15 Understated Period Pieces on Netflix to Watch in March 2024

These 15 movies on Netflix might not have been in the spotlight when they first came out, but they're packed with beautiful costumes, breathtaking scenery, and characters that feel like real people from the past; it's all about getting lost in the details, from the way the sunlight hits a vintage dress to the sound of footsteps in a grand, old house.

1. The Wonder (2022)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 85%

In 1862 Ireland, English nurse Lib Wright is sent to a small village to observe Anna O'Donnell, an eleven-year-old girl who has supposedly survived without food for months, leading to a tense standoff between science and faith as Lib tries to uncover the truth behind Anna's fast, questioning the motives of those around her while grappling with her own past.

2. The Lords of Flatbush (1974)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 64%

In the 1950s, a group of leather-jacketed teens, including Chico and Stanley, navigate love, friendship, and the brink of adulthood in Brooklyn, facing challenges that test their loyalty to each other as they contend with the realities of growing up.

3. Out of Africa (1985)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 63%

Karen Blixen, a Danish baroness/plantation owner, recounts her life in 20th century colonial Kenya, her passionate love affair with free-spirited hunter Denys Finch Hatton, and her struggles with running a coffee plantation, set against the backdrop of the majestic African landscape.

4. The Good Shepherd (2006)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 56%

The tumultuous early history of the CIA is seen through the eyes of Edward Wilson, a Yale graduate and one of its founding officers, whose dedication to his work erodes his personal life and moral compass, reflecting the costs of secrecy and the impact on personal integrity.

5. The Great Debaters (2007)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

Inspired by a true story, Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College Texas, forms the school's first debate team, which goes on to challenge Harvard in the national championship, overcoming racial prejudices and personal challenges along the way.

6. Gifted Hands (2009)

Rotten Tomatoes Audience score: 85%

The biographical film follows the life of Ben Carson from his impoverished childhood in Detroit, through his struggles with anger and academic challenges, to becoming the world-renowned neurosurgeon who separates conjoined twins, highlighting his mother's unwavering support and his deep faith.

7. Bonnie & Clyde (2013)

Rotten Tomatoes Audience score: 38%

The infamous story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, the young lovers who embark on a crime spree during the Great Depression, robbing banks across the American South and Midwest, becoming media sensations and law enforcement's targets.

8. Big Eyes (2014)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 72%

In the 1950s and 1960s, artist Margaret Keane battles her husband, Walter, in court for the credit of her wildly popular paintings of children with large eyes, which Walter had claimed as his own work, leading to a landmark legal fight for artistic authorship.

9. My All American (2015)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 31%

The true story of Freddie Steinmark, an underdog on the college football field, whose determination and grit lead the University of Texas Longhorns to a championship season, before a devastating diagnosis of bone cancer changes his life forever.

10. Carol (2015)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

In 1950s New York, a young photographer, Therese Belivet, and an older woman, Carol Aird, navigating through a difficult divorce, embark on a forbidden affair that challenges societal norms and their own personal boundaries, risking everything in the name of love.

11. The Power of the Dog (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

In 1920s Montana, charismatic rancher Phil Burbank torments his brother George's new wife, Rose, and her son, Peter, until hidden truths and repressed feelings surface, leading to a tense and tragic showdown that upends their lives.

12. The Beguiled (2017)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 79%

During the Civil War, an injured Union soldier is taken in by the women of a Southern girls' boarding school, leading to jealousy and betrayal as his presence causes a sexual tension that erupts in violence, altering their lives forever.

13. Phantom Thread (2017)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

In 1950s London, renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock's meticulous life is disrupted by Alma, a strong-willed woman who becomes his muse and lover, challenging his notions of love and the carefully tailored life he controls.

14. The Dig (2021)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

On the eve of World War II, a wealthy widow, Edith Pretty, hires amateur archaeologist Basil Brown to excavate the burial mounds on her estate in Suffolk, leading to the historic discovery of the Sutton Hoo treasure, amidst personal revelations and the looming war.

15. Rebecca (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 38%

A young newlywed arrives at her husband's imposing family estate on the English coast, where she finds herself battling the shadow of his first wife, Rebecca, whose legacy lives on in the house long after her death, through the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers.