History: Best movies about Italian Renaissance

When two young members of feuding families meet, forbidden love ensues.

In Shakespeare's classic play, the Montagues and Capulets, two families of Renaissance Italy, have hated each other for years, but the son of one family and the daughter of the other fall desperately in love and secretly marry.

Young love is poisoned by a generations long feud between two noble families.

Brutish, fortune-hunting scoundrel Petruchio tames his wealthy, shrewish wife, Katharina.

Verdi's famous opera is brought to life in this production. The immortal tale of the noble Moor and his beautiful young wife, and of his lieutenant, whose jealousy and lust for power lead him to commit the ultimate treason.

In 16th century Venice, when a merchant must default on a large loan from an abused Jewish moneylender for a friend with romantic ambitions, the bitterly vengeful creditor demands a gruesome payment instead.

A Venetian courtesan becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft.

In the fifteenth century, Pope Alexander VI tries to control all power in Italy with the help of his several sons, through murder, intrigue, war, and marriage alliances.

The ruthless Rodrigo Borgia intends to become Pope and will not let anything stand in his way.

Story of the rise and the fall of the Renaissance dynasty.

In the early 16th century, Italy is ruled by the powerful Borgia family, led by César Borgia and his sister Lucrètè. In a ruthless power play, César plots to have his sister's husband murdered. But without her brother's knowledge, Lucrècè has taken a strong lover who will challenge the Borgias.

A female Borgia is sent out to live up to the family name by killing someone, but falls in love with her intended victim.

A portrait of the bloody dynasty that spawned a pope, Alexander VI, as well as the role model for Machiavelli's "The Prince," his son Cesare Borgia, and a legend of femme duplicity, daughter Lucrezia Borgia.

Cesare Borgia--a cardinal in the Catholic church, a confidant of the Pope and a member of one of the wealthiest and most powerful families in 16th-century Italy--must deal with a host of political and personal crises. He is having problems with his mistress, and members of a secret society called The Black Carnation are out to assassinate him.

An unscrupulous agent for the Borgias suffers a change of heart when asked to betray a noble count and his much younger, very beautiful wife.

Giovanni Medici, the future leader of the Black Bands, has a last meeting in a convent with his dying mother Caterina Sforza, listening to the re-enactment of her life.

The history of the first victim of modern artillery and its moving agony, amidst conspiracies and betrayals of the powerful. Life and death of Giovanni De' Medici, a young brave captain in the war of Charles V against the Pope, in the first half of 1500.

Medieval soldier of fortune Ettore is travelling through Europe with his partners looking for fight where they can earn some money. When they come across a Spanish castle under siege by the French army, Ettore first bides his time to determine which side is the winning one (and thus more likely to pay his fee). This is as first the French, but the treatment he receives from them is unpleasant enough to make him change his mind and turn to the Spanish side. Somehow, Ettore must rally the weakened Spanish troops to battle their enemy long enough for reinforcements to arrive.

Adaptation of the comic play by Macchiavelli about a man's attempt to bed a woman unable to have a child by pretending to be a doctor.

Rome, 1527. Massimo Colonna is in love with Angela, a member of the Orsinis, the Colonnas'arch enemies. As she is officially engaged to Tancredi Serra, the latter, a faithless individual, has Massimo accused of the murder of Prince Orsini whereas he himself has woven it. Massimo is rejected by an outraged Angela and banned from Rome.Meanwhile the Eternal City has to face a brutal attack by armed invaders from Spain. The Spaniards are about to storm Rome when Massimo and his troops appear. The invading forces are defeated and Massimo is acclaimed by the crowd. After clearing his name, he can marry Angela.

A woman of English extraction born in the German city of Ingelheim in the ninth century disguises herself as a man and rises through the Vatican ranks.

An adaptation of nine stories from Boccaccio's "Decameron".

Dramatization of events in the life of St. Francis of Assisi from before his conversion experience through his audience with the pope, including his friendship with St. Clare.

Miniseries dramatizing the life of the Italian Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519).

The biographical story of Michelangelo's troubles while painting the Sistine Chapel at the urging of Pope Julius II.