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Nothing But the Truth
Why should we care if a movie is derived from real people and actual events, rather than a writer’s imagination? It’s not as if documentaries top the box-office charts. Quite the opposite, of the top 20 ticket-sellers of all time (adjusted for inflation), only one of them is based on a true story, and that’s only if you elect to believe in the literal truth of Cecil B De Mille’s The Ten Commandments. In any case, the truth is rarely so cut and dried as all that – every argument has two sides, and it’s not uncommon for real life characters to complain about their on screen alter egos: the sympathetic character played by Chloe Sevigny in Boys Don’t Cry claimed the movie romanticized her relationship with Brandon (Hilary Swank); the guy played by Aaron Eckhart in Erin Brockovich also wasn’t happy despite a warm and sympathetic portrayal; and serial killer David Berkowitz had the gall to accuse Spike Lee of cynicism (from his jail cell) for making Summer Of Sam.
According to Straczynski, the cops really did suggest Christine Collins “take him on a trial basis”. And when she protested that her son was several inches taller when he disappeared, a doctor tried to persuade her that it was perfectly natural, because “trauma can shrink the spine”. Would it be a lesser film if it weren’t true? Some people think so. Rumour has it; Changeling would have won the Cannes Palme d’Or, except that two of the jury refused to believe that such outlandish events could have come to pass. Even Straczynski agrees with them. “You can’t make this stuff up,” he told Creative Screenwriting magazine. “The moment you start taking a story as bizarre as this and adding fictional elements, you call the integrity of the whole thing into question.” He’s right. We relate to reality every day, and we need to think we have a handle on it. It’s when a filmmaker has the temerity to mix us up that people get upset. Artists like to pretend there’s such a thing as poetic truth, but we know that’s simply their way of justifying short cuts, compromises and outright falsehoods.
So what have we proved? Only that it’s a thin line between good fiction and bad form. The key is not to make false claims about the veracity of your movie… unless, like the Coen brothers with Fargo, you make the lie such a whopper that no one will believe you anyway. (Though I understand the sheriff of Brainerd is plagued with enquiries about the movie to this day.) For your edification and amusement, here are some more Hollywood “true stories”, and the inconvenient facts that throw them into a different light… Tom Charity 
A Beautiful MindRon’s Howard’s Oscar-winning film about schizophrenic Nobel scientist John Nash (Russell Crowe) suppressed his bisexuality and a long separation from his wife Alicia (a Latino woman played by Jennifer Connelly in the film). It illustrated his award-winning formula as a technique to pick up girls, and (most dubiously) implied that his illness was alleviated not by drugs, but by the love of a good woman. 
American GangsterRidley Scott’s true life crime drama was inspired by cop turned prosecutor Richie Roberts and drug baron Frank Lucas. Roberts was a consultant on the film, but complained that the Russell Crowe character wasn’t as sympathetic as he should have been; for instance, he abandons his kids, but Roberts didn’t have any. Meanwhile Lucas wasn’t exactly the paragon Denzel Washington portrayed. 
The Pursuit of HappynessWill Smith gave us the heartwarming story of a black single father from the street who managed to juggle parenthood, no income, and six months’ internship to become a successful stock broker. All well and good. But the movie omitted the fact that for four months the boy was actually with his mom… that Chris Gardner had been married to someone else when the boy was conceived… and that he was arrested for a domestic dispute the day before his interview (not parking tickets). 
The HoaxThis underrated film about a fraudulent biography of reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes made up a few facts of its own. Writer Clifford Irving didn’t actually need the cash when he came up with his hoax; he had a lucrative four-book deal with his publisher. He lived in Ibiza, not New York State, and the publisher never expected a helicopter visit from Hughes – though Irving reportedly claimed to the movie’s producer that they had, only to deny it when the film was released. Titles related to this articleRelated/similar articles
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