Role Model; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Respect; Fairness) [12+] 1983 yes The Right Stuff (U.S./1945 - 1991; Aviation; Space Exploration; Char. Dev.: Friendship; Teamwork, Courage; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility) [12+] 1966 yes The Russians Are Coming! The Russians are Coming! (U.S./1945 - 1991 & Massachusetts; Char. Dev.: Peace/Peacemakers; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Caring) [8 - 12] 1957 yes Sayonara (U.S./1945 - 1991 & Diversity; World/Japan; Char. Dev.: Male Role Model; Friendship; Romantic Relationships; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness; Respect) [12+] 1964 no Seven Days in May (U.S./1945 - 1991; Char. Dev.: Rebellion; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Trustworthiness; Responsibility) [12+] 1988 no Stand and Deliver (U.S./1941 - 1996, Diversity & California; Char. Dev.: Male Role Model; Self-esteem; Education; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility; Citizenship) [12+] 2000 yes Thirteen Days (U.S./1945 - 1991; World/Russia & The Cold War; Char. Dev.: Leadership; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility) [12+; Suggested Answers to Discussion Questions] 1988 yes Tucker: The Man and His Dream (U.S./1945-1991; Science-Technology; Char. Dev: Ambition; Courage; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Responsibility; Fairness) [10+] 1961 yes West Side Story (Drama/Musicals; U.S./1945 - 1991, Diversity & New York; Dance/Performance; Char. Dev.: Fighting; Revenge; Romantic Relationships; Bad Associations; Moral-Ethical Emphasis: Respect; Caring; Citizenship) [12+; Captioned Version Available] 1985 yes White Nights

1991 - Present

1996 yes Courage Under Fire 1994 yes Hoop Dreams 1999 yes The Insider 1999 yes Music of the Heart 1995 yes Outbreak 2000 yes Pay It Forward 2002 yes The Rookie 1995 no Small Wonders 1998 no Smoke Signals

		12 Angry Men—陪審制度
		Born on the 4th of July—ベトナム戦争
		Bowling for Columbine—鉄砲社会
		Color Purple—人種差別
		Columbus—コロンバス
		Dances with Wolves—Native Americans
		Deer Hunter—ベトナム戦争
		Erin Brokovich—Legal system and big business
		Gone with the Wind—南北戦争
		Good Morning Vietnam—ベトナム戦争
		Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner—人種差別
		JFK—ケネディ政権と暗殺
		Kramer vs. Kramer—family and divorce
		Malcolm X—civil rights
		Pearl Harbor—world war II (pacific war)
		Pocahontas—Early America
		Saving Private Ryanベトナム戦争
		Snow Falling on Cedars 第二次大戦の日系人に対する差別
		Sting 大不況
		The Long Walk Home 人種差別とcivil rights
		13 days – Cuban Missile Crisis
		Apollo 13
		K-19
		Bonnie and Clyde
		Panther