A
biographical motion picture—often
shortened to biopic—is a film
that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people. They differ
from films “based on a true story” or “historical films” in that
they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at
least the most historically important years of their lives.
Because the figures portrayed are actual people, whose actions and
characteristics are known, biopics are considered some of the most
demanding films of actors and actresses.
Will
Smith and
Jim Carrey both gained
respect as dramatic actors after starring in biopics, Smith as
Muhammad Ali in
Ali and Carrey as
Andy Kaufman in
Man on the Moon.
Traditionally biographical films focus on beloved, historically
important people. However, recently some have focused on more
dubious figures (
The
People vs. Larry Flynt,
Blow,
Monster,
Control etc.)
In rare cases, the subject of the film plays him or herself;
Jackie Robinson in
The Jackie Robinson Story;
Muhammad Ali in
The Greatest,
Audie Murphy in
To Hell and Back, Patty Duke in
Call Me Anna, and
Howard Stern in
Private Parts.
History
Since the 1980s, biographical pictures have become increasingly
popular as advancement in film technology and increases in film
budgeting have allowed
directors to
more fully recreate historic periods. In the early 2000s, there was
a flood of biographical pictures after
Man on the Moon, Ali, Frida and others
became widely acclaimed and awarded.
Controversies over veracity
A certain amount of
veracity is
expected of biopics, often to reduce the risk of
libel, but the films often alter events to suit the
storyline. Events are sometimes portrayed more dramatically than
they actually occurred, time is "condensed" to fit all important
events into the film or several people are blended into a
composite.
Although many viewers and critics forgive such fabrications for
entertainment value, some biopics have come under criticism for
allegations of deception.
Historians noted the wayward chronology of
Michael Collins, a
team of Greek
lawyers
threatened to sue the makers of Alexander for implying that Alexander the Great was bisexual and many boxing fans
resented the villainous portrayal of Max Baer in Cinderella Man. But a more controversial
biopic in terms of accuracy is 1999's The Hurricane, about boxer
Rubin Carter and his hotly-disputed
triple murder conviction. Several details were altered to
enhance the image of Carter and details about the police procedures
that lead to the conviction conflicted with court records. Also,
former middle weight champion
Joey
Giardello, who won a title bout against Carter, sued the film's
producers for suggesting he won due to a racist "fix". The case was
settled out of court.
Roger Ebert defended the
The
Hurricane and distortions in biographical films in general,
stating "those who seek the truth about a man from the film of his
life might as well seek it from his loving grandmother. ...
The
Hurricane is not a
documentary
but a
parable."
Some biopics purposely stretch the truth.
Confessions of a Dangerous
Mind was based on
game show host
Chuck Barris' widely debunked, yet
still popular,
memoir of the same name, in
which he claimed to be a
CIA agent, and
Kafka incorporated both the
life of author
Franz Kafka and the
surreal aspects of his
fiction.
The
Errol Flynn film
They Died With Their Boots
On tells the story of
Custer but is
highly romanticised.
Casting can be controversial for biographical films. Some felt that
Anthony Hopkins should not have
played
Richard Nixon in
Nixon because of a lack of resemblance
between the two. Also, some
Selena fans
objected to the casting of
Jennifer
Lopez in a biopic about her because Lopez is
Puerto Rican and Selena was
Mexican-American.
See also
References