Ajay Kumar at 06:05, 18 August 2023

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{{short description|Film genre}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2015}}
A '''biographical film''' or '''biopic''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|aɪ|oʊ|ˌ|p|ɪ|k}})<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/biopic|title=Biopic |first=|last=|website=Dictionary.com}}</ref> is a film that dramatizes the life of a [[Nonfiction|non-fictional]] or [[History|historically]]-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used.<ref name="bas2009">{{cite journal|last=Bastin|first=Giselle|title=Filming the Ineffable: Biopics of the British Royal Family|journal=A/B: Auto/Biography Studies|url=http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/abs/summary/v024/24.1.bastin.html|date=Summer 2009|volume=24|issue=1|pages=34–52|access-date=29 May 2013|doi=10.1353/abs.2009.0008|doi-access=free}}</ref> They differ from [[Docudrama|docudrama films]] and [[Historical drama|historical drama films]] in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a single person's life story or at least the most historically important years of their lives.{{Original research inline|date=October 2015}}

==Context==
[[File:The Soviet Union 1964 CPA 3130 stamp (Soviet cinema art. 30th anniversaries of 'Chapaev', 1934 Soviet war film, directed by the Vasilyev brothers for Lenfilm).jpg|thumb|''[[Chapaev (film)|Chapaev]]'', a 1934 biopic of Russian war hero [[Vasily Chapayev]].]]
Biopic scholars include George F. Custen of the [[College of Staten Island]] and Dennis P. Bingham of [[Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis]]. Custen, in ''Bio/Pics: How Hollywood Constructed Public History'' (1992), regards the genre as having died with the [[Studio system|Hollywood studio era]], and in particular, [[Darryl F. Zanuck]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Custen |first=George F. |title=Bio/pics : how Hollywood constructed public history |publisher=Rutgers University Press |date=1992 |oclc=24247491 |isbn=978-0-8135-1755-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/biopics00geor }}</ref> On the other hand, Bingham's 2010 study ''Whose Lives Are They Anyway? The Biopic as Contemporary Film Genre''<ref>{{cite book |last=Bingham |first=Dennis |title=Whose Lives Are They Anyway? The Biopic as Contemporary Film Genre |publisher=Rutgers University Press |date=2010 |oclc=318970570 |isbn=978-0-8135-4658-2}}</ref> shows how it perpetuates as a codified genre using many of the same tropes used in the studio era that has followed a similar trajectory as that shown by [[Rick Altman]] in his study, ''Film/Genre''.<ref>{{cite book |title=Film/genre |last=Altman |first=Rick |year=1999 |publisher=British Film Institute |oclc=41071380 |isbn=978-0-85170-717-4 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/filmgenre00altm }}</ref> Bingham also addresses the male biopic and the female biopic as distinct genres from each other, the former generally dealing with great accomplishments, the latter generally dealing with female victimization. Ellen Cheshire's ''Bio-Pics: a life in pictures'' (2014) examines UK/US films from the 1990s and 2000s. Each chapter reviews key films linked by profession and concludes with further viewing list.<ref>{{cite book |last=Cheshire |first=Ellen |title=Bio-Pics: a life in pictures |publisher=Columbia University Press |date=2014 |isbn=978-0-231-17205-9 }}</ref> Christopher Robé has also written on the gender norms that underlie the biopic in his article, "Taking Hollywood Back" in the 2009 issue of ''Cinema Journal''.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Robé |first=Christopher |title=Taking Hollywood Back: The Historical Costume Drama, the Biopic, and Popular Front U.S. Film Criticism |jstor=20484449 |journal=Cinema Journal |volume=48 |issue=2 |date=Winter 2009 |pages=70–87 |doi=10.1353/cj.0.0082}}</ref>

{{Anchor|Ebert}}[[Roger Ebert]] defended ''[[The Hurricane (1999 film)|The Hurricane]]'' and distortions in biographical films in general, stating "those who seek the truth about a man from the film of his life might as well seek it from his loving grandmother. ... ''The Hurricane'' is not a [[Documentary film|documentary]] but a [[parable]]."<ref>{{cite news |first=Roger |last=Ebert |url=http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-hurricane-2000 |date=January 7, 2000 |title=The Hurricane |newspaper=Chicago Sun-Times }}</ref>

==Casting==
Casting can be controversial for biographical films. Casting is often a balance between similarity in looks and ability to portray the characteristics of the person. [[Anthony Hopkins]] felt that he should not have played [[Richard Nixon]] in ''[[Nixon (film)|Nixon]]'' because of a lack of resemblance between the two.{{citation needed|date=June 2010}} The casting of [[John Wayne]] as [[Genghis Khan]] in ''[[The Conqueror (1956 film)|The Conqueror]]'' was objected to because of the American Wayne being cast as the Mongol warlord. Egyptian critics criticized the casting of [[Louis Gossett Jr.]], an African American actor, as Egyptian president [[Anwar Sadat]] in the 1983 TV miniseries ''[[Sadat (miniseries)|Sadat]]''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/02/movies/upset-by-sadat-egypt-bars-columbia-films.html|title=UPSET BY 'SADAT,' EGYPT BARS COLUMBIA FILMS|last=Miller|first=Judith|date=1984-02-02|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=2017-01-27}}</ref> Also, some objected to the casting of [[Jennifer Lopez]] in ''[[Selena (film)|Selena]]'' because she is a New York City native of [[Puerto Rico|Puerto Rican]] descent while [[Selena]] was [[Mexican Americans|Mexican American]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Tracy | first = Kathleen | year = 2008 | title = Jennifer Lopez: A Biography | url = https://archive.org/details/jenniferlopezbio00kath | url-access = limited | publisher = Greenwood Publishing Group | isbn = 978-0-313-35515-8 | page = [https://archive.org/details/jenniferlopezbio00kath/page/n67 53] }}</ref>

==Film representations==
Because the figures portrayed are actual people, whose actions and characteristics are known to the public (or at least historically documented), biopic roles are considered some of the most demanding of actors and actresses.{{citation needed|date=October 2015}} [[Warren Beatty]], [[Faye Dunaway]], [[Ben Kingsley]], [[Johnny Depp]], [[Jim Carrey]], [[Jamie Foxx]], [[Robert Downey Jr.]], [[Brad Pitt]], [[Emma Thompson]], [[Tom Hanks]], and [[Eddie Redmayne]] all gained new-found respect as dramatic actors after starring in biopics:{{citation needed|date=October 2015}} Beatty and Dunaway as [[Bonnie and Clyde|Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker]] in ''[[Bonnie and Clyde (film)|Bonnie and Clyde]]'' (1967), Kingsley as [[Mahatma Gandhi]] in ''[[Gandhi (film)|Gandhi]]'' (1982), Depp as [[Ed Wood]] in ''[[Ed Wood (film)|Ed Wood]]'' (1994), Carrey as [[Andy Kaufman]] in ''[[Man on the Moon (film)|Man on the Moon]]'' (1999), Downey as [[Charlie Chaplin]] in ''[[Chaplin (film)|Chaplin]]'' (1992), Foxx as [[Ray Charles]] in ''[[Ray (film)|Ray]]'' (2004), Thompson and Hanks as [[P. L. Travers]] and [[Walt Disney]] in ''[[Saving Mr. Banks]]'' (2013), and Redmayne as [[Stephen Hawking]] in ''[[The Theory of Everything (2014 film)|The Theory of Everything]]'' (2014).

{{Anchor|stretch}} Some biopics purposely stretch the truth. ''[[Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (film)|Confessions of a Dangerous Mind]]'' was based on [[game show]] host [[Chuck Barris]]' widely debunked yet popular [[memoir]] of the same name, in which he claimed to be a [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] agent.<ref>{{Cite news |url= http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,404266,00.html|title=Chuck Barris: Lying to Tell the Truth |last=Stein |first=Joel |date=2003-01-07 |newspaper=Time |issn=0040-781X |access-date=2017-01-27}}</ref> ''[[Kafka (film)|Kafka]]'' incorporated both the life of author [[Franz Kafka]] and the [[surrealism|surreal]] aspects of his fiction.{{citation needed|date=June 2010}} The [[Errol Flynn]] film ''[[They Died with Their Boots On]]'' tells the story of [[George Armstrong Custer|Custer]] but is highly romanticized. The [[Oliver Stone]] film ''[[The Doors (film)|The Doors]]'', mainly about [[Jim Morrison]], was highly praised for the similarities between Jim Morrison and actor [[Val Kilmer]], look-wise and singing-wise, but fans and band members did not like the way Val Kilmer portrayed Jim Morrison,<ref>{{cite web |title=Gary James' Interview with Ray Manzarek |url= http://www.classicbands.com/RayManzarekInterview.html |publisher=Classicbands |access-date=29 May 2013}}</ref> and a few of the scenes were even completely made up.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.crystal-ship.com/entrevues.php?cht=03 |title=Chat with Ray Manzarek |publisher=Crystal-ship|date=17 November 1997 |access-date=1 September 2012}}</ref>

In rare cases, sometimes called '''auto biopics''',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/autobiopic|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202051630/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/autobiopic|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 February 2017|title=autobiopic – definition of autobiopic in English {{!}} Oxford Dictionaries|website=Oxford Dictionaries {{!}} English|access-date=2017-01-27}}</ref> the subject of the film plays themself. Examples include [[Jackie Robinson]] in ''[[The Jackie Robinson Story]]'' (1950), [[Muhammad Ali]] in ''[[The Greatest (1977 film)|The Greatest]]'' (1977), [[Audie Murphy]] in ''[[To Hell and Back (film)|To Hell and Back]]'' (1955), [[Patty Duke]] in ''[[Call Me Anna]]'' (1990), [[Bob Mathias]] in ''[[The Bob Mathias Story]]'' (1954), [[Arlo Guthrie]] in ''[[Alice's Restaurant (film)|Alice's Restaurant]]'' (1969), [[Fantasia (singer)|Fantasia]] in ''[[Life Is Not a Fairy Tale#Film|Life Is Not a Fairytale]]'' (2006), and [[Howard Stern]] in ''[[Private Parts (1997 film)|Private Parts]]'' (1997).

In 2018, the [[Musical film|musical]] biopic ''[[Bohemian Rhapsody (film)|Bohemian Rhapsody]]'', based on the life of [[Queen (band)|Queen]] singer [[Freddie Mercury]], became the highest-grossing biopic in history.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Spanos |first1=Brittany |title=Korean, Japanese Fans Can't Stop Watching 'Bohemian Rhapsody' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/bohemian-rhapsody-queen-south-korea-japan-777263/ |access-date=15 January 2019 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=10 January 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Vanilla Ice Biopic Happening with Dave Franco in the Lead? |url=https://movieweb.com/vanilla-ice-movie-dave-franco/ |access-date=15 January 2019 |work=[[MovieWeb]] |date=4 January 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bohemian Rhapsody becomes highest-grossing biopic of all time |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/hollywood/bohemian-rhapsody-highest-grossing-biopic-5498028/ |access-date=15 January 2019 |work=[[The Indian Express]] |date=17 December 2018 |language=en-IN}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Biographical novel]]
*[[Biography in literature]]
*[[List of biographical films]]
*[[Narrative identity#Autobiographical memory]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Film genres}}
{{Filmsbygenre}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biographical Film}}
[[Category:Film genres]]
[[Category:Biographical films| ]]
[[Category:Biography (genre)|Film]]

Biographical film - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 06:05, 18 August 2023