based-on-true-story movies

Shadow of the Vampire

2000 | Drama | Horror | Luxembourg | UK | USA

Shadow of the Vampire is a film about the making of a German all time classic silent horror-movie from 1922 called Nosferatu-Eine Symphonie des Grauens (Nosferatu-a Symphony of Horror). The production of Nosferatu had to deal with a lot of strange things (some crew members disappeared, some died). This movie ...

Serpico

1973 | Crime | Drama | Italy | USA

Frank Serpico is a young, inexperienced cop who starts out on patrol. Later, he starts to work as an undercover cop who busts all sorts of criminals, but mostly drug dealers and pushers. Since Serpico is a young man living in the 70's, he lives as one. His image, based ...

Schindler’s List

1993 | Biography | Drama | History | USA | War

"Schindler's List" is the based-on-truth story of Nazi Czech business man Oskar Schindler, who uses Jewish labor to start a factory in occupied Poland. As World War II progresses, and the fate of the Jews becomes more and more clear, Schindler's motivations switch from profit to human sympathy and he ...

Redacted

2007 | Canada | Crime | Drama | USA | War

A montage of stories about U.S. soldiers fighting in the Iraq conflict, focusing on the modern forms of media covering the war.

21 (Twenty One, The Movie)

2008 | Drama | USA

Ben Campbell is a young, highly intelligent, student at M.I.T. in Boston who strives to succeed. Wanting a scholarship to transfer to Harvard School of Medicine with the desire to become a doctor, Ben learns that he cannot afford the $300,000 for the four to five years of school since ...

Anna and the King

1999 | Drama | History | Romance | USA

This is the story of Anna Leonowens, the English schoolteacher who came to Siam in the 1860s to teach the children of King Mongkut. She becomes involved in his affairs, from the tragic plight of a young concubine to trying to forge an alliance with Britain to a war with ...

Hotel Rwanda

2004 | Drama | History | Italy | South Africa | Thriller | UK | USA | War

Ten years ago some of the worst atrocities in the history of mankind took place in the country of Rwanda--and in an era of high-speed communication and round the clock news, the events went almost unnoticed by the rest of the world. In only three months, one million people were ...

Chicago

2002 | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Germany | Musical | USA

Fame hungry Roxie Hart dreams of a life on the Vaudville stage, and spends her nights jazzing it up in the bright lights of Chicago, continually hoping that she'll find her lucky break, and be shot into 1920's stardom, so able to flee her boring husband Amos. In awe of ...

The Elephant Man

1980 | Biography | Drama | UK | USA

Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick, a 19th-century Englishman afflicted with a disfiguring congenital disease. With the help of kindly Dr. Frederick Treves, Merrick attempts to regain the dignity he lost after years spent as a side-show freak.

The French Connection

1971 | Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller | USA

William Friedkin's gritty police drama portrays two tough New York City cops trying to intercept a huge heroin shipment coming from France. An interesting contrast is established between 'Popeye' Doyle, a short-tempered alcoholic bigot who is nevertheless a hard-working and dedicated police officer, and his nemesis Alain Charnier, a suave ...

The Crucible

1996 | Drama | History | USA

A small group of teen girls in 1692 Salem, Massachusetts caught in an innocent conjuring of love potions to catch young men are forced to tell lies that Satan had invaded them and forced them to participate in the rites and are then forced to name those involved. Thrown into ...

Immortal Beloved

1994 | Biography | Drama | Music | Romance | UK | USA

Ludwig van Beethoven dies and his assistant/friend Schindler proceeds to deal with his affairs (last will and testament). There is a question as to who really is his "immortal beloved", and so tries to find out who this might be.