This is a list of films that have been made which have been based on true stories. In some cases the stories may have been changed slightly to improve the flow or the plot but basically the story comes through. In this list I may also include films which have been inspired by real life events
 
 
 

10 Rillington Place UK  1970  Crime  111 min  Rated PG  Color  Available on videocassette and laserdisc  Director  Richard Fleischer  Cast Includes Richard Attenborough - Judy Geeson - John Hurt - Pat Heywood - Andre Morell - Bernard Lee  Review  Low-key presentation of famous John Christie-Timothy Evans murder case that rocked Great Britain in the late 1940s. No overt editorializing but psychological undertone exists; outstanding performances by entire cast and location filming inseparable with film's total effect.

Badlands US  1973  Crime/Drama  95 min  Rated 18  Color  Available on videocassette and laserdisc  Director  Terrence Malick  Cast Includes Martin Sheen - Sissy Spacek - Warren Oates - Ramon Bieri - Alan Vint  Review  Stark, moody, moderately successful thriller inspired by the Starkweather-Fugate killing spree in the 50s. Well-cast film has cult following.

Black Panther UK  Crime/Drama  95 min  Rated 18  Color  Available on videocassette  Director  Ian Merrick  Cast Includes Donald Sumpter - Andrew Burt - Ruth Dunning - Debbie Farrington  Review  This is the true story of Britains most wanted psycho killer, a man who possessed the ability to move silently and unseen like a big cat, before attacking his victims and putting them through an ordeal which took them to hell and back.

Death in California - part one USA  1986  92 mins  18  Colour  Director  Delbert Mann  Cast Includes Cheryl Ladd - Sam Elliott - Alexis Smith- Fritz Weaver - Granville Van Dusen  Review  Based on a true murder story this chilling two part epic reveals the secret of a psychopathic killer.  Part I - The Crime  1973 - Dr Jordan Williams (Sam Elliott), an escaped convict, psychopath and con man, gains access to Hope Masters (Cheryl Ladd) family ranch where she and her fiance Richard Morgan are spending the weekend., by posing as a reporter.  Satisfied with murdering Morgan, Williams rapes and terrorizes Hope, manipulating her into believing that he is innocent of the crime that has been committed and has merely been employed to protect her and her children against a contract out on them.

Death in California - part two USA  1986  88 mins  18  Colour  Director  Delbert Mann  Cast Includes Cheryl Ladd - Sam Elliott - Alexis Smith- Fritz Weaver - Granville Van Dusen  Review  Based on a true murder story this chilling two part epic reveals the secret of a psychopathic killer. Part 2 - The Trial Hope Masters (Cheryl Ladd) fiance, Richard Morgan, has been murdered by an escaped con man, Dr Jordan Williams (Sam Elliott).  So successful is Williams in his manipulation of Hope, she is now psychologically bound to him to such a degree that she promises never to testify against him in court, culminating in her being jailed for a crime she never committed. Police Detective Swalwell, hot on the trail of  Williams since his escape, secures Hope's release and uses her as bait in an attempt to capture the real killer.

Heavenly Creatures New Zealand  1994  98 min  18  Colour  Director  Peter Jackson  Cast Includes Melanie Lynskey - Kate Winslet - Sarah Peirse - Diana Kent - Clive Merrison - Simon O'Connor  Review  Based on the true story that shocked a nation, this film paints a vivid and disturbing portrait of two teenage schoolgirls whose obsessive friendship leads them to murder. This films documents the lives of Juliet Hulme and Pauline Parker and the events leading up to the hideous crime

Murder in the Heartland

Director
Robert Markowitz
Cast Includes Tim Roth - Fairuza Balk - Brian Dennehy - Kate Reid - Milo O'Shea - Randy Quaid - Roberts Blossom

Review

Overlong retelling of the story of Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate, two dysfunctional teenage lovers who went on a murder rampage in Nebraska in 1958. Beautifully filmed, well-acted but can't touch Terrence Malick's BADLANDS. Originally shown in two parts. 

The Murder of Mary Phagan

Director
Billy Hale

Cast Includes Jack Lemmon - Peter Gallagher - Richard Jordan - Robert Prosky - Paul Dooley-Rebecca Miller - Kathryn Walker - Charles Dutton - Kevin Spacey - Wendy J. Cooke

Review
Leisurely, atmospheric retelling of the controversial 1913 Leo Frank murder case in which a Jewish factory manager in Atlanta was convicted of killing a young female employee and sentenced to hang. Lemmon excels as then-Governor John M. Slaton, who put his political career on the line by reexamining the case and questioning the verdict. Rebecca Miller, daughter of playwright Arthur Miller, makes her acting debut as the accused man's steadfast wife. Fictionalized version of the incident was filmed in 1937 as THEY WON'T FORGET. Larry McMurtry's story was adapted by George Stevens, Jr., and Jeffrey Lane, whose script easily might have been shortened. Originally shown in two parts. 

The Deliberate Stranger US  1986  200 min  18  Color  Available on videocassette  Director  Marvin J. Chomsky  Cast Includes  Mark Harmon - Frederic Forrest - George Grizzard - Ben Masters - Glynnis O'Connor- M. Emmet Walsh - Bonnie Bartlett - Billy Green Bush - Lawrence Pressman  Review  Highly charged drama about Ted Bundy, charismatic law school student sentenced to death for several Florida murders and suspected in the killing of at least 25 women in six states. Hesper Anderson adapted her script from Richard W. Larsen's book. Engrossing but overlong. Originally shown in two parts.

.
For more information contact:
Gregg Manning