Since film was invented, we’ve been telling the stories of people and events that have actually happened. Though the highest-grossing films of all time are based on fiction (96 out of the top 100 domestic films are wholly fictional), oftentimes the prestige of the film industry is geared toward movies based on true stories. Five of the last ten Best Picture winners were based on true events and eight of the last ten Best Actor winners were awarded to actors playing characters based on real people.
This year alone has seen whole plethora of films based on true stories including The Finest Hours, Race, Eddie the Eagle, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Miracles from Heaven, Elvis & Nixon, Florence Foster Jenkins, Free State of Jones, War Dogs, Sully, Snowden, Masterminds, The Birth of a Nation, Hacksaw Ridge, Bleed for This, and The Founder. Director Peter Berg and actor Mark Wahlberg have even released two films based on true stories this year alone with Deepwater Horizon, based on the oil spill in the gulk; and now Patriots Day, based on the manhunt following the Boston Marathon bombings.
All of that in mind, we’ve put together the essentials, the 50 best movies based on true stories. Check them out below and sound off with your favorites in the comments!
50 best movies based on true story
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Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Sergei Eisentein's silent film is an essential film for movie lovers to see but is also based on the true story of the mutiny on board the Russian battleship Potemkin in 1905.
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Spartacus (1960)
Though many know Stanley Kubrick's films as being based on fictional works, his 1960 epic starring Kirk Douglas depicted the Roman slave revolt in the Third Servile War.
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Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
The David Lean film stars Peter O'Toole as T. E. Lawrence, the British diplomat that gained international attention for his aid during the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The film won seven Academy Awards and was inducted into the Library of Congress' film registry in 1991.
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The Miracle Worker (1962)
Legendary filmmaker Arthur Penn's telling of the relationship between Annie Sullivan and deaf-blind author and activist Helen Keller. Actresses Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke won Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress Oscars, respectively.
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The Great Escape (1963)
The John Sturges feature is based on the 175-man breakout of Allied prisoners of war from a German prison camp featuring an all-star ensemble cast, including Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, and Donald Pleasence.
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The Sound of Music (1965)
It's easy to forget that the Julie Andrews classic is based on a true story, especially with all those musical numbers, but the Von Trapp family's escape very much happened.
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Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
Though it plays fast and loose with the truth, the film starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford was based on a pair of true Wild West outlaws.
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Patton (1970)
Based on the life of General George S. Patton, actor George C. Scott delivers the performance of a lifetime. Patton led Allied troops in World War II in the North African campaign, the Allied invasion of Sicily, and during the final throws of the Battle of the Bulge.
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Serpico (1973)
The Sidney Lumet film stars Al Pacino as Frank Serpico, a real New York City policeman who exposed corruption in the department.
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All the President's Men (1976)
Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman star as reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein who break the details on the Watergate scandal, which lead to the resignation of President Richard Nixon.
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Bound for Glory (1976)
Directed by Hal Ashby, the film stars David Carradine as Woody Guthrie, the folk singer and social advocate notable for his activism in The Great Depression. The film is also notable for being the first feature to use the Steadicam.
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The Amityville Horror (1979)
Though disputed and controversial, the film is based on the alleged true story of the Lutz family that encounter unspeakable horrors in their home.
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Escape from Alcatraz (1979)
Don Siegel's dramatization of the only successful escape from the infamous maximum security prison stars Clint Eastwood as the lead. Though it's still unsure if those that attempted the escape survived, the film seems to think they did.
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Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
Based on the autobiography of folk singer Loretta Lynn, the feature stars Sissy Spacek as Loretta (for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress) with Tommy Lee Jones as her husband Mooney Lynn.
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Sid and Nancy (1986)
Gary Oldman stars as the titular Sid Vicious, the bassist for the Sex Pistols, with Chloe Webb as his girlfriend Nancy Spungen covering their long and tumultuous relationship.
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Mississippi Burning (1988)
Loosely based on the investigation of the murder of three political activists in Mississippi, this classic thriller features an ensemble cast that knocks it out of the park, including Gene Hackman, Willem Dafoe, Frances McDormand, Brad Dourif, R. Lee Ermey, Stephen Tobolowsky, Michael Rooker, Frankie Faison, and Tobin Bell.
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My Left Foot (1989)
The film tells the story of Christy Brown, an Irish writer suffering from cerebral palsy, as played by Daniel Day Lewis in what many consider to be one of the greatest film performances ever. Lewis won his first Academy Award for the role.
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GoodFellas (1990)
Based on the book "Wiseguy" by Nicholas Pileggi, the film tells the rise and fall of gangster Henry Hill. Nominated for five Academy Awards, Goodfellas is often described as one of the greatest films of all time.
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JFK (1991)
Oliver Stone's film might blend fact with fanatical theory in some areas, but the film is his most successful of his presidential pictures, landing a total of eight Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture) upon release.
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Malcolm X (1992)
Spike Lee's tour de force profiles the controversial leader at key points in his life, from his time in prison to his pilgrmiage to Mecca, all the way up to his assassination. Denzel Washington shines in the title role.
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Schindler's List (1993)
Steven Spielberg's magnum opus tells the real-life story of Oskar Schindler, a man credited with saving the lives of 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust, spending his entire fortune to keep them from being forced into the Nazi death camps.
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Ed Wood (1994)
Tim Burton's hilarious look at the life of camp film director Edward D. Wood Jr. stars Johnny Depp in the title role and pays tribute to the late filmmaker and his over-the-top career in perfect fashion.
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Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Though known for both his big budget journeys to Middle-earth and his early schlocky years, Peter Jackson once told the story of Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme, who conspired together to kill Parjer's mother.
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Apollo 13 (1995)
Ron Howard's film about the disaster on board the lunar mission which nearly cost the lives of astronauts Jim Lovell. Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise. Even if it's most famous line of “Houston, we have a problem” is incorrect, it's still essential viewing.
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Braveheart (1995)
Based on the life of William Wallace, the 13th-century warrior that led the people of Scotland in the First War of Scottish Independence. Mel Gibson was awarded two Academy Awards for the film, including Best Director and Best Picture.
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Casino (1995)
Following the success of Goodfellas, director Martin Scorsese and writer Nicholas Pileggi re-teamed for this tale of the final mafia casino in Las Vegas.
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Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Another World War II centric-Spielberg feature, Saving Private Ryan tells the story of a platoon's search for a paratrooper behind enemy lines. It is based loosely on the true story of the Niland brothers during the conflict.
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Man on the Moon (1999)
Many think of Jim Carrey as a comedian, but he's also known for taking a turn for the dramatic in film roles, but his portrayal of Andy Kaufman blends both together seamlessly.
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A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Based on the life of American mathematician John Forbes Nash, Jr., this Ron Howard film shows the effects of untreated paranoid schizophrenia and the effects it can bring down on a man, his family, but ultimately influence his legacy.
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Catch Me If You Can (2002)
One more Spielberg feature, it tells the story of conman Frank Abagnale who was a notorious check bouncer and impostor, forging as much as $2.5 million worth of fraudulent checks, assuming the identity of several different people including an airline pilot, a physician, and a lawyer, and also escaping from police custody two times before the age of 21.
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Monster (2003)
Patty Jenkins' film tells the story of serial killer Aileen Wuornos, a woman who killed six men of the course of a few years in Florida. For the role, Charlize Theron won the Academy Award for Best Actress, Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama and the SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role.
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Friday Night Lights (2004)
Based on the book by H. G. Bissinger about the Permian High School football season of Permian High School in Odessa, Texas, the film tells the story of the 1988 team that made it all the way to the Texas High School football championship game.
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Ray (2004)
Based on the life of Ray Charles, the film does a deep dive into the life of the blind musician ranging from his early childhood to his hit song "Georgia on My Mind" becoming the state song.
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Jarhead (2005)
In an age of jingoistic action movies, this feature was absed on the memoir of former U.S. Marine Anthony Swofford detailing the life of a deployed soldier in the middle east dealing with very little combat but his own mental well being.
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Walk the Line (2005)
Based on two of musician Johnny Cash's autobiographies, the film highlights his rise to fame as a country music musician and the creation of many of his hit songs.
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The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Forest Whitaker stars as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin using a fictional crutch to tell the true horror stories of his reign. Whitaker won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the feature.
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Zodiac (2007)
David Fincher's meticulous film shows the multiple ways that people are capable of losing their lives to a serial killer from it ruining their careers to tanking their family life. The film's all-star ensemble includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Brian Cox, Donal Logue, John Carroll Lynch, Dermot Mulroney, and Chloë Sevigny.
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Bronson (2008)
Though Nicolas Winding Refn's film takes a vaudevillian approach to the life of “Britain's most violent prisoner,” Michael Gordon Peterson (known as Charles Bronson to the public) doesn't skim on his penchant for violence and many encounters behind bars. Despite his penchant for violence and as close as he may have come, Bronson hasn't actually killed anyone... yet.
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Frost/Nixon (2008)
Michael Sheen and Frank Langella star as British television broadcaster David Frost and former United States President Richard Nixon, respectively, in this film about the infamous televised interview between the two. While Nixon wanted to use it as a chance to regain support from the American people, Frost sought a confession, and he got it.
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The Fighter (2010)
This David O. Russell film stars Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale as boxer Micky Ward and his half-brother, Dicky Eklund, telling both the story of their relationship and the fallout of what a high profile career can lead to.
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The Social Network (2010)
David Fincher's techno-drama features a script by Aaron Sorkin about the creation and fallout of Facebook. The film's ensemble cast includes Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Armie Hammer, Rooney Mara, Joseph Mazzello, and Dakota Johnson.
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Bernie (2011)
This black comedy by Richard Linklater tells the story of Bernie Tiede, a lcoal favorite to the people of Cartha, Texas, who was convicted in the murder of 81-year-old millionaire Marjorie Nugent. Jack Black stars in the title role along with Shirley MacLaine and Matthew McConaughey.
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Moneyball (2011)
Based on the 2002 season of the Oakland Athletics baseball team and general manager Billy Beane's strategy for winning, the film stars Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill and was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Picture.
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Argo (2012)
Based on the rescue of six U.S. Diplomats trapped in the capital city of Iran during the hostage crisis, Ben Affleck stars, wrote, directed, and produced the film which also won Best Picture.
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Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Advertised as "the story of history's greatest manhunt for the world's most dangerous man,” the film tells the story of the hunt and eventual assassination of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The film features an all-star cast that includes Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Mark Strong, Kyle Chandler, James Gandolfini, Harold Perrineau, Mark Duplass, John Barrowman, Scott Adkins, Joel Edgerton, Mike Colter, Frank Grillo, and Chris Pratt.
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12 Years a Slave (2013)
Chiwetel Ejiofor stars in the film based on the life of Solomon Northrup, a New York state-born free man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery from 1841 ro 1853. The film received three Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay (John Ridley), and Best Supporting Actress (Lupita Nyong'o).
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The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
Martin Scorsese's film is based on the memoir of stockbroker and fraudster Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio), featuring as much sleaze and debauchery as you can imagine. It remains Scorsese's highest-grossing film at the global box office with a $392 million total.
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Selma (2014)
Ava DuVernay's film tells the story of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches and features a flawless class of actors, including David Oyelowo as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. along with Tom Wilkinson, Carmen Ejogo, Tessa Thompson, Giovanni Ribisi, Wendell Pierce, Common, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Tim Roth, and Oprah Winfrey.
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The Big Short (2015)
Adam McKay's unconventional feature tells the story of how four different groups predicted and profited from the credit and housing bubble collapse. The film won the Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award and features an incredible ensemble, including Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Melissa Leo, Marisa Tomei, and Karen Gillan along with Margot Robbie, Anthony Bourdain, Selena Gomez playing themselves.
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Spotlight (2015)
The most recent Best Picture winner, the film tells the story of The Boston Globe's investigative team that uncovered the widespread child sex abuse by Roman Catholic priests in the city. The film's all-star cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery, Stanley Tucci, and Richard Jenkins.
