Netflix: 7 Best Movies Adapted from a Real Story by Viewers

Please note: This rating is based on AlloCiné Internet user ratings. Only movies with at least 500 votes were considered in this top.

1- 12 years slave

In America in the 1840s, Solomon Northup was a free young black man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery. 12 Years A Slave is the story of his twelve-year ordeal in a cotton plantation in Louisiana at the hands of a cruel owner. But it is above all a story, very real, about a man who fights for his life, dignity and freedom. An adaptation of the latter’s autobiography, the film is a double shock, historical and emotional, that leaves a tight mark on the throat and in which the violence is nothing spectacular.

Significantly, he received at least three Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor for Lupita Nyong’o, who then made his screen debut. The feature film, written by Steve McQueen, really relies on raw emotions and dedicated actors, including the wonderful Chivetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender, thus forever celebrating its audience.

2-room

Jackie is 5 years old and lives alone with his mother, Maa, who plays with him and teaches him life items. But Jack’s world is small and confined to one room, where he and his father are locked up. It was here that he was born, in captivity, as a result of a forced relationship between his mother and his abduction. But when the latter risks everything to be able to escape, the little boy is in no way ready for what awaits him beyond these walls.

The staging and quality screenplay combine to serve as a painful and thrilling thriller, starring Lenny Abrahamson’s film by Emma Donohueh, author of the book from which it is adapted. The Room is a story inspired by real events, visceral and horrifying, heartwarming and of great beauty. But, above all, it’s the story of a mother’s unconditional love for her son and the disturbing meeting of Brie Larson and very young Jacob Tremblay, both of which are simply stunning. You will not come out unharmed.

3 – Midnight Express

Directed by Alan Parker, the 1978 film tells the story of William Hayes, known as Billy, an American student who was arrested on the Turkish border in 1970 with two kilograms of drugs. The tourist was then sentenced to several days behind bars. Before finding out that his sentence is now life imprisonment, the Turkish government wants to set an example.

Traveling from prison to prison by a young man oppressed by multiple trials, the Midnight Express is tough and ruthless. Violence – accompanied by hints of humor – is here at the Oliver Stone Award-winning screenplay. If the story of a film differs from the autobiography from which it is composed and then provokes some controversy, the drama still remains a success with two Oscars and six Golden Globes. Prison world classics, shocking and disturbing, moreover, with a powerful acting game.

4- Revenant

Attacking the bear, the stray Hugh Glass leaves his hunting crew dead in the deep, cold, and wild America of the 1820s. But a man has a reason for life: he wants a wife and a son. Join at any cost. Armed only with his will, he travels more than 300 km with love, but also with a thirst for revenge for those who betrayed him.

Partly adapted from the novel of the same name and inspired by a true story, The Revenant is the most nominated film for the 2016 Oscars. But the film is also based on a confrontation between two powerful actors, Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy. The performance of the first one brought him the most deserved Oscar. A true odyssey, Western is a primary, extreme, brutal and visceral heroic battle that must be lived absolutely.

5- Catch me if you can

Frank Abanale v. Carl Hanrat. Young Wonders of Fraud before a knowledgeable FBI agent. In the face of Leonardo DiCaprio Tom Hanks. Everything is said. Catch me if you can recreate this historic and relentless hunt on the big screen. We will definitely discover the biggest scammer of the 60s who is a past master in the art of distortion. He changes his identity as a shirt, more daring than any other, which, of course, complicates matters for the authorities.

The strength of this dramatic comedy is really the relationship between two characters who, though belonging to opposite camps, have a kind of respect for each other. Add to that a cautious realization that combines humor and sensuality in the ever-experienced hands of Steven Spielberg and Voila!

6 – Chicago Seven

In August 1968, the current Democratic National Convention in Chicago was not unanimously approved. The protest against him turned into a confrontation between the police and the citizens who came to the protest rally. Its organizers will be held accountable: those who call themselves the “Chicago Seven” (actually eight) are accused of conspiracy and incitement to revolt, and in fact take all the power of the all-powerful judiciary and the corrupt.

Here the staging and the dialogues uttered by the insanely selected actors set the pace and lead the audience to the heart of a media storm characterized by the judge’s undisguised hatred of the accused. And we can count on Aaron Sorkin for his always passionate direction, which perfectly follows this history of injustice and successfully restores one of the most dramatic trials in American history.

7- Exchange

Los Angeles, 1928. Another real story. Christine Collins’ nine-year-old son Walter is missing. A few months later the police brought in a boy of the same age and told him he was. However this is not Walter. But what do you do to find your missing child when the authorities try to manipulate you and tell you he is at home? It is a brutal and dangerous struggle of the mother against a corrupt government that fights for the recognition of the truth.

Directed by Clint Eastwood, the film combines emotion and restraint with sophistication and precision and sheds light on a lesser-known case inspired by real-life facts that make you shiver. A heartbreaking thriller, it is also a faithful reconstruction of an era that forces us to hold our breath. Nominated for three Oscars – including Best Actress – The Swap is the angry cry of a desperate mother played by Angelina Jolie, who plays one of the most powerful roles there. You will leave a mark.

The best movies to watch on Netflix.