Most Sensational Real-Life Infamous Trial Movie?
by urbanemovies | created - 01 Jan 2019 | updated - 11 Jan 2019 | PublicANY NOTABLE OMISSIONS OR QUESTIONABLE INCLUSIONS?; STILL ADDING/DELETING TRUE STORY ANSWER OPTIONS, SUGGESTIONS WELCOME?
Which movie inspired by a real-life courtroom case or actual litigation that forever changed history is the most compelling legal story?*
*Answer options made history both as landmark and influential cases, as well as, those of the more infamous and sensational nature whose influence was broader historically speaking.
After voting, discuss the topic here.
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1. On the Basis of Sex (2018)
PG-13 | 120 min | Biography, Drama
The true story of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, her struggles for equal rights, and the early cases of a historic career that lead to her nomination and confirmation as U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice.
Director: Mimi Leder | Stars: Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux, Sam Waterston
Votes: 38,325 | Gross: $24.62M
A fictionalized account inspired by Ruth Bader Ginsburg's work in advancing gender equality and women's rights by winning multiple legal victories arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court.
2. The Post (2017)
PG-13 | 116 min | Biography, Drama, History
A cover-up spanning four U.S. Presidents pushes the country's first female newspaper publisher and her editor to join an unprecedented battle between press and government.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk
Votes: 162,209 | Gross: $81.90M
A fictionalized account inspired by United States v. Washington Post Co. and New York Times Co. v. United States and the 1971 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Post's and Times' right to publish the Pentagon Papers.
3. Amistad (1997)
R | 155 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1839, the revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish owned ship causes a major controversy in the United States when the ship is captured off the coast of Long Island. The courts must decide whether the Mende are slaves or legally free.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Djimon Hounsou, Matthew McConaughey, Anthony Hopkins, Morgan Freeman
Votes: 82,757 | Gross: $44.18M
A fictionalized account inspired by the 1841 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Schooner Amistad, which upheld the liberation of kidnapped native Africans brought to the United States after the importation of slaves had been prohibited.
4. The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
R | 130 min | Biography, Drama
The story of controversial pornography publisher Larry Flynt, and how he became a defender of free speech.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, Brett Harrelson
Votes: 100,713 | Gross: $20.19M
A fictionalized account inspired by Hustler Magazine v. Falwell, in which the 1988 U.S. Supreme Court ruled the First Amendment protected Hustler Magazine's right to parody public figures.
5. Inherit the Wind (1960)
Passed | 128 min | Biography, Drama, History
Based on a real-life case in 1925; two great lawyers argue the case for, and against, a Tennessee science teacher accused of the crime of teaching Darwin's theory of evolution.
Director: Stanley Kramer | Stars: Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, Gene Kelly, Dick York
Votes: 32,767
A fictionalized account inspired by the Scopes Monkey Trial over the teaching of human evolution in 1925.
6. Loving (2016)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
The story of Richard and Mildred Loving, a couple whose arrest for interracial marriage in 1960s Virginia began a legal battle that would end with the Supreme Court's historic 1967 decision.
Director: Jeff Nichols | Stars: Ruth Negga, Joel Edgerton, Will Dalton, Dean Mumford
Votes: 36,368 | Gross: $7.70M
A fictionalized account inspired by Loving v. Virginia class action suit that invalidated all race-based prohibitions on marriage by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1967.
7. North Country (2005)
R | 126 min | Drama
A fictionalized account of the first major successful sexual harassment case in the United States, Jenson vs. Eveleth Mines, where a woman who endured a range of abuse while working as a miner filed and won the landmark 1984 lawsuit.
Director: Niki Caro | Stars: Charlize Theron, Jeremy Renner, Frances McDormand, Thomas Curtis
Votes: 44,928 | Gross: $18.32M
A fictionalized account inspired by the filing, Lois E. Jenson v. Eveleth Taconite Co. in 1988, the seminal case was the nation's first class-action lawsuit over sexual harassment.
8. Recount (2008 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 116 min | Drama, History
A chronicle of the weeks after the 2000 U.S. Presidential election, and the subsequent recounts in Florida.
Director: Jay Roach | Stars: Kevin Spacey, Bob Balaban, Denis Leary, Ed Begley Jr.
Votes: 13,597
A fictionalized account inspired by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Bush v. Gore case and preceding events that settled a recount dispute in Florida's 2000 presidential election.
9. Murder in the First (1995)
R | 122 min | Drama, Thriller
An eager and idealistic young attorney defends an Alcatraz prisoner accused of murdering a fellow inmate. The extenuating circumstances: his client had just spent over three years in solitary confinement.
Director: Marc Rocco | Stars: Christian Slater, Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldman, Embeth Davidtz
Votes: 30,666 | Gross: $17.38M
A fictionalized account inspired by inspired by Henri Young murder trial in 1941. His case highlighted inmate treatment and led to national prison reform and the closing of Alcatraz.
10. Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
Approved | 179 min | Drama, War
In 1948, an American court in occupied Germany tries four Nazis judged for war crimes.
Director: Stanley Kramer | Stars: Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich
Votes: 85,444
A fictionalized account inspired by the Judges' Trial of 1947, one of the twelve U.S. military tribunals held in Nuremberg in 1947.
11. Erin Brockovich (2000)
R | 131 min | Biography, Drama
An unemployed single mother becomes a legal assistant and almost single-handedly brings down a California power company accused of polluting a city's water supply.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Julia Roberts, Albert Finney, David Brisbin, Dawn Didawick
Votes: 221,193 | Gross: $125.60M
A fictionalized account inspired by a Hinkley, CA groundwater contamination class action lawsuit against P.G. & E settled in 1996. It led to a US$333 million settlement, a record at the time.
12. Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight (2013)
Not Rated | 97 min | Biography, Drama
Ali's biggest match, his fight with the US government. A film about the politics and hubris surrounding the Vietnam War and the revenge exacted on America's greatest sportsman of the 20th century because he refused to fight in that war.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Christopher Plummer, Frank Langella, Ed Begley Jr., Peter Gerety
Votes: 2,589
A fictionalized account inspired by the Clay v. United States case, in which the 1971 U.S. Supreme Court overturned Muhammad Ali's criminal conviction for refusing to report for induction into the United States military during the Vietnam War.
13. Philadelphia (1993)
PG-13 | 125 min | Drama
When a man with HIV is fired by his law firm because of his condition, he hires a homophobic small time lawyer as the only willing advocate for a wrongful dismissal suit.
Director: Jonathan Demme | Stars: Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Roberta Maxwell, Buzz Kilman
Votes: 258,018 | Gross: $77.32M
A fictionalized account inspired by two different real-life attorneys with AIDS who had sued their respective employers for wrongful termination in 1987 and 1990.
14. The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999)
R | 148 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
A young girl receives a vision that drives her to rid France of its oppressors.
Director: Luc Besson | Stars: Milla Jovovich, John Malkovich, Rab Affleck, Stéphane Algoud
Votes: 69,693 | Gross: $14.28M
15. A Man for All Seasons (1966)
G | 120 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Sir Thomas More, who stood up to King Henry VIII when the King rejected the Roman Catholic Church to obtain a divorce and remarry.
Director: Fred Zinnemann | Stars: Paul Scofield, Wendy Hiller, Robert Shaw, Leo McKern
Votes: 37,148 | Gross: $28.35M
16. Luther (2003)
PG-13 | 123 min | Biography, Drama, History
During the early sixteenth century, idealistic German monk Martin Luther, disgusted by the materialism in the Catholic Church, begins the dialogue that will lead to the Protestant Reformation.
Director: Eric Till | Stars: Joseph Fiennes, Bruno Ganz, Peter Ustinov, Alfred Molina
Votes: 16,002 | Gross: $5.79M
17. Separate But Equal (1991)
PG | 190 min | Drama, History
A dramatization of the American court case that destroyed the legal validity of racial segregation.
Stars: Sidney Poitier, Burt Lancaster, Richard Kiley, Cleavon Little
Votes: 784
18. Salem Witch Trials (2002 TV Movie)
189 min | Drama, History
A masterful work accurately details the current consensus of what exactly occurred to prompt the colonial witch trials.
Director: Joseph Sargent | Stars: Kirstie Alley, Henry Czerny, Gloria Reuben, Jay O. Sanders
Votes: 963
19. Gideon's Trumpet (1980 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 104 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Clarence Earl Gideon and his fight for the right to have publicly funded legal counsel for the needy.
Director: Robert L. Collins | Stars: Henry Fonda, José Ferrer, John Houseman, Fay Wray
Votes: 1,185
20. Tennessee Johnson (1942)
Passed | 103 min | Biography, Drama
Biography of Andrew Johnson, who followed Abraham Lincoln into office and became the first President of the United States ever to be impeached.
Director: William Dieterle | Stars: Van Heflin, Lionel Barrymore, Ruth Hussey, Marjorie Main
Votes: 673
21. Roe vs. Wade (1989 TV Movie)
95 min | Biography, Drama
Ellen Russell is a lonely, single, poorly-educated Texan who finds herself pregnant with no means to support a child. To avoid giving up the child, she seeks an abortion. Denied an abortion... See full summary »
Director: Gregory Hoblit | Stars: Holly Hunter, Amy Madigan, James Gammon, Terry O'Quinn
Votes: 367
22. Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth (1998)
100 min | Documentary, Biography, Comedy
Comedian Lenny Bruce struck a subversive chord in an era of change in America. After getting his start as a conventional stand-up comic, Bruce's increasingly iconoclastic act transformed ... See full summary »
Director: Robert B. Weide | Stars: Robert De Niro, Steve Allen, Honey Bruce Friedman, Kitty Bruce
Votes: 611 | Gross: $0.02M
23. The Accused (1988)
R | 111 min | Crime, Drama
After a young woman suffers a brutal gang rape in a bar one night, a prosecutor assists in bringing the perpetrators to justice, including the ones who encouraged and cheered on the attack.
Director: Jonathan Kaplan | Stars: Kelly McGillis, Jodie Foster, Bernie Coulson, Leo Rossi
Votes: 40,007 | Gross: $32.07M
A fictionalized account inspired by victim Cheryl Araujo treatment during trial. It sparked national outrage over how prosecutors treat victims in court and victim's privacy rights in 1983.
24. A Cry in the Dark (1988)
PG-13 | 120 min | Biography, Drama
A mother whose child was killed in a dingo attack in the Australian Outback fights to prove her innocence when she is accused of murder.
Director: Fred Schepisi | Stars: Meryl Streep, Sam Neill, Dale Reeves, David Hoflin
Votes: 11,204 | Gross: $6.91M
A fictionalized account inspired by Azaria Chamberlain 1980 trial, her wrongfully imprisonment highlighted the issue of ‘trial by media’, after her nine-week-old baby was abducted and killed by a dingo.
25. Reversal of Fortune (1990)
R | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Mystery
Wealthy Sunny von Bülow lies brain-dead, husband Claus guilty of attempted murder; but he says he's innocent and hires Alan Dershowitz for his appeal.
Director: Barbet Schroeder | Stars: Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, Ron Silver, Annabella Sciorra
Votes: 18,764 | Gross: $15.45M
A fictionalized account inspired by Alan M. Dershowitz's overturning of the attempted murder conviction of Claus von Bülow in 1984.
26. A Civil Action (1998)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama
A tenacious lawyer takes on a case involving two companies responsible for causing several children to be diagnosed with leukemia due to the town's water supply being contaminated, at the risk of bankrupting his firm and career.
Director: Steven Zaillian | Stars: John Travolta, Robert Duvall, Kathleen Quinlan, Tony Shalhoub
Votes: 31,077 | Gross: $56.71M
A fictionalized account inspired by the W.R. Grace lawsuit over groundwater contamination in Woburn, MA culminating in Anne Anderson, et al., v. Cryovac, Inc., et al. and subsequent settlement in 1986.
27. Marshall (2017)
PG-13 | 118 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The story of Thurgood Marshall, the crusading lawyer who would become the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, as he battles through one of his career-defining cases.
Director: Reginald Hudlin | Stars: Chadwick Boseman, Josh Gad, Kate Hudson, Sterling K. Brown
Votes: 26,803 | Gross: $10.05M
A fictionalized account inspired by the Joseph Spell case, which was a career defining case for defense lawyers, Samuel Friedman and Thurgood Marshall in 1940.
28. Woman in Gold (2015)
PG-13 | 109 min | Biography, Drama, History
Maria Altmann, an octogenarian Jewish refugee, takes on the Austrian government to recover artwork she believes rightfully belongs to her family.
Director: Simon Curtis | Stars: Helen Mirren, Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Brühl, Katie Holmes
Votes: 63,204 | Gross: $33.31M
A fictionalized account inspired by Republic of Austria v. Altmann case, the 2004 U. S. Supreme Court ruling secured her the right to sue a foreign government. She sought recovery of five paintings stolen by the Nazis during World War 2 from the collection of the Austrian National Gallery.
29. Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Not Rated | 161 min | Drama, Mystery
An upstate Michigan lawyer defends a soldier who claims he killed an innkeeper due to temporary insanity after the victim raped his wife. What is the truth, and will he win his case?
Director: Otto Preminger | Stars: James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell
Votes: 71,307 | Gross: $11.90M
A fictionalized account inspired by Army Lt. Coleman Peterson's 1952 trial for murder in Michigan.
30. JFK (1991)
R | 189 min | Drama, History, Thriller
New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison discovers there's more to the Kennedy assassination than the official story.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau
Votes: 169,878 | Gross: $70.41M
A fictionalized account inspired by the 1969 Clay Shaw conspiracy trial over his role in the Kennedy assassination.
31. In the Name of the Father (1993)
R | 133 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
An Irish man's coerced confession to an I.R.A. bombing he did not commit results in the imprisonment of his father as well. Meanwhile, a British lawyer fights to clear their names and free them.
Director: Jim Sheridan | Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Pete Postlethwaite, Alison Crosbie, Philip King
Votes: 187,063 | Gross: $25.01M
A fictionalized account inspired by the falsely convicted Guildford Four of a 1974 pub bombing and their subsequent exoneration and release from prison.
32. A Few Good Men (1992)
R | 138 min | Drama, Thriller
Military lawyer Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee defends Marines accused of murder. They contend they were acting under orders.
Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kevin Bacon
Votes: 287,241 | Gross: $141.34M
A fictionalized account inspired by a Guantanamo Bay Naval Base hazing incident by Marines and their subsequent attempted murder trial in 1986.
33. 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: 243,320 | Gross: $170.69M
A fictionalized account adapted from 1926 play which was inspired by two unrelated actual 1924 court cases involving two women, Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, who were both suspected and later acquitted for murder.
34. The Molly Maguires (1970)
M | 124 min | Drama, History
In 1876 Pennsylvania, a group of Irish immigrant coal miners begin to retaliate against the cruelty of their work environment.
Director: Martin Ritt | Stars: Sean Connery, Richard Harris, Samantha Eggar, Frank Finlay
Votes: 4,333 | Gross: $0.22M
35. Compulsion (1959)
Approved | 103 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Two wealthy law-school students go on trial for murder in this version of the Leopold-Loeb case.
Director: Richard Fleischer | Stars: Orson Welles, Dean Stockwell, Diane Varsi, Bradford Dillman
Votes: 7,495
36. Helter Skelter (1976)
Not Rated | 97 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
The investigation and trial of the horrific Tate-LaBianca mass murders orchestrated by the psychotic pseudo-hippie cult leader, Charles Manson.
Stars: George DiCenzo, Steve Railsback, Nancy Wolfe, Marilyn Burns
Votes: 3,852
37. Devil's Knot (2013)
Not Rated | 114 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The savage murders of three young children sparks a controversial trial of three teenagers accused of killing the kids as part of a Satanic ritual.
Director: Atom Egoyan | Stars: Colin Firth, Reese Witherspoon, Alessandro Nivola, James Hamrick
Votes: 23,847
38. The Conspirator (2010)
PG-13 | 122 min | Crime, Drama, History
Mary Surratt is the lone female charged as a co-conspirator in the assassination trial of Abraham Lincoln. As the whole nation turns against her, she is forced to rely on her reluctant lawyer to uncover the truth and save her life.
Director: Robert Redford | Stars: Robin Wright, James McAvoy, Tom Wilkinson, Kevin Kline
Votes: 29,994 | Gross: $11.54M
39. Mississippi Burning (1988)
R | 128 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Two F.B.I. Agents with wildly different styles arrive in Mississippi to investigate the disappearance of some civil rights activists.
Director: Alan Parker | Stars: Gene Hackman, Willem Dafoe, Frances McDormand, Brad Dourif
Votes: 110,949 | Gross: $34.60M
40. Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 (1987 TV Movie)
R | 118 min | Documentary, Drama, History
A dramatized historical recreation of the Chicago Conspiracy trial with present testimonies by many of the participants.
Director: Jeremy Kagan | Stars: Peter Boyle, Elliott Gould, Brian Benben, Robert Carradine
Votes: 260
41. Eight Men Out (1988)
PG | 119 min | Drama, History, Sport
A dramatization of the Black Sox scandal when the underpaid Chicago White Sox accepted bribes to deliberately lose the 1919 World Series.
Director: John Sayles | Stars: John Cusack, Clifton James, Jace Alexander, Gordon Clapp
Votes: 22,082 | Gross: $5.68M
42. Lizzie (2018)
R | 105 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A psychological thriller based on the infamous 1892 murders of Lizzie Andrew Borden's family.
Director: Craig William Macneill | Stars: Chloë Sevigny, Kristen Stewart, Jeff Perry, Fiona Shaw
Votes: 9,372 | Gross: $0.64M
43. The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal (1979 TV Movie)
120 min | Drama, History
The story of the fire in the Triangle Shirtwaist Mfg. Co. building in New York City in 1911 that resulted in the deaths of 146 employees, mostly young women. The ensuing investigation ... See full summary »
Director: Mel Stuart | Stars: David Dukes, Tovah Feldshuh, Lauren Friedman, Janet Margolin
Votes: 177
44. The Untouchables (1987)
R | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
During Prohibition, Treasury agent Eliot Ness sets out to stop ruthless Chicago gangster Al Capone, and assembles a small, incorruptible team to help him.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, Robert De Niro, Charles Martin Smith
Votes: 330,729 | Gross: $76.27M
45. Bridge of Spies (2015)
PG-13 | 142 min | Drama, History, Thriller
During the Cold War, an American lawyer is recruited to defend an arrested Soviet spy in court, and then help the CIA facilitate an exchange of the spy for the Soviet captured American U2 spy plane pilot, Francis Gary Powers.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Alan Alda, Amy Ryan
Votes: 327,676 | Gross: $72.31M
46. Judgment: The Court Martial of Lieutenant William Calley (1975 TV Movie)
101 min | Drama
The trial and conviction of William "Rusty" Calley, an unknown 27-year-old lieutenant charged with the murder of 102 men, women, and children in the tiny Vietnamese village of My Lai, ... See full summary »
Director: Stanley Kramer | Stars: Tony Musante, Richard Basehart, Bo Hopkins, G.D. Spradlin
Votes: 157
47. Blood & Orchids (1986 TV Movie)
240 min | Drama
Hester Murdoch is found naked and nearly beaten to death by four young Hawaiian men on the beach and taken to the hospital. Some of the men didn't want to get involved, fearing they might ... See full summary »
Director: Jerry Thorpe | Stars: Kris Kristofferson, Jane Alexander, Sean Young, José Ferrer
Votes: 277
48. Crime of the Century (1996 TV Movie)
PG-13 | 114 min | Crime, Drama
In 1932, the nation was shocked when the 14-month-old son of Charles Lindbergh was kidnapped, held for ransom, and murdered. Two years later, Bruno Richard Hauptmann was arrested, convicted... See full summary »
Director: Mark Rydell | Stars: Stephen Rea, Isabella Rossellini, J.T. Walsh, Michael Moriarty
Votes: 897
49. Let Him Have It (1991)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, History
This drama reveals the controversial postwar 1950's London murder trial that sent an intellectually challenged young man to the gallows for a murder he did not commit.
Director: Peter Medak | Stars: Tom Courtenay, Christopher Eccleston, Eileen Atkins, Rebecca Eccleston
Votes: 3,800
50. In Cold Blood (1967)
R | 134 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Two ex-cons murder a family in a robbery attempt, before going on the run from the authorities. The police try to piece together the details of the murder in an attempt to track down the killers.
Director: Richard Brooks | Stars: Robert Blake, Scott Wilson, John Forsythe, Paul Stewart
Votes: 29,137
51. Class Action (1991)
R | 110 min | Drama, Thriller
An attorney representing a traumatized accident victim finds that his opponent is a very familiar defense attorney - his own daughter.
Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Gene Hackman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Colin Friels, Joanna Merlin
Votes: 8,315 | Gross: $24.28M
52. The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case (1976 TV Movie)
TV-PG | 148 min | Crime, Drama, History
On March 1, 1932, the infant Charles Lindbergh, Jr., the son and namesake of the famed pilot, is kidnapped. After he is later found dead, a German immigrant named Bruno Hauptmann is tried for kidnapping and murder.
Director: Buzz Kulik | Stars: Cliff De Young, Anthony Hopkins, Denise Alexander, Sian Barbara Allen
Votes: 512
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