Most of my favorite movies are ones that are based on true stories. Granted, these types often have a high degree of dramatization added; however, a great deal of the story line is true and sometimes very moving.
The following movies rank among my all time favorites :)
Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story
Probably one of the best biopics ever! The Story of Benjamin Carson... From a Detroit schoolboy to lauded neurosurgeon.
I had no intentions of entering the medical field before I saw this movie. After I saw the movie, I read all of the books Dr. Carson had authored.... I've tried so many times to summarize this movie and failed every single time. Just watch and be inspired!!!
The Greatest Game Ever Played
I had never heard the name Francis Ouimet or ever liked/half-way-understood the game of golf before watching The Greatest Game... It's another underdog story.... but who ever gets tired of those - especially when they're real!
Eight Below
Eight sled dogs are left in Antartica and somehow find a way to survive... and their handler who is desperate to get back to them. I am totally an animal person so this made it to the top of my oh-my-word-I-totally-love-it movie list :)
Knute Rockne: All American
Knute Rockne was a Notre Dame football coach. Honestly, I don't remember much about him because Ronald Reagan was cast as one of Rockne's best football players and (because Reagan is a personal hero of mine) I remember the movie mostly for him... I think he played a guy named George but everyone called him "Gip" or "the Gipper"
Secretariat
A housewife out of her element... in the field of horse racing. The odds are against her... and her horse.
If there is a particular type of animal movie I adore... it's horse movies!
Dreamer
Three generations of horse racers, a race horse with a broken leg, a little girl with a big dream... you put the rest of the puzzle together!
I believe this one his highly fictionalized. The horse was real (though I don't think they used it's real name... the real horse is referenced in the movie though)... I don't believe the little girl's part of the story is real but I'm not positive about that.
Sheffy
In high school, I read the book on which this story is based. Both the book and the movie are fantastic. The book of course has more detail but the movie was actually pretty accurate (from what I remember).
Sheffy
In high school, I read the book on which this story is based. Both the book and the movie are fantastic. The book of course has more detail but the movie was actually pretty accurate (from what I remember).
Soul Surfer
Ever heard of Hawaiian surfer Bethany Hamilton whose arm was bitten off by a shark? This is her biopic.
(*personal note* I like the story behind this movie but I don't 100% recommend due to clothing issues)
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
This is a series of movies based on a deaf woman working at the FBI. The woman (Sue Thomas) is real; however, the stories that comprise each episode are absolutely fictionalized. Some of my family's favorites!
Daniel Boone
We haven't watched these in a long time, but they used to be some of my favorites. Obviously, Daniel Boone was real, but, again, the stories are simple fiction.... right down to the number of kids he had.
Glory Road
Story about an underdog basketball coach... Also, essentially, how the first black basketball players got their start. Great story but I can't recommend this 100% due to some language.
The Mighty Macs
The story of a girls basketball team from a Catholic School and their never-back-down coach.
