True Stories
True Stories are those based (sometimes loosely!) on fact. They cover topics as diverse as drug addiction, poverty, political unrest, the corruption of power, alcoholism, class divisions, sexual inequality, mental illness and other human struggles. Meet some of history's most intriguing characters, find out what it's really like to climb a mountain or paint a masterpiece. Truly, the True Story is one of cinema's most engaging and enthralling genres.
Bio-pics feature in this section and are also gathered together separately under the 'Biography' sublink left.
Pictured: Inside the Las Vegas mob, Scorsese's unromantic 'Goodfellas'
The Riverman (2004)
6/10
Director: Bill Eagles
Starring: Bruce Greenwood, Sam Jaeger, Cary Elwes, Kathleen Quinlan
Based on the book co-written by Robert Keppel, formerly chief criminal investigator for the attorney general of Washington State, the film recounts Ke... Read more
The Road to Guantanamo (2006)
7.5/10
Director: Michael Winterbottom, Mat Whitecross
Starring: Riz Ahmed, Farhad Harun, Waqar Saddiqui, Afran Usman, Shahid Iqbal, Sher Khan
A searing dramatisation of the real-life experiences of three men who set off from Tipton, England, for a wedding in Pakistan in September of 2001. O... Read more
The Rocket Post (2004)
6.8/10
Director: Stephen Whittaker
Starring: Clive Russell, Ian McNeice, John Wood, Kevin McKidd, Patrick Malahide, Ulrich Th...
Hidden away amongst the Western Isles of Scotland is the remote island of Scarp, where a handful of people live a quiet existence. Tucked away from a... Read more
The Ron Clark Story (2006)
7.7/10
Director: Randa Haines
Starring: Matthew Perry, Hannah Hodson, Melissa de Sousa, Micah Williams, CJ Jackman-Zigan...
The true story of schoolteacher Ron Clark who left his North Carolina home to work in one of Harlem's toughest schools. While this storyline wins no... Read more
The Rookie (2002)
7/10
Director: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Brian Cox
In this inspiring true story, Dennis Quaid is Jim Morris, a Texas science teacher whose once-promising baseball career was curtailed because of a shou... Read more
The Runway (2010)
6.5/10
Director: Ian Power
Starring: Bruno Bichir, Kerry Condon, James Cosmo, Demian Bichir, Jamie Kierans
In this charming comedy, nine year old Paco believes his absent father is a Spanish pilot. He spends his days getting into trouble and his nights lear... Read more
The Scarlet and the Black (1983)
7.7/10
Director: Jerry London
Starring: Christopher Plummer, Gregory Peck, John Gielgud
Gregory Peck plays Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty, a real-life cleric who, during World War II, rescued thousands of escaped POWs from the Gestapo. Christo... Read more
The Sea Wolves (1980)
6.3/10
Director: Andrew V McLaglen
Starring: Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, David Niven
A true story about a retired British cavalry unit undertaking an espionage operation in World War II. The target is a German radio transmitter on a sh... Read more
The Sessions (2012)
7.2/10
Director: Ben Lewin
Starring: Adam Arkin, Helen Hunt, William H Macy, John Hawkes, Rhea Perlman, Moon Bloodgoo...
Candid and sensitive drama about the sexual awakening of a life-long polio sufferer. John Hawkes stars as Mark O'Brien, a writer in his late thirties... Read more
The Sessions (Blu-ray) (2012)
7.2/10
Director: Ben Lewin
Starring: Adam Arkin, Helen Hunt, William H Macy, John Hawkes, Rhea Perlman, Moon Bloodgoo...
Candid and sensitive drama about the sexual awakening of a life-long polio sufferer. John Hawkes stars as Mark O'Brien, a writer in his late thirties... Read more