Biopics - Based on real people
by benedikt-entner | created - 09 Aug 2015 | updated - 22 May 2022 | PublicThis is a list of films inspired by real people and stories. It is roughly in chronological order, starting with the earliest 20th Century.
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1. The Last Emperor (1987)
PG-13 | 163 min | Biography, Drama, History
Bernardo Bertolucci's Oscar-winning dramatisation of the life story of China's last emperor, Pu Yi.
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci | Stars: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Ruocheng Ying
Votes: 111,512 | Gross: $43.98M
1906-1967
2. The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015)
PG-13 | 108 min | Biography, Drama
The story of the life and academic career of the pioneer Indian mathematician, Srinivasa Ramanujan, and his friendship with his mentor, Professor G.H. Hardy.
Director: Matt Brown | Stars: Dev Patel, Jeremy Irons, Malcolm Sinclair, Raghuvir Joshi
Votes: 62,135 | Gross: $3.87M
~1914-1919
3. Beneath Hill 60 (2010)
R | 122 min | Drama, History, War
In 1916, the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company is tunneling beneath German fortifications and bunkers to detonate massive explosive charges.
Director: Jeremy Sims | Stars: Brendan Cowell, Harrison Gilbertson, Steve Le Marquand, Gyton Grantley
Votes: 8,808
~ 1915
4. The King's Speech (2010)
R | 118 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of King George VI, his unexpected ascension to the throne of the British Empire in 1936, and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch overcome his stammer.
Director: Tom Hooper | Stars: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Derek Jacobi
Votes: 707,951 | Gross: $138.80M
~ 1925
5. Becoming Astrid (2018)
123 min | Biography, Drama, History
Biopic of Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren, the author of numerous children's books and creator of Pippi Longstocking.
Director: Pernille Fischer Christensen | Stars: Alba August, Maria Bonnevie, Trine Dyrholm, Henrik Rafaelsen
Votes: 7,354 | Gross: $0.12M
~ 20's
6. The Untouchables (1987)
R | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
During Prohibition, Treasury agent Eliot Ness sets out to stop ruthless Chicago gangster Al Capone, and assembles a small, incorruptible team to help him.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, Robert De Niro, Charles Martin Smith
Votes: 330,827 | Gross: $76.27M
Late 20's/early 30's
7. Public Enemies (2009)
R | 140 min | Action, Biography, Crime
The Feds try to take down notorious American gangsters John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson, and Pretty Boy Floyd during a booming crime wave in the 1930s.
Director: Michael Mann | Stars: Christian Bale, Johnny Depp, Christian Stolte, Jason Clarke
Votes: 318,603 | Gross: $97.10M
1933-1934
8. J. Edgar (2011)
R | 137 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
J. Edgar Hoover, powerful head of the F.B.I. for nearly fifty years, looks back on his professional and personal life.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Josh Hamilton
Votes: 133,629 | Gross: $37.31M
~ 1929 - 1935
9. The Great Debaters (2007)
PG-13 | 126 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A drama based on the true story of Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College Texas. In 1935, he inspired students to form the school's first debate team, which went on to challenge Harvard in the national championship.
Director: Denzel Washington | Stars: Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Kimberly Elise, Nate Parker
Votes: 62,862 | Gross: $30.23M
30's
10. Frida (2002)
R | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A biography of artist Frida Kahlo, who channeled the pain of a crippling injury and her tempestuous marriage into her work.
Director: Julie Taymor | Stars: Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina, Geoffrey Rush, Mía Maestro
Votes: 95,329 | Gross: $25.89M
20's-1954
11. Papillon (1973)
R | 151 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A French convict in the 1930s befriends a fellow criminal as the two of them begin serving their sentence in the South American penal colony on Devil's Island, which inspires the man to plot his escape.
Director: Franklin J. Schaffner | Stars: Steve McQueen, Dustin Hoffman, Victor Jory, Don Gordon
Votes: 138,377 | Gross: $53.27M
~ 30's - 1945
12. Europa Europa (1990)
R | 112 min | Drama, History, War
A boy in Nazi Germany, trying to conceal that he is Jewish, joins the Hitler Youth.
Director: Agnieszka Holland | Stars: Solomon Perel, Marco Hofschneider, René Hofschneider, André Wilms
Votes: 17,476 | Gross: $5.58M
30's-1945
13. The Imitation Game (2014)
PG-13 | 114 min | Biography, Drama, Thriller
During World War II, the English mathematical genius Alan Turing tries to crack the German Enigma code with help from fellow mathematicians while attempting to come to terms with his troubled private life.
Director: Morten Tyldum | Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Allen Leech
Votes: 825,061 | Gross: $91.13M
~1939-1941
14. Das Boot (1981)
R | 149 min | Drama, War
A German U-boat stalks the frigid waters of the North Atlantic as its young crew experience the sheer terror and claustrophobic life of a submariner in World War II.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, Klaus Wennemann, Hubertus Bengsch
Votes: 264,345 | Gross: $11.49M
1941
15. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
G | 144 min | Action, Drama, History
The story of the 1941 Japanese air raid on Pearl Harbor, and the series of preceding American blunders that aggravated its effectiveness.
Directors: Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, Toshio Masuda, Akira Kurosawa | Stars: Martin Balsam, Sô Yamamura, Jason Robards, Joseph Cotten
Votes: 37,214 | Gross: $29.55M
1941
16. Band of Brothers (2001)
TV-MA | 59 min | Drama, History, War
The story of Easy Company of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division and their mission in World War II Europe, from Operation Overlord to V-J Day.
Stars: Scott Grimes, Damian Lewis, Ron Livingston, Shane Taylor
Votes: 527,241
1941-1945
17. The Pacific (2010)
TV-MA | 53 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The Pacific Theatre of World War II, as seen through the eyes of several young Marines.
Stars: James Badge Dale, Joseph Mazzello, Jon Seda, Ashton Holmes
Votes: 130,023
1942-1945
18. The Thin Red Line (1998)
R | 170 min | Drama, History, War
Adaptation of James Jones' autobiographical 1962 novel, focusing on the conflict at Guadalcanal during the second World War.
Director: Terrence Malick | Stars: Jim Caviezel, Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Kirk Acevedo
Votes: 199,602 | Gross: $36.40M
1942
19. The Monuments Men (2014)
PG-13 | 118 min | Comedy, Drama, War
An unlikely World War II platoon is tasked to rescue art masterpieces from German thieves and return them to their owners.
Director: George Clooney | Stars: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett
Votes: 141,185 | Gross: $78.03M
~ 1944
20. Patton (1970)
GP | 172 min | Biography, Drama, War
The World War II phase of the career of controversial American general George S. Patton.
Director: Franklin J. Schaffner | Stars: George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Stephen Young, Michael Strong
Votes: 107,953 | Gross: $61.70M
1943-1945
21. The Counterfeiters (2007)
R | 99 min | Crime, Drama, History
The story of the Operation Bernhard, the largest counterfeiting operation in history, carried out by Germany during World War II.
Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky | Stars: Karl Markovics, August Diehl, Devid Striesow, Martin Brambach
Votes: 47,176 | Gross: $5.48M
~ 1943-1945
22. The Ninth Day (2004)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama, Thriller, War
A drama loosely based on Jean Bernard's Nazi-era prison diary.
Director: Volker Schlöndorff | Stars: Ulrich Matthes, August Diehl, Hilmar Thate, Bibiana Beglau
Votes: 1,948 | Gross: $0.07M
~ 1944
23. Triumph of the Spirit (1989)
R | 120 min | Biography, Drama, History
In Greece during World War II, a young Jewish boxer, his girlfriend, and their families are sent to Auschwitz. When the camp guards learn of his boxing abilities, they force him to participate in weekly boxing matches.
Director: Robert M. Young | Stars: Willem Dafoe, Edward James Olmos, Robert Loggia, Wendy Gazelle
Votes: 2,781 | Gross: $0.41M
~ 1943-1945
24. Riphagen (2016)
131 min | Biography, Drama, War
The story about Riphagen, a cunning Dutch traitor during WW2 who helped Nazi round up Jews, stealing their treasures for himself. He destroyed Resistance groups, making many who pursued justice after the war look like fools.
Director: Pieter Kuijpers | Stars: Steef de Bot, Huub Smit, Sigrid ten Napel, Anna Raadsveld
Votes: 8,711
~ 1943
25. Schindler's List (1993)
R | 195 min | Biography, Drama, History
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, Caroline Goodall
Votes: 1,450,731 | Gross: $96.90M
~ 1944-1945
26. A Bridge Too Far (1977)
PG | 175 min | Drama, History, War
Operation Market Garden, September 1944: The Allies attempt to capture several strategically important bridges in the Netherlands in the hope of breaking the German lines.
Director: Richard Attenborough | Stars: Sean Connery, Ryan O'Neal, Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier
Votes: 61,538 | Gross: $50.80M
1944
27. The Great Escape (1963)
Approved | 172 min | Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Allied prisoners of war plan for several hundred of their number to escape from a German camp during World War II.
Director: John Sturges | Stars: Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson
Votes: 258,915 | Gross: $12.10M
~ 1944
28. Downfall (2004)
R | 156 min | Biography, Drama, History
Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.
Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel | Stars: Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara, Ulrich Matthes, Juliane Köhler
Votes: 375,219 | Gross: $5.51M
1945
29. Gandhi (1982)
PG | 191 min | Biography, Drama, History
The life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest.
Director: Richard Attenborough | Stars: Ben Kingsley, John Gielgud, Rohini Hattangadi, Roshan Seth
Votes: 240,199 | Gross: $52.77M
1910's - 1948
30. Seven Years in Tibet (1997)
PG-13 | 136 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
Heinrich Harrer, an Austrian climber, breaks out of prison and travels to the holy city of Lhasa. He is employed as an instructor to the 14th Dalai Lama and soon becomes his close confidante.
Director: Jean-Jacques Annaud | Stars: Brad Pitt, David Thewlis, BD Wong, Mako
Votes: 155,943 | Gross: $37.96M
1944-1951
31. Kundun (1997)
PG-13 | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
From childhood to adulthood, Tibet's fourteenth Dalai Lama deals with Chinese oppression and other problems.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Tenzin Thuthob Tsarong, Gyurme Tethong, Tulku Jamyang Kunga Tenzin, Tenzin Yeshi Paichang
Votes: 30,503 | Gross: $5.53M
1937-1959
32. 42 (2013)
PG-13 | 128 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
In 1947, Jackie Robinson becomes the first African-American to play in Major League Baseball in the modern era when he was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers and faces considerable racism in the process.
Director: Brian Helgeland | Stars: Chadwick Boseman, T.R. Knight, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie
Votes: 102,716 | Gross: $95.00M
~ 1946-1947
33. Men of Honor (2000)
R | 129 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Carl Brashear, the first African-American U.S. Navy Diver, and the man who trained him.
Director: George Tillman Jr. | Stars: Cuba Gooding Jr., Robert De Niro, Charlize Theron, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
Votes: 125,139 | Gross: $48.82M
~ 1948
34. Bird (1988)
R | 161 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The troubled life and career of jazz musician Charlie "Bird" Parker.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Forest Whitaker, Diane Venora, Michael Zelniker, Samuel E. Wright
Votes: 13,486 | Gross: $2.18M
~ 1940-1955
35. The Aviator (2004)
PG-13 | 170 min | Biography, Drama
A biopic depicting the early years of legendary director and aviator Howard Hughes' career from the late 1920s to the mid 1940s.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly
Votes: 384,082 | Gross: $102.61M
1927-1947
36. The Miracle of Bern (2003)
118 min | Drama, Sport
A young boy from a working class family in post-war Germany struggles with his estranged father returning from war captivity, while a friend of his plays for the German National Soccer Team at the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland.
Director: Sönke Wortmann | Stars: Louis Klamroth, Peter Lohmeyer, Johanna Gastdorf, Lucas Gregorowicz
Votes: 7,478
1954
37. Trumbo (2015)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama
In 1947, Dalton Trumbo was Hollywood's top screenwriter, until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs.
Director: Jay Roach | Stars: Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, Helen Mirren, Louis C.K.
Votes: 84,781 | Gross: $7.86M
~ 50's/60's
38. Ed Wood (1994)
R | 127 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Ambitious but troubled movie director Edward D. Wood Jr. tries his best to fulfill his dreams despite his lack of talent.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Patricia Arquette
Votes: 183,976 | Gross: $5.89M
mid 50's
39. Walk the Line (2005)
PG-13 | 136 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins.
Director: James Mangold | Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Patrick
Votes: 265,841 | Gross: $119.52M
~ 50's/60's
40. Ray (I) (2004)
PG-13 | 152 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the life and career of the legendary rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s.
Director: Taylor Hackford | Stars: Jamie Foxx, Regina King, Kerry Washington, Clifton Powell
Votes: 157,398 | Gross: $75.33M
~ 50's/60's
41. The World's Fastest Indian (2005)
PG-13 | 127 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
The story of New Zealander Burt Munro, who spent years rebuilding a 1920 Indian motorcycle, which helped him set the land speed world record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats in 1967.
Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Diane Ladd, Iain Rea, Tessa Mitchell
Votes: 58,605 | Gross: $5.13M
late 50's/early 60's
42. Bridge of Spies (2015)
PG-13 | 142 min | Drama, History, Thriller
During the Cold War, an American lawyer is recruited to defend an arrested Soviet spy in court, and then help the CIA facilitate an exchange of the spy for the Soviet captured American U2 spy plane pilot, Francis Gary Powers.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Alan Alda, Amy Ryan
Votes: 327,748 | Gross: $72.31M
~ 1960
43. The People Vs. Fritz Bauer (2015)
R | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Thriller
The story of the man who brought high-ranking German Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann to justice.
Director: Lars Kraume | Stars: Burghart Klaußner, Ronald Zehrfeld, Lilith Stangenberg, Jörg Schüttauf
Votes: 6,119 | Gross: $0.28M
early 60's
44. Jackie (V) (2016)
R | 100 min | Biography, Drama
Following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy fights through grief and trauma to regain her faith, console her children, and define her husband's historic legacy.
Director: Pablo Larraín | Stars: Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup
Votes: 83,433 | Gross: $13.96M
1962-1963
45. Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Author P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney, who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley, Colin Farrell
Votes: 170,043 | Gross: $83.30M
~ 1964
46. JFK (1991)
R | 189 min | Drama, History, Thriller
New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison discovers there's more to the Kennedy assassination than the official story.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau
Votes: 169,925 | Gross: $70.41M
~ 1966
47. Malcolm X (1992)
PG-13 | 202 min | Biography, Drama, History
Biographical epic of the controversial and influential Black Nationalist leader, from his early life and career as a small-time gangster, to his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam and his eventual assassination.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett, Delroy Lindo, Spike Lee
Votes: 102,023 | Gross: $48.17M
~ early 60's
48. Capote (2005)
R | 114 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
In 1959, Truman Capote learns of the murder of a Kansas family and decides to write a book about the case. While researching for his novel In Cold Blood, Capote forms a relationship with one of the killers, Perry Smith, who is on death row.
Director: Bennett Miller | Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Clifton Collins Jr., Catherine Keener, Allie Mickelson
Votes: 140,768 | Gross: $28.75M
~ 60's
49. The Theory of Everything (2014)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
Stephen Hawking gets unprecedented success in the field of physics despite being diagnosed with motor neuron disease at the age of 21. He defeats awful odds as his first wife Jane aids him loyally.
Director: James Marsh | Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Tom Prior, Sophie Perry
Votes: 482,064 | Gross: $35.89M
~ 60's
50. Catch Me If You Can (2002)
PG-13 | 141 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Barely 17 yet, Frank is a skilled forger who has passed as a doctor, lawyer and pilot. FBI agent Carl becomes obsessed with tracking down the con man, who only revels in the pursuit.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen
Votes: 1,095,646 | Gross: $164.62M
mid 60's
51. Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
R | 121 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
In 1965, an unorthodox and irreverent DJ named Adrian Cronauer begins to shake up things when he is assigned to the U.S. Armed Services radio station in Vietnam.
Director: Barry Levinson | Stars: Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker, Tom T. Tran, Chintara Sukapatana
Votes: 153,801 | Gross: $123.92M
~ 1965
52. Get on Up (2014)
PG-13 | 139 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A chronicle of James Brown's rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most influential musicians in history.
Director: Tate Taylor | Stars: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis
Votes: 26,143 | Gross: $30.51M
~ 50's/60's
53. Awakenings (1990)
PG-13 | 121 min | Biography, Drama
The victims of an encephalitis epidemic many years ago have been catatonic ever since, but now a new drug offers the prospect of reviving them.
Director: Penny Marshall | Stars: Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Julie Kavner, Ruth Nelson
Votes: 158,751 | Gross: $52.10M
~ 1966-1970
54. Detroit (2017)
R | 143 min | Crime, Drama, History
Fact-based drama set during the 1967 Detroit riots in which a group of rogue police officers respond to a complaint with retribution rather than justice on their minds.
Director: Kathryn Bigelow | Stars: John Boyega, Anthony Mackie, Algee Smith, Jacob Latimore
Votes: 55,949 | Gross: $16.79M
1967
55. First Man (2018)
PG-13 | 141 min | Biography, Drama, History
A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.
Director: Damien Chazelle | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler
Votes: 202,251 | Gross: $44.94M
1967
56. Eight Miles High (2007)
Unrated | 114 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Uschi Obermeier, a German cover model from the 1960s who embodied the dreams of the hippie generation - joins a commune, begins a modelling career, meets rock stars, and travels the world in a bus, enjoying love, drugs and freedom.
Director: Akiz | Stars: Natalia Avelon, Matthias Schweighöfer, David Scheller, Friederike Kempter
Votes: 3,028
late 60's
57. The Doors (1991)
R | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the famous and influential 1960s rock band The Doors and its lead singer and composer, Jim Morrison, from his days as a UCLA film student in Los Angeles, to his untimely death in Paris, France at age 27 in 1971.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan, Kyle MacLachlan, Frank Whaley
Votes: 99,062 | Gross: $35.18M
late 60's
58. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
R | 145 min | Biography, Drama, War
The biography of Ron Kovic. Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, he becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country for which he fought.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Tom Cruise, Bryan Larkin, Raymond J. Barry, Caroline Kava
Votes: 115,948 | Gross: $70.00M
~ 60's/early 70's
59. Nanga Parbat (2010)
104 min | Biography, Drama
Drama about the tragic Nanga Parbat expedition by the two Messner brothers in 1970, on which Reinhold Messners younger brother Günther died.
Director: Joseph Vilsmaier | Stars: Florian Stetter, Andreas Tobias, Karl Markovics, Steffen Schroeder
Votes: 1,922
1970
60. Apollo 13 (I) (1995)
PG | 140 min | Adventure, Drama, History
NASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.
Director: Ron Howard | Stars: Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise
Votes: 315,592 | Gross: $173.84M
1970
61. We Are Marshall (2006)
PG | 131 min | Drama, Sport
When a plane crash claims the lives of members of the Marshall University football team and some of its fans, the team's new coach and his surviving players try to keep the football program alive.
Director: McG | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Anthony Mackie, David Strathairn
Votes: 64,823 | Gross: $43.55M
1970
62. Patch Adams (1998)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The true story of a heroic man, Hunter "Patch" Adams, determined to become a medical doctor because he enjoys helping people. He ventured where no doctor had ventured before, using humour and pathos.
Director: Tom Shadyac | Stars: Robin Williams, Daniel London, Monica Potter, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Votes: 122,300 | Gross: $135.03M
late 60's/early 70's
63. Remember the Titans (2000)
PG | 113 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
In 1971 Virginia high school football was everything to the people of Alexandria. But when the school board was forced to integrate an all-black school with an all-white one, the very foundation of football's tradition was put to the test.
Director: Boaz Yakin | Stars: Denzel Washington, Will Patton, Wood Harris, Ryan Hurst
Votes: 231,930 | Gross: $115.65M
~ 1971
64. American Gangster (2007)
R | 157 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
An outcast New York City cop is charged with bringing down Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas, whose real life inspired this partly biographical film.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Josh Brolin
Votes: 452,543 | Gross: $130.16M
late 60's/early 70's
65. Rudy (1993)
PG | 114 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Rudy has always been told that he was too small to play college football. But he is determined to overcome the odds and fulfill his dream of playing for Notre Dame.
Director: David Anspaugh | Stars: Sean Astin, Jon Favreau, Ned Beatty, Greta Lind
Votes: 69,084 | Gross: $22.75M
early 70's
66. Nixon (1995)
R | 192 min | Biography, Drama, History
A biographical story of former U.S. President Richard Nixon, from his days as a young boy, to his eventual Presidency, which ended in shame.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Joan Allen, Powers Boothe, Ed Harris
Votes: 32,731 | Gross: $13.56M
early 70's
67. BlacKkKlansman (2018)
R | 135 min | Biography, Comedy, Crime
Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer from Colorado Springs, Colorado, successfully infiltrates the local Ku Klux Klan branch aided by a Jewish surrogate who eventually becomes its leader. Based on actual events.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace
Votes: 291,112 | Gross: $49.28M
early 70's
68. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
R | 125 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Three amateur bank robbers plan to hold up a bank. A nice simple robbery: Walk in, take the money, and run. Unfortunately, the supposedly uncomplicated heist suddenly becomes a bizarre nightmare as everything that could go wrong does.
Director: Sidney Lumet | Stars: Al Pacino, John Cazale, Penelope Allen, Sully Boyar
Votes: 273,070 | Gross: $50.00M
1972
69. Pawn Sacrifice (2014)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
Set during the Cold War, American chess prodigy Bobby Fischer finds himself caught between two superpowers and his own struggles as he challenges the Soviet Empire.
Director: Edward Zwick | Stars: Tobey Maguire, Liev Schreiber, Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Stuhlbarg
Votes: 49,275 | Gross: $2.44M
~ 1972
70. Munich (2005)
R | 164 min | Action, Drama, History
After the Black September capture and massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, five men are chosen to eliminate the people responsible for that fateful day.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Marie-Josée Croze, Ciarán Hinds
Votes: 238,288 | Gross: $47.40M
1972
71. Bloody Sunday (2002)
R | 111 min | Drama, History, War
A dramatization of the Irish civil rights protest march and subsequent massacre by British troops on January 30, 1972.
Director: Paul Greengrass | Stars: James Nesbitt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Nicholas Farrell, Allan Gildea
Votes: 25,757 | Gross: $0.77M
~ 1972
72. All the President's Men (1976)
PG | 138 min | Drama, History, Thriller
"The Washington Post" reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein uncover the details of the Watergate scandal that leads to President Richard Nixon's resignation.
Director: Alan J. Pakula | Stars: Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, Jack Warden, Martin Balsam
Votes: 126,053 | Gross: $70.60M
1972-1974
73. The Damned United (2009)
R | 98 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
The story of the controversial Brian Clough's 44-day reign as the coach of the English football club Leeds United.
Director: Tom Hooper | Stars: Colm Meaney, Henry Goodman, David Roper, Jimmy Reddington
Votes: 45,919 | Gross: $0.45M
~1974
74. Invincible (2006)
PG | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Based on the story of Vince Papale, a 30-year-old bartender from South Philadelphia who overcame long odds to play for the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles in 1976.
Director: Ericson Core | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Greg Kinnear, Elizabeth Banks, Kevin Conway
Votes: 75,335 | Gross: $57.81M
1975
75. Black Mass (2015)
R | 123 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.
Director: Scott Cooper | Stars: Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson, Joel Edgerton
Votes: 192,368 | Gross: $62.58M
~ 1975
76. Rush (I) (2013)
R | 123 min | Action, Biography, Drama
The merciless 1970s rivalry between Formula One rivals James Hunt and Niki Lauda.
Director: Ron Howard | Stars: Daniel Brühl, Chris Hemsworth, Olivia Wilde, Alexandra Maria Lara
Votes: 513,680 | Gross: $26.95M
~ 1976
77. Milk (I) (2008)
R | 128 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of American gay activist Harvey Milk, who fought for gay rights and was elected as California's first openly gay official.
Director: Gus Van Sant | Stars: Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch, Diego Luna
Votes: 179,860 | Gross: $31.84M
70's
78. Christiane F. (1981)
R | 138 min | Biography, Drama
A teen girl in 1970s Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute.
Director: Uli Edel | Stars: Natja Brunckhorst, Eberhard Auriga, Peggy Bussieck, Lothar Chamski
Votes: 29,407
70's
79. Balloon (2018)
PG-13 | 125 min | Drama, History, Thriller
East Germany, 1979. After initially failing to flee from the East to the West in a self-built hot-air balloon, two families struggle to make a second attempt, while the East German State Police are chasing them.
Director: Michael Herbig | Stars: Friedrich Mücke, Karoline Schuch, David Kross, Alicia von Rittberg
Votes: 13,326 | Gross: $0.01M
1979
80. Argo (2012)
R | 120 min | Biography, Drama, History
Acting under the cover of a Hollywood producer scouting a location for a science fiction film, a CIA agent launches a dangerous operation to rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran in 1979.
Director: Ben Affleck | Stars: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Alan Arkin
Votes: 639,131 | Gross: $136.03M
1979-1981
81. Blow (2001)
R | 124 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of how George Jung, along with the Medellín Cartel headed by Pablo Escobar, established the American cocaine market in the 1970s in the United States.
Director: Ted Demme | Stars: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Franka Potente, Rachel Griffiths
Votes: 275,054 | Gross: $52.99M
late 70's/early 80's
82. The Fighter (I) (2010)
R | 116 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Based on the story of Micky Ward, a fledgling boxer who tries to escape the shadow of his more famous but troubled older boxing brother and get his own shot at greatness.
Director: David O. Russell | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo
Votes: 388,903 | Gross: $93.62M
~ 1978
83. Man on the Moon (1999)
R | 118 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The life and career of legendary comedian Andy Kaufman.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Gerry Becker, Greyson Erik Pendry
Votes: 137,484 | Gross: $34.58M
~ 70's-1984
84. Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
PG-13 | 134 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of the legendary British rock band Queen and lead singer Freddie Mercury, leading up to their famous performance at Live Aid (1985).
Director: Bryan Singer | Stars: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy
Votes: 592,829 | Gross: $216.43M
~ 1975-1985
85. Miracle (2004)
PG | 135 min | Biography, Drama, History
The true story of Herb Brooks, the player-turned-coach who led the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to victory over the seemingly invincible Soviet squad.
Director: Gavin O'Connor | Stars: Kurt Russell, Patricia Clarkson, Nathan West, Noah Emmerich
Votes: 58,914 | Gross: $64.38M
~ 1980
86. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
PG-13 | 117 min | Biography, Drama
A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career
Director: Gabriele Muccino | Stars: Will Smith, Thandiwe Newton, Jaden Smith, Brian Howe
Votes: 560,779 | Gross: $163.57M
~ early 80's
87. Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
R | 117 min | Biography, Drama
In 1985 Dallas, electrician and hustler Ron Woodroof works around the system to help AIDS patients get the medication they need after he is diagnosed with the disease.
Director: Jean-Marc Vallée | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, Jared Leto, Steve Zahn
Votes: 519,310 | Gross: $27.30M
mid 80's
88. The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
R | 130 min | Biography, Drama
The story of controversial pornography publisher Larry Flynt, and how he became a defender of free speech.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, Brett Harrelson
Votes: 100,737 | Gross: $20.19M
1952-1988
89. Dead Man Walking (1995)
R | 122 min | Crime, Drama
A nun, while comforting a convicted killer on death row, empathizes with both the killer and his victim's families.
Director: Tim Robbins | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Sean Penn, Robert Prosky, Raymond J. Barry
Votes: 101,782 | Gross: $39.39M
80's
90. The Infiltrator (2016)
R | 127 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A U.S. Customs official uncovers a money laundering scheme involving Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
Director: Brad Furman | Stars: Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger, Amy Ryan
Votes: 78,818 | Gross: $15.43M
~ 1986
91. Charlie Wilson's War (2007)
R | 102 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A drama based on a Texas congressman Charlie Wilson's covert dealings in Afghanistan, where his efforts to assist rebels in their war with the Soviets have some unforeseen and long-reaching effects.
Director: Mike Nichols | Stars: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams
Votes: 124,899 | Gross: $66.66M
1980-1989
92. Jobs (2013)
PG-13 | 128 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Steve Jobs' ascension from college dropout into one of the most revered creative entrepreneurs of the 20th century.
Director: Joshua Michael Stern | Stars: Ashton Kutcher, Dermot Mulroney, Josh Gad, Lukas Haas
Votes: 103,870 | Gross: $16.13M
1974-2001
93. Steve Jobs (2015)
R | 122 min | Biography, Drama
Steve Jobs takes us behind the scenes of the digital revolution, to paint a portrait of the man at its epicenter. The story unfolds backstage at three iconic product launches, ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the iMac.
Director: Danny Boyle | Stars: Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels
Votes: 178,542 | Gross: $17.77M
1984-1998
94. Straight Outta Compton (2015)
R | 147 min | Biography, Drama, History
The rap group NWA emerges from the mean streets of Compton in Los Angeles, California, in the mid-1980s and revolutionizes Hip Hop culture with their music and tales about life in the hood.
Director: F. Gary Gray | Stars: O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr.
Votes: 218,481 | Gross: $161.20M
1986-1995
95. Eddie the Eagle (2015)
PG-13 | 106 min | Adventure, Biography, Comedy
The story of Eddie Edwards, the notoriously tenacious British underdog ski jumper who charmed the world at the 1988 Winter Olympics.
Director: Dexter Fletcher | Stars: Taron Egerton, Hugh Jackman, Tom Costello, Jo Hartley
Votes: 100,227 | Gross: $15.79M
~ 1988
96. Monster (2003)
R | 109 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Based on the life of Aileen Wuornos, a Daytona Beach prostitute who became a serial killer.
Director: Patty Jenkins | Stars: Charlize Theron, Christina Ricci, Bruce Dern, Lee Tergesen
Votes: 161,815 | Gross: $34.47M
late 80's/early 90's
97. Jarhead (2005)
R | 125 min | Biography, Drama, War
A psychological study of Marine's state of mind during the Gulf War. Told through the eyes of a U.S. Marine sniper who struggles to cope with boredom, a sense of isolation, and other issues back home.
Director: Sam Mendes | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx, Lucas Black, Scott MacDonald
Votes: 206,543 | Gross: $62.66M
1989-1991
98. Gridiron Gang (2006)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Teenagers at a juvenile detention center, under the leadership of their counselor, gain self-esteem by playing football together.
Director: Phil Joanou | Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Xzibit, L. Scott Caldwell, Leon Rippy
Votes: 80,664 | Gross: $38.43M
~ 1990
99. I Love You Phillip Morris (2009)
R | 98 min | Biography, Comedy, Crime
A cop turns con man once he comes out of the closet. Once imprisoned, he meets the second love of his life, whom he'll stop at nothing to be with.
Directors: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa | Stars: Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro
Votes: 99,781 | Gross: $2.04M
80's/90's
100. The Intouchables (2011)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama
After he becomes a quadriplegic from a paragliding accident, an aristocrat hires a young man from the projects to be his caregiver.
Directors: Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano | Stars: François Cluzet, Omar Sy, Anne Le Ny, Audrey Fleurot
Votes: 929,436 | Gross: $13.18M
early 90's
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