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True Story

True Story

Crime · Drama · History · 2015

A drama centered on the relationship between journalist Michael Finkel and Christian Longo, an FBI Most Wanted List murderer who for years lived outside the U.S. under Finkel's name.

Movie details

True Story

“Some mysteries are beyond belief.”

2015 Crime · Drama · History 1h 39m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.3 / 10

Community rating

A drama centered on the relationship between journalist Michael Finkel and Christian Longo, an FBI Most Wanted List murderer who for years lived outside the U.S. under Finkel's name.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over True Story?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Monster

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The General

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The real-life story of Dublin folk hero and criminal Martin Cahill, who pulled off two daring robberies in Ireland with his team, but attracted unwanted attention from the police, the I.R.A., the U.V.F., and members of his own team.

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile

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A chronicle of the crimes of Ted Bundy, from the perspective of his longtime girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer, who refused to believe the truth about him for years.

In Cold Blood

In Cold Blood

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After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.

Cool Hand Luke

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The Onion Field

The Onion Field

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No Man of God

No Man of God

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The complicated relationship that formed between the FBI analyst Bill Hagmaier and serial killer Ted Bundy during Bundy's final years on death row.

GoodFellas

GoodFellas

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The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Rupert Goold

Written by

David Kajganich · Rupert Goold

Jonah Hill

Jonah Hill

Michael Finkel

James Franco

James Franco

Christian Longo

Felicity Jones

Felicity Jones

Jill Barker

Maria Dizzia

Maria Dizzia

Mary Jane Longo

Ethan Suplee

Ethan Suplee

Pat Frato

Robert John Burke

Robert John Burke

Greg Ganley

C

Charlotte Driscoll

Sadie Longo

Court is in session

Put True Story on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.