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If you're planning to visit the theater this Friday, you may want to watch out for all the moviegoers chasing each other past concessions and into the parking lot screaming, "You're it!" Tagis a new buddy comedy that follows five friends engrossed in what is undoubtedly the most competitive round of tag ever played on screen.
Jeremy Renner and Jon Hamm head up the star-studded cast, depicting the surprisingly true story of the friend group that inspired the movie. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, 10 former high school friends have played an ongoing game of tag for decades. Yes, decades. Complete with a signed agreement and occasionally recruited spies, the elaborate game has become a way for the friends to stay a part of each other's lives, even as they grow apart.
SEE ALSO:11 podcasts to listen to if you want to laugh your ass offFind that story hard to believe? Check out 15 others you can hardly believe are true, used by movie makers to create cinematic magic.
The Terminal (2004)
Directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Hanks, the story of an Eastern European man forced to live in JFK airport was inspired by the experience of Mehran Karimi Nasseri. Nasseri, an Iranian refugee, lived in Charles de Gaulle Airport for 18 years. Disputes over his nationality resulted in seemingly endless governmental red tape, and the situation was made more complicated by Nasseri's repeated refusal of citizenship offers. In 2006, Nasseri finally left CDG and was hospitalized with various health complications. As of 2008, he was living in a shelter in Paris.
Where to watch: Vudu
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) & Psycho (1960)
Brace yourself. The killers in these two horror classics (as well as The Silence of the Lambs and FX's American Horror Story: Asylum)were inspired by the real-life Wisconsin murderer Ed Gein, also known as The Butcher of Plainfield. Gein admitted to the murders of two women, but is believed to be responsible for many more. His horrific record of body snatching and mutilation is the basis for many now-iconic cinematic villains.
Where to watch The Texas Chain Saw Massacre: Vudu
Where to watch Psycho: STARZ
Patch Adams (1998)
Robin Williams' heartwarming portrayal of a gifted doctor striving to heal through kindness and laughter was based on Dr. Patch Adams of The Gesundheit! Institute. Adams, the founder of the medical center in West Virginia, has spent his life trying to change the way Americans view healthcare. In a 1998 interview with CNN, he said, "Well, I'm a clown, which could be a public health role. I'm really interested in moving our society away from a society needing Xanax and Prozac, and that is really feeling depressed, to one that is celebrating, and so I find just walking around in colorful clothes, people smile."
Where to watch: Vudu
127 Hours (2010)
This survival thriller is a retelling of 28-year-old Aron Ralston's horrifying five days stranded in Blue John Canyon in Utah. Ralston slipped while repelling and ended up with his right arm pinned to a rock face by a large boulder. Realizing he would not be found, Ralston chose to amputate his own arm to survive. He then hiked to safety. Ralston recounted his experience in the autobiographical book Between a Rock and a Hard Place.
Where to watch: Amazon Video
Almost Famous (2000)
Cameron Crowe took inspiration from his stint as a teenage Rolling Stonejournalist for this Academy Award-winning coming-of-age story. The film's infamous flight scene was loosely based on the 1977 crash of a plane chartered by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Six passengers, including three of the band's musicians and their assistant road manager, were killed. Gregg Allman also admitted in his 2012 book, My Cross to Bear, that much of Almost Famouswas rooted in Crowe's time with the Allman Brothers Band — including an incident in which Allman accused Crowe of being an undercover cop.
Where to watch: STARZ
Adrift (2018)
The recently released Adriftis inspired by the true story of sailor Tami Oldham's 41 days of survival following a hurricane that left her shipwrecked. In 1983, Oldham was sailing across the Pacific from Tahiti to San Diego, when she and her boyfriend, Richard Sharp, were caught in Hurricane Raymond, and Sharp was lost at sea. Oldham managed to sail 1,500 miles alone to Hawaii using a makeshift sail and surviving on leftover rations.
Where to watch: In theaters starting June 1, 2018.
The Sound of Music (1965)
The classic Julie Andrews musical is loosely based on the lives of The Trapp Family Singers. Led by Maria von Trapp — a nunnery school teacher turned tutor to one of the von Trapp children — the famous singing troupe traveled to the United States, fleeing the Nazi regime in Austria. They performed concerts around the world and appeared on Elvis Presley's 1957 Christmas album. The real Maria von Trapp and two of her children can be seen crossing an archway behind Andrews as she performs "I Have Confidence."
Where to watch: Amazon Video
Goodfellas (1990)
This Mafia film stands out from the rest thanks to its realism. Henry Hill, a member of the Luchesse crime family turned protected police informant, lived through many of the events in the movie. Although Goodfellas was directed by Martin Scorsese, writer Nicholas Pileggi is credited with much of its success. His book Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Familyrecounts the real Henry Hill's life and served as the basis for his screenplay adaptation. Hill's testimony against the Luchesse family resulted in at least 50 convictions.
Where to watch: YouTube and Google Play
Changeling (2008)
Clint Eastwood's take on the story of a missing boy and the corrupt police department that refused to look for him is a reasonably true dramatization of what happened to Christine Collins in 1928. Collins reported her 9-year-old son missing in March. Five months later, the LAPD claimed to have found him. When Collins was presented with a runaway pretending to be her son, Walter, the LAPD refused to admit the mistake and instead suggested she "try the boy out." After being forced to take the boy home with her, Collins returned with support from friends to expose the LAPD for what they had done. Tragically, Walter was never found and is widely believed to have been a victim of the "Wineville Chicken Murders."
Where to watch: Netflix
50 First Dates (2004)
The Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore rom-com focusing on the wacky hijinks of a man trying to date a woman with short-term memory loss is rooted in a heartbreakingly true story. Michelle Philpots wakes up each day believing it's 1994. After two motor vehicle accidents in 1985 and 1990 (both resulting in head injuries), the Lincolnshire native became unable to form new memories. Her husband, Ian, goes through many of the motions Sandler portrays in the film on a daily basis — including using family photos to remind Michelle of their life together. He told The Daily Mail, "It can be very frustrating for me, but I have to be patient and understand. I have to keep calm because I love her."
Where to watch: Vudu
Unbroken (2014)
Although this Angelina Jolie-directed picture has been criticized for excluding and exaggerating much of this story, Louis Zamperini was a real and undeniably fascinating American. Based on Laura Hillenbrand's book of the same name, Unbroken chronicles Zamperini's time as an Olympic runner and later his survival as a POW during World War II. Before being captured by the Japanese, Zamperini was stranded at sea for nearly seven weeks following the crash of his bomber. Zamperini died at age 97, the same year as the film's release.
Where to watch: Amazon Video
21 (2008)
Okay, so this one is very looselybased on a true story — but the MIT Blackjack Team was a real thing. The practice of "counting cards" in an effort to beat casinos (essentially attempting to take the gamble out of gambling via the science of probability) was developed throughout the 20th century and ultimately mastered by a group of students from Boston in the '90s. For more than 15 years, the MIT Blackjack Team traveled the world earning a fortune by card counting. However, according to former team members, the film's depictions of violence, lavish partying, and, specifically, money laundering through strippers is entirely untrue.
Where to watch: Netflix
We Bought a Zoo (2011)
Just as the title says, this small family really did buy a zoo in 2006. Benjamin Mee (portrayed by Matt Damon in the film) is the proud owner of the Dartmoor Zoological Park, a privately owned exotic animal collection near Sparkwell village in England. During the family's fight to reopen the financially ruined zoo, Mee's wife died unexpectedly, leaving him with the zoo and his two young children. Despite its immense struggles, the Dartmoor Zoo regained its license in 2007. The Mee family continues to operate the zoo.
Where to watch: Vudu
The Exorcist (1973)
This iconic supernatural horror flick was based off William Peter Blatty's book of the same name. It dramatized the 1949 exorcism of a young boy known by the pseudonyms "Roland Doe" and "Robbie Manheim." Blatty first heard rumors of the boy's demonic possession while he was a student at Georgetown University (hence the film's Washington, D.C., setting) and ultimately used the Jesuit priests at this exorcism as inspiration for his characters Father Lancester Merrin and Father Damien Karras. The famous "Exorcist stairs" are still frequented by pedestrians near Georgetown's waterfront.
Where to watch: Vudu
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