Films Based on a True Story

True-life stories can inspire more interesting screenplays than drama, action, or comedy created in a writer’s imagination. These movies, based on actual events, are available to borrow from the Lititz Public Library.

Lee Daniels' The ButlerLee Daniels’ The Butler (2013)
Cecil Gaines, a devoted husband, father and White House butler, served eight Presidential administrations during the turbulent civil rights era.

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
Jordan Belford, a young stockbroker, is hungry for fame and glory on Wall Street but corruption and excess gets the better of him.

Devil’s Knot (2013)
In 1993 Arkansas, three teenagers suspected of devil worship are accused of the savage murders of three young children.

12 Years a Slave (2013)
In 1841, Solomon Northup, an accomplished, free citizen of New York, is kidnapped and sold into slavery.

Captain PhillipsCaptain Phillips (2013)
The US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, attacked by Somali pirates in 2009, was the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years.

Argo (2012)
In 1979, when Iranian militants stormed the American embassy in Tehran beginning a 444-day hostage crisis, six Americans escaped and an intelligence agent devised a risky plan to rescue them.

Parkland (2013)
A recounting of what happened the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas told from the vantage points of the individuals who were there.

Rush (2013)
In the 1970s, the spectacular rivalry between English playboy James Hunt and his more structured opponent, Austrian driver Niki Lauda dominated Formula One automobile racing.

The ImpossibleThe Impossible (2012)
Following the horrific 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, one family’s terror is tempered by the unexpected displays of compassion, courage, and kindness.

Lone Survivor (2013)
Four Navy SEALs sent on an ill-fated covert mission to neutralize a high-level Taliban operative are ambushed by enemy forces.

Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
In 1985, Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof’s free-wheeling life took a turn when he was diagnosed HIV-positive and he decided to track down alternative treatments – both legal and illegal – from all over the world.

Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
P.L. Travers is a woman struggling with her own past when she travels from London to Hollywood in 1961 to discuss Walt Disney’s plans to bring her beloved character, Mary Poppins to the screen.

Gangster SquadGangster Squad (2013)
In 1949, a small group of LAPD outsiders came together to bring down ruthless mob king Mickey Cohen, who reaped illegal gains from drugs, guns and gambling.

Philomena (2013)
After nearly fifty years, a mother who conceived out of wedlock and was forced to give her son up for adoption, meets a former BBC reporter looking for his next big story and they joined forces to locate her long lost son.

Lincoln (2012)
During his final months in office, President Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery.

Hatfields & McCoys (2012)
In the late 1800s, an historic feud ignites between two families living on the border between West Virginia and Kentucky.

January 30, 2015