Based On a True Story
I recently watched the movie The Long Game, which is an inspirational story of Mexican American teenagers forming a golf club at a South Texas high school. It was a great film, but something irked me. The text “based on a true story” appeared right after the title.
The next day, I researched the facts, and the screenwriters had embellished them. Well, this is to be expected. Life is not always exciting, and moviegoers like action, drama, and intrigue. “It could have happened this way.” “The screenwriter punched up the story to make it fun.” “Who cares?”
And look who is getting upset. I write fiction, which means I am lying to every single reader. My first book is about an immortal. Living forever breaks the rules of physics and medicine. My second book is a spy drama where two nations tap secret American communication cables. That never happened. The third contains a storyline about telepathy and aliens. Completely impossible. Yet, I have the nerve to complain about a screenwriter uplifting an excellent story so moviegoers are more entertained.
I suppose I have dug myself into a hole. “We like our entertainment to be entertaining.” “It’s normal.” Umm, no. I still feel cheated. So, what is going on in my bonkers mind?
Here are the facts behind this movie. Golfing events occurred, and many people participated. These facts were recorded in newspapers. Author Humberto Garcia researched old newspapers, interviewed people, and wrote the excellent book Mustang Miracle. Wonderful. Then, the screenwriter tweaked the story to create an entertaining movie. Sure, “liberties” were taken, but the results were close to the original story.
It took only a few minutes of internet research to uncover the differences. “Why not go with the original? It was an interesting story. No need to embellish.” More to the point. “By putting this text on the screen, the movie producers admit to lying.”
The counterargument is that the movie version of events was more entertaining, and the “based on a true story” text makes it alright for viewers because they know creative liberties were applied right at the film’s beginning, meaning nobody was cheated.
Well? Is it fiction or nonfiction? A documentary or fairy tale? The film producers wish us to believe their movie contains a high percentage of solidly researched facts. After all, the screenwriter did not use aliens like I did.
Here is my disconnect. If the screenwriters change some minor facts, I would be fine. Instead, they changed a bunch and slapped a “based on a true story” text to reduce the complaints. Plus, they did not want to get hit with a lawsuit.
Having the “based on a true story” text seems like a copout that translates to: “I could not find a good story, so I took this bad one and changed a bunch of stuff. Now, pay me.”
When I researched the real story, I wondered what those players would think. The only way I can answer is to examine my own life. It has not been overly exciting, but what if there were a thrilling movie about me?
Matt Damon could play me; he even looks like me. I could have a mind-blowing childhood full of race cars and flying fighter aircraft like the film Iron Eagle. When I turned 25, I could invent a machine that cured cancer and fall in love with a fantastic woman played by Lucy Liu. And who would play my wise Uncle Al? Al Pacino. They even have the same first name. Fantastic!
Cured cancer? Race cars? Fighter jets? What the heck? I did not do that. Well… Can I imagine doing that? As proof, screenwriters invented the story for Iron Eagle. Here is the difference. There was no “based on a true story” disclaimer at the beginning of that movie. We all know it was pure fiction.
Yet, movie studios want a pass. “Come on. Watch our film. It has Dennis Quaid and Cheech Martin in it.” Well, I have a counterargument. Why don’t nonfiction books have that statement? “Building the Panama Canal. How Teddy Roosevelt single-handedly completed the entire project with a shovel. Based on a true story.” See, that does not work.
There are two reasons why nonfiction books do not punch up true stories. There is a long tradition of honesty among authors because readers have a higher standard. Second, the backlash is brutal when a nonfiction author is caught embellishing.
I should chill out and enjoy movies based on a true story. They are fun, and there is no actual harm. Yeah… It still leaves a bad taste.
You’re the best -Bill
August 14, 2024
The next day, I researched the facts, and the screenwriters had embellished them. Well, this is to be expected. Life is not always exciting, and moviegoers like action, drama, and intrigue. “It could have happened this way.” “The screenwriter punched up the story to make it fun.” “Who cares?”
And look who is getting upset. I write fiction, which means I am lying to every single reader. My first book is about an immortal. Living forever breaks the rules of physics and medicine. My second book is a spy drama where two nations tap secret American communication cables. That never happened. The third contains a storyline about telepathy and aliens. Completely impossible. Yet, I have the nerve to complain about a screenwriter uplifting an excellent story so moviegoers are more entertained.
I suppose I have dug myself into a hole. “We like our entertainment to be entertaining.” “It’s normal.” Umm, no. I still feel cheated. So, what is going on in my bonkers mind?
Here are the facts behind this movie. Golfing events occurred, and many people participated. These facts were recorded in newspapers. Author Humberto Garcia researched old newspapers, interviewed people, and wrote the excellent book Mustang Miracle. Wonderful. Then, the screenwriter tweaked the story to create an entertaining movie. Sure, “liberties” were taken, but the results were close to the original story.
It took only a few minutes of internet research to uncover the differences. “Why not go with the original? It was an interesting story. No need to embellish.” More to the point. “By putting this text on the screen, the movie producers admit to lying.”
The counterargument is that the movie version of events was more entertaining, and the “based on a true story” text makes it alright for viewers because they know creative liberties were applied right at the film’s beginning, meaning nobody was cheated.
Well? Is it fiction or nonfiction? A documentary or fairy tale? The film producers wish us to believe their movie contains a high percentage of solidly researched facts. After all, the screenwriter did not use aliens like I did.
Here is my disconnect. If the screenwriters change some minor facts, I would be fine. Instead, they changed a bunch and slapped a “based on a true story” text to reduce the complaints. Plus, they did not want to get hit with a lawsuit.
Having the “based on a true story” text seems like a copout that translates to: “I could not find a good story, so I took this bad one and changed a bunch of stuff. Now, pay me.”
When I researched the real story, I wondered what those players would think. The only way I can answer is to examine my own life. It has not been overly exciting, but what if there were a thrilling movie about me?
Matt Damon could play me; he even looks like me. I could have a mind-blowing childhood full of race cars and flying fighter aircraft like the film Iron Eagle. When I turned 25, I could invent a machine that cured cancer and fall in love with a fantastic woman played by Lucy Liu. And who would play my wise Uncle Al? Al Pacino. They even have the same first name. Fantastic!
Cured cancer? Race cars? Fighter jets? What the heck? I did not do that. Well… Can I imagine doing that? As proof, screenwriters invented the story for Iron Eagle. Here is the difference. There was no “based on a true story” disclaimer at the beginning of that movie. We all know it was pure fiction.
Yet, movie studios want a pass. “Come on. Watch our film. It has Dennis Quaid and Cheech Martin in it.” Well, I have a counterargument. Why don’t nonfiction books have that statement? “Building the Panama Canal. How Teddy Roosevelt single-handedly completed the entire project with a shovel. Based on a true story.” See, that does not work.
There are two reasons why nonfiction books do not punch up true stories. There is a long tradition of honesty among authors because readers have a higher standard. Second, the backlash is brutal when a nonfiction author is caught embellishing.
I should chill out and enjoy movies based on a true story. They are fun, and there is no actual harm. Yeah… It still leaves a bad taste.
You’re the best -Bill
August 14, 2024
