Sort by Popularity - Most Popular Movies and TV Shows tagged with keywords "ambition", "based-on-true-story"
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1. Almost Famous (2000)
R | 122 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A high-school boy in the early 1970s is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone magazine about an up-and-coming rock band as he accompanies them on their concert tour.
Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson, Frances McDormand
Votes: 293,797 | Gross: $32.53M
2. The Greatest Showman (2017)
PG | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Celebrates the birth of show business and tells of a visionary who rose from nothing to create a spectacle that became a worldwide sensation.
Director: Michael Gracey | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zac Efron, Zendaya
Votes: 312,065 | Gross: $174.34M
3. The Social Network (2010)
PG-13 | 120 min | Biography, Drama
As Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg creates the social networking site that would become known as Facebook, he is sued by the twins who claimed he stole their idea and by the co-founder who was later squeezed out of the business.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Rooney Mara
Votes: 759,791 | Gross: $96.96M
4. The Dropout (2022)
TV-MA | 50 min | Biography, Drama
TV series that chronicles Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes' attempt to revolutionize the healthcare industry after dropping out of college and starting a technology company.
Stars: Amanda Seyfried, Naveen Andrews, Michel Gill, William H. Macy
Votes: 36,245
5. Apollo 13 (I) (1995)
PG | 140 min | Adventure, Drama, History
NASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.
Director: Ron Howard | Stars: Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise
Votes: 316,017 | Gross: $173.84M
6. Medici (2016–2019)
TV-14 | 1,314 min | Biography, Drama, History
A political family drama set in Florence in the early fifteenth century. Cosimo de Medici finds himself at the helm of his banking dynasty when his father, Giovanni, dies suddenly.
Stars: Daniel Sharman, Alessandra Mastronardi, Synnove Karlsen, Sebastian De Souza
Votes: 22,354
7. Chicago (2002)
PG-13 | 113 min | Comedy, Crime, Musical
Two death-row murderesses develop a fierce rivalry while competing for publicity, celebrity, and a sleazy lawyer's attention.
Director: Rob Marshall | Stars: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Taye Diggs
Votes: 243,594 | Gross: $170.69M
8. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
PG-13 | 117 min | Biography, Drama
A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career
Director: Gabriele Muccino | Stars: Will Smith, Thandiwe Newton, Jaden Smith, Brian Howe
Votes: 561,909 | Gross: $163.57M
9. A Place in the Sun (1951)
Passed | 122 min | Drama, Romance
A poor boy gets a job working for his rich uncle and ends up falling in love with two women.
Director: George Stevens | Stars: Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, Shelley Winters, Anne Revere
Votes: 24,823
10. The Founder (2016)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Ray Kroc, a salesman who turned two brothers' innovative fast food eatery, McDonald's, into the biggest restaurant business in the world, with a combination of ambition, persistence, and ruthlessness.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Michael Keaton, Nick Offerman, John Carroll Lynch, Linda Cardellini
Votes: 177,825 | Gross: $12.79M
11. House of Gucci (2021)
R | 158 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
When Patrizia Reggiani, an outsider from humble beginnings, marries into the Gucci family, her unbridled ambition begins to unravel their legacy and triggers a reckless spiral of betrayal, decadence, revenge, and ultimately...murder.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Lady Gaga, Adam Driver, Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons
Votes: 160,130 | Gross: $53.81M
12. Painkiller (2023)
TV-MA | 48 min | Crime, Drama
The causes and consequences of America's opioid epidemic unfold in this drama following its perpetrators, victims and an investigator seeking the truth.
Stars: Uzo Aduba, Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch, Dina Shihabi
Votes: 30,474
13. Wij (2018)
Unrated | 100 min | Drama
Eight teens - four guys and four girls - are the best of friends. One summer, out of boredom they experiment with all manner of new means to entertain themselves. This degenerates into some extreme behaviour and will lead to tragedy.
Director: Rene Eller | Stars: Aimé Claeys, Tijmen Govaerts, Pauline Casteleyn, Maxime Jacobs
Votes: 3,398
14. The Naked Director (2019–2021)
TV-MA | 48 min | Biography, Drama
Follows the story of Toru Muranishi's unusual and dramatic life filled with big ambitions as well as spectacular setbacks in his attempt to turn Japan's porn industry on its head.
Stars: Takayuki Yamada, Shinnosuke Mitsushima, Misato Morita, Tokio Emoto
Votes: 6,953
15. Alexander (2004)
R | 175 min | Action, Biography, Drama
Alexander, the King of Macedonia and one of the greatest army leaders in the history of warfare, conquers much of the known world.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Colin Farrell, Anthony Hopkins, Rosario Dawson, Angelina Jolie
Votes: 176,780 | Gross: $34.30M
16. The Disaster Artist (2017)
R | 104 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
When aspiring actor Greg Sestero meets the weird and mysterious Tommy Wiseau in an acting class, they form a unique friendship and travel to Hollywood to make their dreams come true.
Director: James Franco | Stars: James Franco, Dave Franco, Ari Graynor, Seth Rogen
Votes: 164,432 | Gross: $21.12M
17. Foxcatcher (2014)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
U.S. Olympic wrestling champions and brothers Mark Schultz and Dave Schultz join "Team Foxcatcher", led by eccentric multi-millionaire John du Pont, as they train for the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, but John's self-destructive behavior threatens to consume them all.
Director: Bennett Miller | Stars: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Vanessa Redgrave
Votes: 149,378 | Gross: $12.10M
18. The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, History
Two sisters contend for the affection of King Henry VIII.
Director: Justin Chadwick | Stars: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Jim Sturgess
Votes: 120,057 | Gross: $26.81M
19. The World's Fastest Indian (2005)
PG-13 | 127 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
The story of New Zealander Burt Munro, who spent years rebuilding a 1920 Indian motorcycle, which helped him set the land speed world record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats in 1967.
Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Diane Ladd, Iain Rea, Tessa Mitchell
Votes: 58,695 | Gross: $5.13M
20. Cleopatra (1963)
G | 192 min | Biography, Drama, History
Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt experiences both triumph and tragedy as she attempts to resist the imperial ambitions of Rome.
Directors: Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Rouben Mamoulian | Stars: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Rex Harrison, Pamela Brown
Votes: 37,454 | Gross: $57.78M
21. Rudy (1993)
PG | 114 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
Rudy has always been told that he was too small to play college football. But he is determined to overcome the odds and fulfill his dream of playing for Notre Dame.
Director: David Anspaugh | Stars: Sean Astin, Jon Favreau, Ned Beatty, Greta Lind
Votes: 69,149 | Gross: $22.75M
22. Shattered Glass (2003)
PG-13 | 94 min | Drama, History
The story of a young journalist who fell from grace when it was discovered he fabricated over half of his articles from the publication The New Republic magazine.
Director: Billy Ray | Stars: Hayden Christensen, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Zahn, Peter Sarsgaard
Votes: 37,713 | Gross: $2.22M
23. The Black Dahlia (2006)
R | 121 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Two policemen see their personal and professional lives fall apart in the wake of the "Black Dahlia" Elizabeth Short murder investigation.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart, Scarlett Johansson, Hilary Swank
Votes: 77,069 | Gross: $22.52M
24. Borgia (2011–2014)
TV-MA | 52 min | Biography, Drama, History
Story of the rise and the fall of the Renaissance dynasty.
Stars: Mark Ryder, Isolda Dychauk, Diarmuid Noyes, John Doman
Votes: 7,230
25. Jobs (2013)
PG-13 | 128 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Steve Jobs' ascension from college dropout into one of the most revered creative entrepreneurs of the 20th century.
Director: Joshua Michael Stern | Stars: Ashton Kutcher, Dermot Mulroney, Josh Gad, Lukas Haas
Votes: 103,939 | Gross: $16.13M
26. J. Edgar (2011)
R | 137 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
J. Edgar Hoover, powerful head of the F.B.I. for nearly fifty years, looks back on his professional and personal life.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Josh Hamilton
Votes: 133,705 | Gross: $37.31M
27. The Informant! (2009)
R | 108 min | Biography, Comedy, Crime
The U.S. government decides to go after an agro-business giant with a price-fixing accusation, based on the evidence submitted by their star witness, vice president-turned-informant Mark Whitacre.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Matt Damon, Tony Hale, Patton Oswalt, Lucas McHugh Carroll
Votes: 67,491 | Gross: $33.31M
28. W. (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 129 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A chronicle of the life and Presidency of George W. Bush.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Banks, Ioan Gruffudd, Colin Hanks
Votes: 50,066 | Gross: $25.53M
29. Florence Foster Jenkins (2016)
PG-13 | 111 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having a terrible singing voice.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Meryl Streep, Hugh Grant, Simon Helberg, Rebecca Ferguson
Votes: 59,623 | Gross: $27.38M
30. Macbeth (1971)
R | 140 min | Drama, History
A ruthlessly ambitious Scottish lord seizes the throne with the help of his scheming wife and a trio of witches.
Director: Roman Polanski | Stars: Jon Finch, Francesca Annis, Martin Shaw, Terence Bayler
Votes: 14,996
31. Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Biography, Drama
A fictionalized account of the life of the martial arts superstar.
Director: Rob Cohen | Stars: Jason Scott Lee, Lauren Holly, Robert Wagner, Michael Learned
Votes: 32,897 | Gross: $35.11M
32. The 12th Man (2017)
Unrated | 135 min | Drama, History, Thriller
They were 12 saboteurs. The Nazis killed 11 of them. This is the true story of the one that got away.
Director: Harald Zwart | Stars: Thomas Gullestad, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Marie Blokhus, Mads Sjøgård Pettersen
Votes: 29,261
33. Star 80 (1983)
R | 103 min | Biography, Drama
A successful young model finds trouble when her obsessive manager-turned-husband becomes dangerously jealous.
Director: Bob Fosse | Stars: Mariel Hemingway, Eric Roberts, Cliff Robertson, Carroll Baker
Votes: 8,147 | Gross: $6.47M
34. Riding in Cars with Boys (2001)
PG-13 | 132 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A single mother, with dreams of becoming a writer, has a son at the age of 15 in 1965, and goes through a failed marriage with the drug-addicted father.
Director: Penny Marshall | Stars: Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn, Adam Garcia, Brittany Murphy
Votes: 30,583 | Gross: $30.17M
35. The Damned United (2009)
R | 98 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
The story of the controversial Brian Clough's 44-day reign as the coach of the English football club Leeds United.
Director: Tom Hooper | Stars: Colm Meaney, Henry Goodman, David Roper, Jimmy Reddington
Votes: 45,935 | Gross: $0.45M
36. Gypsy (1962)
Approved | 143 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Based on the Broadway hit about the life and times of burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee and her aggressive stage mother, Mama Rose.
Director: Mervyn LeRoy | Stars: Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden, Paul Wallace
Votes: 7,023 | Gross: $13.01M
37. '83 (2021)
TV-14 | 162 min | Biography, Drama, History
On June 25, 1983, the Lord's Cricket Ground witnessed 14 men beat the two times World Champions West Indies, putting India back onto the cricket world stage.
Directors: Pritam Chakraborty, Kabir Khan, Amit Mishra | Stars: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Jiiva
Votes: 40,829
38. Attila (2001)
Unrated | 89 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
In 400 AD, the Roman Empire is the greatest power in the world. But to the east a fierce people arose: the Huns. They believe in a prophecy about a great king who will unite the tribes and challenge Rome for control of the world.
Stars: Pauline Lynch, Steven Berkoff, Andrew Pleavin, Tommy Flanagan
Votes: 11,114
39. Sweet Dreams (1985)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The story of Patsy Cline, the velvet-voiced country music singer who died in a tragic plane crash at the height of her fame.
Director: Karel Reisz | Stars: Jessica Lange, Ed Harris, Ann Wedgeworth, David Clennon
Votes: 5,396 | Gross: $9.09M
40. Everybody's Talking About Jamie (2021)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Despite obstacles, 16-year-old Jamie has the courage to fabulously follow his unconventional dream.
Directors: Jonathan Butterell, Dan Gillespie Sells, Tom MacRae | Stars: Max Harwood, Lauren Patel, Sarah Lancashire, Shobna Gulati
Votes: 7,692
41. Six Flying Dragons (2015–2016)
Action, Drama, History
Story of the the foundation of the Joseon Dynasty in Korea and ambition, success and fall of several real and fictional characters.
Stars: Kim Hyun-bin, Yoo Ah-in, Byun Yo-han, Kim Myung-min
Votes: 1,208
42. Amelia (2009)
PG | 111 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
A look at the life of legendary American pilot Amelia Earhart, who disappeared while flying over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 in an attempt to make a flight around the world.
Director: Mira Nair | Stars: Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston
Votes: 13,627 | Gross: $14.24M
43. Mephisto (1981)
Unrated | 146 min | Drama
In early-1930s Germany, a passionate stage actor faces a dilemma: renounce his apolitical stance and comply with the Reich's doctrine, or face oblivion. But, Faustian bargains never end well. What is the price of success?
Director: István Szabó | Stars: Klaus Maria Brandauer, Ildikó Bánsági, Krystyna Janda, Rolf Hoppe
Votes: 11,606
44. Macbeth (1948)
Passed | 107 min | Drama, History, War
Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders his king and takes the throne for himself.
Director: Orson Welles | Stars: Orson Welles, Jeanette Nolan, Dan O'Herlihy, Roddy McDowall
Votes: 7,804
45. Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story (1981 TV Movie)
100 min | Biography, Drama
The life and death of the "Playboy" centerfold model/actress Dorothy Stratten.
Director: Gabrielle Beaumont | Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Bruce Weitz, Robert Reed, Mitchell Ryan
Votes: 684
46. Stage Beauty (2004)
R | 106 min | Drama
A female theatre dresser creates a stir and sparks a revolution in seventeenth century London theatre by playing Desdemona in Othello. But what will become of the male actor she once worked for and eventually replaced?
Director: Richard Eyre | Stars: Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Rupert Everett, Derek Hutchinson
Votes: 10,745 | Gross: $0.78M
47. Dark Matter (I) (2007)
R | 88 min | Drama
Based on actual events, a Chinese university student responds violently when his chances for a Nobel Prize are dashed by school politics.
Director: Shi-Zheng Chen | Stars: Ye Liu, Aidan Quinn, Meryl Streep, Peng Chi
Votes: 3,659 | Gross: $0.03M
48. Mao's Last Dancer (2009)
PG | 117 min | Biography, Drama, Music
In Maoist China, a boy is taken from his family and trained to become a dancer, but everything he knows is challenged when he is chosen to attend a ballet summer school in Houston, Texas.
Director: Bruce Beresford | Stars: Chi Cao, Bruce Greenwood, Kyle MacLachlan, Penne Hackforth-Jones
Votes: 8,300 | Gross: $4.81M
49. Marquise (1997)
120 min | Comedy, Drama, History
The rise and fall of a beauteous actress. She rises from an impoverished background to become a favorite of the Sun King, Louis XIV.
Director: Véra Belmont | Stars: Sophie Marceau, Bernard Giraudeau, Lambert Wilson, Patrick Timsit
Votes: 1,473 | Gross: $0.07M
50. The Cost of Deception (2021)
125 min | Action, Crime, Drama
When a young, ambitious market researcher finds out her boss is involved in the leaking of a scandalous Prime Minister speech, she decides to investigate the case to gain a position among the big-shots. Based on actual events.
Director: Keith English | Stars: Vivianne Bánovits, András Mózes, Barna Bokor, Gabriella Gubás
Votes: 40,553