10 "True Story" Movies You May Not Have Seen, But Should

A couple months ago I wrote a post listing 10 movies that "were so bad they were actually good".  I got a surprising amount of feedback, mostly from people I don't know, so I thought I would try another movie list.  This time I'm going with movies based on true stories that you may not have seen.  These would be movies that maybe weren't huge box office smashes but I feel are well worth a watch.  Obviously there are some great true story movies that you all know - "Seabiscuit" for example may be one of the best movies of all time - but I'm trying to list a few that may have slipped through your cinematic crack...so to speak.  A few of these might be a little bigger than I should allow based on the criteria, but it's just a blog so rules schmools....  Here we go, in no particular order:

 

Lords of Dogtown (2005)

This film covers the rise of skateboarding in California in the 70's through a somewhat fictionalized story about real skaters like Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta.  Heath Ledger and Emile Hursch are among the rather large cast.  It tells an interesting story without glamorizing the events or the outcome - something rare in movies these days.

The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005)

This is the story of Francis Quimet, a 20-year old American who defeated English pros Harry Vardon and Ted Ray in the 1913 US Open.  Shia LeBeouf does a good job as Quimet, and the movie does a great job of covering the class struggles of both he and Vardon.  It's also pretty accurate.  The only liberty taken seems to be making the play-off closer than it really was.  

Bottle Shock (2008)

This is a really good movie about the emergence of California wine in the 70's.  It culminates with the infamous blind Paris wine tasting of 1976, which later came to be know as "The Judgement of Paris".  The cast is great and it's a fun story.  Napa Valley, and the rest of the world really, owes its wine success to these events.  If not, you might all still be drinking French wine.  A bottle of the '76 Chateau Montelena is in the Smithsonian.

   

Charlie Wilson's War (2007)

This certainly isn't an obscure movie, and the cast is huge, but if you haven't seen it you really should.  This is the story of the small town Texas congressman who really spearheaded the support of the Afgan mujahideen that ultimately crippled and drove out the Soviet Union in the 80s.  The story is almost too unbelievable to be true.  The movie is extremely well done and covers the good and the bad.  Knowing what we know now, his efforts certainly had some consequences we are still dealing with today.  

  

Enemy at the Gates (2001)

This movie tells the story of Russian sniper Vassili Zaitsev during the battle for Stalingrad during WWII.  It's certainly not a happy film, but it's extremely realistic and the acting is pretty good.  Jude Law plays the lead.

Glory Road (2006)

This is the story of the Texas Western (now UTEP) 1966 basketball team that won the national championship over Kentucky.  Head coach Don Haskins, whose previous job had been as a girls high school coach in Ft. Worth, made history by starting five black players in the championship game.  Teams certainly had black players at the time, but no more than one or two.  Haskins assembled a team of 7 black players and 5 white players, but decided to make a statement in the championship game and probably changed college basketball forever.  It's a great story and a really good movie.  It's got plenty of humor to go along with the rather serious events.

Dragon:  The Bruce Lee Story (1993)

If you don't know much about Bruce Lee, watch this film.  It chronicles his life from his beginnings in Hong Kong to his early death.  I think it's fascinating, as he was.

Hidalgo (2004)

This is the story of American Frank Hopkins and his horse, Hidalgo, who were invited to participate in the Ocean of Fire - a 3000 mile survival race across the Arabian desert.  Hopkins was a famous dispatch rider for the US Cavalry in the late 1800s and ultimately led the push to save the wild American Painted Horses that still roam free in the western US today.  It's a great movie with a little bit of everything.

  

The Right Stuff (1983)

Yes, this was actually a really big movie and it won four Academy Awards, but on the off-chance that you haven't seen it, do so.  This covers the Mercury program and the original astronauts - back when they were real men, not the science geeks we get today.  Perhaps the best story in the movie though is that of Chuck Yeager, who chose not to enter the space program.  It's very long, but worth it.

The Damned United (2009)

I bet you haven't seen this one, unless you're British.  This covers Brian Clough and his failed efforts as the coach of Leeds United.  It's hard to explain, and I'm not going to tell you it's a great film, but I'd say it's worth a watch.