These based on a true story movies actually hew fairly closely to the true story, taking the minimum number of creative liberties.
Dunkirk (2017)
Dunkirk is one of our favorite uplifting movies because of how closely it follows actual events. But because Christopher Nolan is at the helm, it also plays fascinating tricks with time to make the historical epic fly by.
The World War II masterpiece shows how British and Allied troops lived to fight another day against a seemingly unstoppable evil. No one comes out and says it, but if they’d failed, the Nazis might have won World War II.
The Dunkirk evacuation required the courage and sacrifice of not just the fighting men on air, land and sea, but also the bravery of ordinary civilians who took extraordinary measures with a stiff upper lip.
Glory (1989)
Another of our favorite films ever, this story of an all-black Union Army regiment in the Civil War is best known for Denzel Washington’s Oscar winning performance. But it’s the rare sweeping historical film that takes time for truly moving, small moments between the men.
As far back as 1990, critics including Roger Ebert lamented that it’s told from a white POV — that of Col. Robert Gould Shaw (Matthew Broderick). But we may not have a Glory if not for screenwriter Kevin Jarre relying so heavily on Gould’s actual letters to his mother, which frame and personalize the story. And James Horner’s Glory score may be the best in any movie.
Glory uses some composite characters, but is very much based on a true story and follows key events quite closely. It’s a truly uplifting movie about astonishing courage.
All the President’s Men (1976)
Yes, there was a time when cold, hard, carefully reported information could change the world.
Screenwriter William Goldman, maybe the best screenwriter of all, treats the story of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein like a gritty, unsentimental procedural. It’s the fact-finders versus the purveyors of lies.
All the President’s Men is very much based on a true story, as anyone who lived through the Nixon Administration can attest. But Goldman did make up a few memorable things — like the famous phrase “Follow the money.”
Malcolm X (1992)
The second of three Denzel Washington movies on this list, Malcolm X is about growth.
Spike Lee’s epic shows how Malcolm Little becomes Malcolm X and finally El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, a man who melds his righteous calls for justice with a righteous commitment to unity.
But Malcolm X doesn’t sugarcoat any of the pain or struggle along the way, or offer any easy comfort to those who prop up the injustice Malcolm X tried to dismantle. It’s one of the most inspirational movies because it’s so universal, and yet so uncompromising. And the “I am Malcolm X!” ending is breathtaking.
Of course it’s very much based on a true story. Malcolm X hews closely to The Autobiography of Malcolm X, by Malcolm X and Alex Haley. It features some composite characters, but stays close to the facts.
Chariots of Fire (1981)
The Vangelis theme will make you want to race down a beach, but this uplifting movie’s true story is every bit as inspirational: Chariots of Fire, set a century ago, is the very factual story of two runners — the Scottish Christian Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), who runs to glorify God, and Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), an English Jew who runs to overcome antisemitism.
Screenwriter Collin Welland went to extraordinary lengths to ensure authenticity, interviewing as many surviving real-life people portrayed in the film as possible, and even taking out ads in London newspapers seeking people’s memories of the 1924 Olympics.
The film won four Oscars, including for Best Picture, for Welland’s screenplay, for Vangelis’ score, and for best costume design. It’s an especially good watch around the Olympics.
Erin Brockovich (2000)
The real Erin Brockovich has said this 2000 Steven Soderbergh drama — which won Julia Roberts an Oscar for best actress — was “probably 98% accurate,” adding, “They took very few creative licenses.”
The film shows how Brockovich, an unemployed single mother of three, got herself a job in a law firm and helped assemble a class action suit in which utility company Pacific Gas & Electric was accused of contaminating the drinking water in the small desert town of Hinkley, California. PG&E settled the case in 1996 for $333 million. It’s a very uplifting movie, but also one rooted in grim realities.
The film shows Brockovich using her wits, people skills, and maybe some low-cut tops to do what needed to be done.
“Yes, I did dress that way,” Brockovich wrote on her website. “I was actually taken back by the response of many people regarding my wardrobe. I just dressed that way because it was fun and I liked it. I was taught never to judge a book by its cover. My clothing was nothing more than a cover and I have never thought that anyone was smart or stupid or anything else by the way they chose to dress.”
Remember the Titans (2000)
Though it takes some liberties with the timeline, Remember the Titans is based on a true story of football coach Herman Boone (Denzel Washington) as he battles racism and resentment while trying to lead the recently integrated T. C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia to an undefeated season in 1971.
Boone has replaced white former coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton), leading to initial tension, but they overcome their differences for the good of their community and their team.
Like Malcolm X, this is a film about people being willing to grow and change.
Queen of Katwe (2016)
Not a lot of people have seen this chess drama, but for our money, it may be the best movie Disney has ever released, and one of the most moving movies we’ve ever seen.
Mira Nair looks unflinchingly at the dangers to a young girl growing up with every imaginable disadvantage in an Ugandan slum. And yet, in a fair contest, she’s an absolute force.
It’s vey much based on a true story — that of Phiona Mutesi — and includes excellent performances by David Oyelowo, Lupita Nyong’o, and Madina Nalwanga.
Wild (2014)
Truly uplifting movies don’t pretend the world is rosy — they acknowledge its hard and encourage you to trudge on. Wild is the story of a woman who packs it all in to hike the 1,100-mile Pacific Coast Trail, alone, as she tries to sort out and repair a life ravaged by tragedy, depression and drug abuse.
Based on a true story — the memoir by Cheryl Strayed —Wild is a captivating movie focused almost entirely on Strayed (Reese Witherspoon, captivating) as she takes on a journey where sudden snow or a lost boot constitutes a major crisis.
One of the best things about Wild is that it doesn’t sugarcoat any aspect of the main character’s struggle or try to play cute with her very real problems. It asks you to tap into your inner strength and do more than you think you’re capable of doing, and leaves you longing for fresh air and a wide open trail.
Selma (2014)
A scene-by-scene breakdown of recent films by the data site Information Is Beautiful found that Selma is 100 percent accurate — the only film to receive a perfect score of those it studied. It’s an important and uplifting movie about the constant struggle between compromise and demanding justice, and the power of people motivating one another to success.
Directed by directed by Ava DuVernay and written by Paul Webb, it re-enacts the voting-rights campaign from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965, initiated by James Bevel (played by Common) and led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo), Hosea Williams (Wendell Pierce) and John Lewis (Stephan James).
The very deep cast also includes Oprah Winfrey, Carmen Ojogo, Tom Wilkinson and Giovanni Ribisi.
Hidden Figures (2016)
Hidden Figures has a surprisingly light touch as it vividly and entertainingly details how Black female mathematicians overcame discrimination to help NASA win the space race. (Did you think we’d include four separate movies about sports (chess counts!) and not one about scientists?)
The fact that Hidden Figures is based on a true story makes it especially inspiring.
Oppenheimer (2023)
We begin and end with Christopher Nolan films. The latest Oscar winner for Best Picture was very true to life — it was closely rooted in the nonfiction book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, written by by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin over 25 years.
Of course, Nolan being Nolan, he interspersed timelines in his factual account.
Even some of the most surprising moments — like President Truman calling Oppenheimer a “cry baby” — really did happen.
Liked Our List of Based on a True Story Movies That Are Actually Pretty True?
Then you might also enjoy this list of 15 Black and White Movies That Are Still a Pleasure to Watch.
You might also like this piece on Netflix’s brand-new biopic Maria, starring Angelina Jolie, which takes an interesting creative liberty.
Main image: Julia Roberts in Erin Brockovich, which according to Erin Brockovich is based on a true story and — according to Brockovich — is 98 percent accurate.