Best Biography Movies Ever
by PatrickTheater | created - 03 Jul 2020 | updated - 3 months ago | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Amadeus (1984)
R | 160 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The life, success and troubles of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as told by Antonio Salieri, the contemporaneous composer who was deeply jealous of Mozart's talent and claimed to have murdered him.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge, Roy Dotrice
Votes: 428,412 | Gross: $51.97M
2. 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: 265,994 | Gross: $119.52M
3. Ip Man 4: The Finale (2019)
Not Rated | 107 min | Action, Biography, Drama
The Kung Fu master travels to the U.S. where his student has upset the local martial arts community by opening a Wing Chun school.
Director: Wilson Yip | Stars: Donnie Yen, Scott Adkins, Danny Kwok-Kwan Chan, Vanness Wu
Votes: 36,750 | Gross: $3.96M
4. 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: 375,464 | Gross: $5.51M
5. 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: 452,833 | Gross: $130.16M
6. Only the Brave (2017)
PG-13 | 134 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Based on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a group of elite firefighters who risk everything to protect a town from a historic wildfire.
Director: Joseph Kosinski | Stars: Josh Brolin, Miles Teller, Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Connelly
Votes: 77,457 | Gross: $18.34M
7. 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: 593,560 | Gross: $216.43M
8. Ip Man 3 (2015)
PG-13 | 105 min | Action, Biography, Drama
When a band of brutal gangsters led by a crooked property developer make a play to take over a local school, Master Ip is forced to take a stand.
Director: Wilson Yip | Stars: Donnie Yen, Lynn Xiong, Jin Zhang, Mike Tyson
Votes: 60,248 | Gross: $2.68M
9. Ip Man 2 (2010)
R | 108 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Centering on Ip Man's migration to Hong Kong in 1949 as he attempts to propagate his discipline of Wing Chun martial arts.
Director: Wilson Yip | Stars: Donnie Yen, Xiaoming Huang, Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Lynn Xiong
Votes: 111,075 | Gross: $0.21M
10. Ip Man (2008)
R | 106 min | Action, Biography, Drama
During the Japanese invasion of China, a wealthy martial artist is forced to leave his home when his city is occupied. With little means of providing for themselves, Ip Man and the remaining members of the city must find a way to survive.
Director: Wilson Yip | Stars: Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Siu-Wong Fan, Ka-Tung Lam
Votes: 233,681
11. I Still Believe (2020)
PG | 116 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The true-life story of Christian music star Jeremy Camp and his journey of love and loss that looks to prove there is always hope.
Directors: Andrew Erwin, Jon Erwin | Stars: K.J. Apa, Britt Robertson, Nathan Parsons, Gary Sinise
Votes: 13,634
12. The Runaways (2010)
R | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A coming-of-age biographical film about the 1970s teenage all-girl rock band The Runaways. The relationship between band members Cherie Currie and Joan Jett is also explored.
Director: Floria Sigismondi | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon, Stella Maeve
Votes: 50,964 | Gross: $3.57M
13. 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: 482,414 | Gross: $35.89M
14. Captain Phillips (2013)
PG-13 | 134 min | Action, Biography, Crime
The true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the U.S.-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years.
Director: Paul Greengrass | Stars: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Catherine Keener
Votes: 492,994 | Gross: $107.10M
15. Goodfellas (1990)
R | 145 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of Henry Hill and his life in the mafia, covering his relationship with his wife Karen and his mob partners Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco
Votes: 1,258,471 | Gross: $46.84M
16. The Pianist (2002)
R | 150 min | Biography, Drama, Music
During WWII, acclaimed Polish musician Wladyslaw faces various struggles as he loses contact with his family. As the situation worsens, he hides in the ruins of Warsaw in order to survive.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Emilia Fox
Votes: 913,309 | Gross: $32.57M
17. Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
R | 139 min | Biography, Drama, History
World War II American Army Medic Desmond T. Doss, serving during the Battle of Okinawa, refuses to kill people and becomes the first man in American history to receive the Medal of Honor without firing a shot.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer
Votes: 594,930 | Gross: $67.21M
18. Adrift (I) (2018)
PG-13 | 96 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
A true story of survival, as a young couple's chance encounter leads them first to love, and then on the adventure of a lifetime as they face one of the most catastrophic hurricanes in recorded history.
Director: Baltasar Kormákur | Stars: Shailene Woodley, Sam Claflin, Jeffrey Thomas, Elizabeth Hawthorne
Votes: 61,823 | Gross: $31.45M
19. American Made (2017)
R | 115 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
The story of Barry Seal, an American pilot who became a drug-runner for the CIA in the 1980s in a clandestine operation that would be exposed as the Iran-Contra Affair.
Director: Doug Liman | Stars: Tom Cruise, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright, Jesse Plemons
Votes: 208,432 | Gross: $51.34M
20. American Sniper (2014)
R | 133 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Navy S.E.A.L. sniper Chris Kyle's pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and turns him into a legend. Back home with his family after four tours of duty, however, Chris finds that it is the war he can't leave behind.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Kyle Gallner, Cole Konis
Votes: 529,726 | Gross: $350.13M
21. Lone Survivor (2013)
R | 121 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Marcus Luttrell and his team set out on a mission to capture or kill notorious Taliban leader Ahmad Shah, in late June 2005. Marcus and his team are left to fight for their lives in one of the most valiant efforts of modern warfare.
Director: Peter Berg | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster
Votes: 306,869 | Gross: $125.10M
22. 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: 930,404 | Gross: $13.18M
23. Sully (2016)
PG-13 | 96 min | Biography, Drama
When pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger lands his damaged plane on the Hudson River in order to save the flight's passengers and crew, some consider him a hero while others think he was reckless.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney, Valerie Mahaffey
Votes: 298,361 | Gross: $125.07M
24. Snowden (2016)
R | 134 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The NSA's illegal surveillance techniques are leaked to the public by one of the agency's employees, Edward Snowden, in the form of thousands of classified documents distributed to the press.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto
Votes: 163,053 | Gross: $21.59M
25. Into the Wild (2007)
R | 148 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.
Director: Sean Penn | Stars: Emile Hirsch, Vince Vaughn, Catherine Keener, Marcia Gay Harden
Votes: 658,546 | Gross: $18.35M
26. The Walk (II) (2015)
PG | 123 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
In 1974, high-wire artist Philippe Petit recruits a team of people to help him realize his dream: to walk the immense void between the World Trade Center towers.
Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Charlotte Le Bon, Ben Kingsley, James Badge Dale
Votes: 135,572 | Gross: $10.14M
27. Everest (2015)
PG-13 | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
On May 10, 1996, mountain guides Rob Hall and Scott Fischer combine their expedition teams for a final ascent to the summit of Mount Everest. With little warning, a storm strikes the mountain and the climbers must now battle to survive.
Director: Baltasar Kormákur | Stars: Jason Clarke, Ang Phula Sherpa, Thomas M. Wright, Martin Henderson
Votes: 232,560 | Gross: $43.48M
28. Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005)
R | 117 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A tale of an inner city drug dealer who turns away from a life of crime to pursue his passion of rap music.
Director: Jim Sheridan | Stars: 50 Cent, Joy Bryant, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Omar Benson Miller
Votes: 50,196 | Gross: $30.98M
29. Darkest Hour (2017)
PG-13 | 125 min | Drama, War
In May 1940, the fate of World War II hangs on Winston Churchill, who must decide whether to negotiate with Adolf Hitler, or fight on knowing that it could mean the end of the British Empire.
Director: Joe Wright | Stars: Gary Oldman, Lily James, Kristin Scott Thomas, Ben Mendelsohn
Votes: 220,957 | Gross: $56.47M
30. 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: 318,786 | Gross: $97.10M
31. The Irishman (2019)
R | 209 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
An illustration of Frank Sheeran's life, from W.W.II veteran to hit-man for the Bufalino crime family and his alleged assassination of his close friend Jimmy Hoffa.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel
Votes: 431,485 | Gross: $7.00M
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