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The Best Movies "Loosely" Based on True Stories

Updated June 15, 2020 8.8k votes 725 voters 23.0k views54 items

List RulesFilms loosely based on a true story. Vote based on the quality of the film, not the accuracy of the story.

"Based on a true story" isn't always exactly accurate. This list of movies loosely based on true stories took a few too many liberties or only used a true story as distant inspiration.

Hollywood loves this idea though. In the last thirteen years there have been more "based on a true story" films made than were released in the 100 years prior. The problem is that a lot of these "true stories" are hardly that. Be it a huge exaggeration, using one real life person in a crazy scenario, or taking a historical event and creating a fictional story around it (hi, Jack Dawson), the films on this list played fast and loose with the facts.

This isn't by any means knocking any of these films, many are fantastic, widely loved, award winning films. They just took a few too many liberties with the facts. Below is the list of films based on true stories... sort of. Vote up the best films on this list, even if they didn't stick to the truth.

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The Conjuring
Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson
Released: 2013
Directed by: James Wan
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Goodfellas
Robert De Niro, Samuel L. Jackson
Released: 1990
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
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Braveheart
Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau
Released: 1995
Directed by: Mel Gibson
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Titanic
Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet
Released: 1997
Directed by: James Cameron
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Boogie Nights
Julianne Moore, Mark Wahlberg
Released: 1997
Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson
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The Black Dahlia
Scarlett Johansson, Rose McGowan
Released: 2006
Directed by: Brian De Palma
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Saving Private Ryan
Tom Hanks, Matt Damon
Released: 1998
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
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The Untouchables
Robert De Niro, Sean Connery
Released: 1987
Directed by: Brian De Palma
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74
Remember the Titans
Hayden Panettiere, Ryan Gosling
Released: 2000
Directed by: Boaz Yakin
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The Exorcist
Max von Sydow, Ellen Burstyn
Released: 1973
Directed by: William Friedkin
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A Beautiful Mind
Jennifer Connelly, Russell Crowe
Released: 2001
Directed by: Ron Howard
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JFK
Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman
Released: 1991
Directed by: Oliver Stone
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Behind Enemy Lines
Owen Wilson, Gene Hackman
Released: 2001
Directed by: John Moore
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Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Johnny Depp, Cameron Diaz
Released: 1998
Directed by: Terry Gilliam
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Donnie Brasco
Johnny Depp, Al Pacino
Released: 1997
Directed by: Mike Newell
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The Exorcism of Emily Rose
Laura Linney, Jennifer Carpenter
Released: 2005
Directed by: Scott Derrickson
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Hoosiers
Gene Hackman, Dennis Hopper
Released: 1986
Directed by: David Anspaugh
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The Strangers
Liv Tyler, Gemma Ward
Released: 2008
Directed by: Bryan Bertino
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Almost Famous
Zooey Deschanel, Kate Hudson
Released: 2000
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
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American Hustle
Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams
Released: 2013
Directed by: David O. Russell
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Heat
Natalie Portman, Al Pacino
Released: 1995
Directed by: Michael Mann
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Changeling
Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich
Released: 2008
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
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Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt
Released: 2019
Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
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The Haunting in Connecticut
Virginia Madsen, Amanda Crew
Released: 2009
Directed by: Peter Cornwell
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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys
Released: 2019
Directed by: Marielle Heller
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