Everytime a new biopic comes out, we can often tell from the trailer what's going to happen. Usually some childhood event occurs which both traumatizes the subject and imbues him or her with what it takes to go become famous enough to someday warrant a biopic. After that, he or she goes through some hard times, gets over their childhood trauma, and then dies. It's a formula for winning Oscars, so few dare go against it. But some biopics are worth watching all the same. Whether by changing the biopic formula, or simply knocking it out of the park, here are the biopics that don't suck.
Biopics That Don't Suck
So many biopics, so little time. For every good movie about someone's life, there are twenty more that just lazily go through the motions. We look for some diamonds in the rough, so you don't have to. Here are the biopics that don't suck.
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By Evan Saathoff November 16, 2011 |
Credit: HBO Video
| 11 | American Splendor |
Few biopics have turned the genre's tropes on its ear quite as wonderfully as American Splendor. The story of grumpy comic book writer Harvey Pekar's rise to counter-culture fame and battle with cancer, American Splendor doesn't just give us a straight run-through of the man's life but instead lets the real Harvey Pekar comment on the film as it's going. His real life nerdy friend Toby (played by 30 Rock's Judah Friedlander) gets in on the action as well.
Even if it weren't as creatively put together, Paul Giamatti's performance alone would make American Splendor a biopic that doesn't suck.
Credit: Touchstone
| 10 | Ed Wood |
Ed Wood gets everything right when it comes to biopics. It's filled with crazy characters but gives them heart. It tells a story most people probably aren't familiar with. And most importantly, it limits itself to the most important years of its subject's life.
By focusing on Ed Wood's friendship with horror legend Bela Lugosi, the film wisely gets to both humanize Ed Wood and examine his outlandish personality, since those years coincided with the making of his most memorable films. We don't see Ed Wood as a child, and we don't see him as an old man. We see Ed Wood only as a crazy filmmaker, which is all we really need to see.
Credit: United Artists
| 9 | Raging Bull |
Raging Bull isn't just one of the greatest biopics ever made—many consider it one of the greatest films ever made, period. This telling of boxer Jake LaMotta's rise and fall is brutal and thoughtful at the same time and comes through as one of those rare occasions where an actor putting on weight for a role really shocks the audience and adds to the story, rather than just taking all the attention (and awards).
Besides, any time you combine Scorcese, De Niro, and Pesci, you're dealing with a classic. Yes, even with Casino.
Credit: Universal
| 8 | Man on the Moon |
A lot of Man on the Moon deals in fairly typical biopic stuff. We see Andy rise to fame, have trouble, and then die. What sets Man on the Moon apart is its subject, the very strange Andy Kaufman. In other words, this movie is great soley because it features lots of Tony Clifton, a character who would be very at home in today's comedy landscape.
With a solid Jim Carey performance that never dips into mimicry, Man on the Moon tries to get into the head of an especially elusive guy and manages to do a decent job. It also succeeds at recreating famous scenes such as Andy's confrontation with Jerry Lawler on Letterman and Andy's legendary Mighty Mouse routine on SNL. Add to that a really great Danny DeVito performance, and you've got a recipe for biopic success.
Credit: Paramount
| 7 | The Elephant Man |
This film would bring tears to the Marlboro Man. Take one look at Joseph Merrick, and you're already pretty sad. Add his general kindness and intellectual curisoty and filter it through a voice that sounds exactly the way a kitten looks, and there's simply no way you're getting out with dry eyes. A strange film by most standards, The Elephant Man is fairly pedestrian for a David Lynch film. The story could pretty much write itself, but it doesn't matter because the subject is both fascinating and successfully realized enough to hook viewers from the start.
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