Entries Tagged 'Biography or Based on Truth' ↓

Behind the Lines is the 1998 American release title for this film. The original title, released in 1997 in the UK and Canada, was Regeneration.
IMDB: Behind the Lines

Basic Plot: The story of World War I soldiers who are sent to an asylum, among them a famous poet.

Outburst: Eerie. Literary. Obviously this is not a comedy. Like all WWI British war movies, everyone is dressed and behaves in similar fashion, but their plotlines are dissimilar enough that they are easy to follow.

— If you are moved by poetry inspired by traumatic events, you will enjoy this film.

Wikipedia Entry: Regeneration (movie)
WATCH IT NOW: Behind the Lines (aka Regeneration)

Booknote: The movie holds so faithfully to the book one can almost interchange them.

Wikipedia Entry: Regeneration (novel) by Pat Barker
BUY THE BOOK: Regeneration
Kindle eBook: Regeneration

IMDB: Agora

Basic Plot: Historical drama about the city of Alexandria, the rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire, and the famous female philosopher Hypatia.

Outburst: It has all the elements of a great movie, but I still didn’t like it. In the end, I decided this long epic tale simply lacked a definitive focus. Is the story about Hypatia or the brutality of fanatics? Maybe the best part of this story occurs in the talks about this movie after it is over.

— Philosophy and history majors should plummet through the depths of this movie. This is a thinking person’s movie, not one to kick back and enjoy. Best for classes and discussions.

Wikipedia Entry: Agora (film)
WATCH IT NOW: Agora

IMDB: Born on the Fourth of July

Basic Plot: Young man goes off to fight in Vietnam War, and tries to make sense of it all after he comes back disabled and emotionally scarred. This is based on the autobiography of Ron Kovic.

Outburst: Oliver Stone took 145 minutes to say something that could have been done in 105 minutes, and I still feel like parts were left out. Then again, if you are trying to stay true to reality it’s not going to feel like a normal movie. Tom Cruise as Kovic is amazing.

— A good movie to watch once. There are too many adult concepts to want kids around when its playing. You’ll like it best if you are into epic war movies.

Wikipedia Entry: Born on the Fourth of July (film)

WATCH IT NOW: Born on the Fourth of July

IMDB: Blindsight

Basic Plot: Six blind Tibetan teenagers attempt to climb the Lhakpa-Ri peak of Mount Everest.

Outburst: This documentary was eye-opening on many levels. It touches on the dark side of Tibetan culture, where the blind are viewed as cursed and made social pariahs. Halfway through the movie, I became angry at some of the Westerners who were pushing these kids. I would never have dragged them on this expedition to begin with, not because they were blind, but because they were kids and physically unprepared.

— This film is a metaphor for Western foreign policy, showing how we try to solve issues in other cultures using our methods and judging success by our terms rather than the ideals of the culture at hand. It will stretch your mind to new concepts if you let it. Also great for anyone interested in mountain climbing.

WATCH FREE ON HULU!
Watch on Amazon: Blindsight

IMDB: Yossi & Jagger

Basic Plot: A romantic interlude between two Israeli soldiers stationed at a remote outpost on the Lebanese border.

Outburst: Service in the Israel Defense Force is mandatory for both men and women, and gays may serve openly, making this movie very different from your average tortured LGBT indie drama. You’ll need to pay close attention. This movie is very short, very condensed, and the subtitles flash by quickly.

— It’s fucking brilliant, but very niche. If you like LGBT movies with adult themes and bare-bones indie films, you will be ruined for any other film after this. If movies without Steadicams make you nauseous, move on.

Wikipedia Entry: Yossi & Jagger

WATCH IT NOW: Yossi & Jagger

IMDB: Black Hawk Down

Basic Plot: A movie centered around a single horrific event in the Somalian conflict known as the Battle of Mogadishu.

Outburst: This movie made me edgy and uncomfortable. At first, the adrenaline junkie in me wanted to jump in and help, but by the midway point I was tired of the carnage. Wanted to flee from the film itself; I can only imagine how the soldiers felt.

— No one will enjoy this movie exactly, but it’s a war movie important to watch. War, like this movie, is not for the squeamish. It’s probably best to watch more than once, but not many could stomach it twice.

Official Website: Black Hawk Down
Wikipedia Entry: Black Hawk Down
Article: What Black Hawk Down Left Out

WATCH IT NOW: Black Hawk Down

IMDB: The Madness of King George

Basic Plot: Based on the play, The Madness of George III, documenting his periodic episodes of dementia and its political consequences.

Outburst: Despite critical acclaim, personally I found something lacking in the film. It’s not the acting, which is stellar even among the minor supporting roles. Rather, the pace is somewhat plodding for a single maneuver of intrigue. Additional subplots could have enhanced the carefully built main theme.

— It’s two stars for those who enjoy historical period pieces, and one star for the rest of us who just want an entertaining movie.

Wikipedia Entry: The Madness of King George
Interesting Snopes.com article regarding the title name change.

WATCH IT NOW: The Madness of King George

IMDB: Gods and Monsters

Basic Plot: Fictionalized account of the last days of director James Whale. Based on the book “Father of Frankenstein”.

Outburst: This movie is best described in three words, “dramatic homosexual reverie”. It has to be your type of thing to be enjoyed.

— This movie is pretty good, but it has a very narrow target audience. You pretty much have to like GLBT films, slice-of-life dramas, and Frankenstein to really get into this one.

Official Website
BUY IT NOW! Gods and Monsters (Special Edition DVD)
BUY IT NOW! Gods and Monsters: A Novel (P.S.) — the title of the book was changed after the movie

IMDB: The General

Basic Plot:  The biographical tale of Dublin criminal Martin Cahill. Based on a book of the same name.

Outburst:  The director did a masterful job here, cutting slickly through Cahill’s life to all its highlights. I saw the black-and-white version, which still baffles me as to why they’d release this when the movie was shot in color.   Some of the accents do make the speech unintelligible, but the gist of the actions comes through loud and clear.  The movie defines the very genre of anti-hero thriller, where the audience silently applauds the antics of a lovable Robin-hood style crook.

 (2 of 3 stars) — An entertaining romp of a movie, especially for a biography.  If you like to watch criminal capers and wacky bank  heists, this is the film to see.

Sony Pictures Official Website: The General
Wikipedia: The General
John Boorman–The Lybarger Links Interview