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Top Biographical Films

This list also contains autobiographical and semi-autobiographical films.

Rank Title Year Director(s) Subject(s) Overall
Rank
1 Lawrence of Arabia 1962 David Lean T.E. Lawrence 8
2 Raging Bull 1980 Martin Scorsese Jake La Motta 18
3 Schindler's List 1993 Steven Spielberg Oskar Schindler 22
4 Goodfellas 1990 Martin Scorsese Henry Hill 31
5 Bonnie and Clyde 1967 Arthur Penn Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker 41
6 The Sound of Music 1965 Robert Wise The von Trapp Family 62
7 Braveheart 1995 Mel Gibson William Wallace 94
8 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid 1969 George Roy Hill Butch Cassidy and Harry Longabaugh 100
9 Ben-Hur 1959 William Wyler 101
10 Patton 1970 Franklin J. Schaffner George S. Patton Jr. 178
11 Aguirre: The Wrath of God 1972 Werner Herzog Don Lope de Aguirre 181
12 Napoléon 1927 Abel Gance Napoleon Bonaparte 194
13 Spartacus 1960 Stanley Kubrick Spartacus 198
14 Gandhi 1982 Richard Attenborough Mohandas K. Gandhi 221
15 Yankee Doodle Dandy 1942 Michael Curtiz George M. Cohan 257
16 Ivan the Terrible 1944 Sergei M. Eisenstein Czar Ivan IV 363
17 A Man for All Seasons 1966 Fred Zinnemann Sir Thomas More 428
18 Out of Africa 1985 Sydney Pollack Isak Dinesen 445
19 Reds 1981 Warren Beatty Jack Reed 452
20 The Elephant Man 1980 David Lynch John Merrick 457
21 The Last Emperor 1987 Bernardo Bertolucci Emperor Pu Yi 504
22 Funny Girl 1968 William Wyler Fanny Brice 516
23 Queen Christina 1933 Rouben Mamoulian Christina of Sweden 529
24 Malcolm X 1992 Spike Lee Malcolm X 551
25 The Pianist 2002 Roman Polanski Wladyslaw Szpilman 586
26 Crumb 1994 Terry Zwigoff Robert Crumb 605
27 Ed Wood 1994 Tim Burton Ed Wood 615
28 Erin Brockovich 2000 Steven Soderbergh Erin Brockovich 618
29 The Insider 1999 Michael Mann Lowell Bergman and Dr. Jeffrey Wigand 636
30 A Beautiful Mind 2001 Ron Howard John Nash 645
31 The Pride of the Yankees 1942 Sam Wood Lou Gehrig 665
32 Born on the Fourth of July 1989 Oliver Stone Ron Kovic 678
33 My Left Foot 1989 Jim Sheridan Christy Brown 739
34 The Straight Story 1999 David Lynch Alvin Straight 740
35 Topsy-Turvy 1999 Mike Leigh William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan 785
36 Ivan the Terrible, Part II 1958 Sergei M. Eisenstein and M. Filimonova Czar Ivan IV 786
37 'Breaker' Morant 1980 Bruce Beresford Harry Morant 815
38 My Brilliant Career 1979 Gillian Armstrong Sybylla Melvyn 860
39 Coal Miner's Daughter 1980 Michael Apted Loretta Lynn 870
40 The Life of Emile Zola 1937 William Dieterle Emile Zola 871
41 The Diary of Anne Frank 1959 George Stevens Anne Frank 912
42 Sergeant York 1941 Howard Hawks Alvin York 923
43 The Mystery of Kaspar Hausar 1974 Werner Herzog Kaspar Hausar 927
44 An Angel at My Table 1990 Jane Campion Janet Frame 998
45 Shine 1996 Scott Hicks David Helfgott 1018
46 Elizabeth 1998 Shekhar Kapur Queen Elizabeth I 1039
47 The Color of Pomegranates 1968 Sergei Parajanov Sayat Nova 1077
48 Lust for Life 1956 Vincente Minnelli Vincent Van Gogh 1086
49 Papillon 1973 Franklin J. Schaffner Henri Charriere 1093
50 The Miracle Worker 1962 Arthur Penn Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller 1117
51 Brian's Song 1971 Buzz Kulik Gale Sayers and Brian Piccolo 1150
52 Gods and Monsters 1998 Bill Condon James Whale 1165
53 Cleopatra 1963 Joseph L. Mankiewicz Cleopatra 1169
54 El Cid 1961 Anthony Mann El Cid 1192
55 Ray 2004 Taylor Hackford Ray Charles 1230
56 Silkwood 1983 Mike Nichols Karen Silkwood 1274
57 Evita 1996 Alan Parker Eva Perón 1290
58 Cool Runnings 1993 Jon Turteltaub 1315
59 The Rookie 2002 John Lee Hancock Jim Morris 1318
60 The People vs. Larry Flynt 1996 Milos Forman Larry Flynt 1329
61 Rudy 1993 David Anspaugh Rudy Ruettiger 1359
62 The Puppet Master 1993 Hsiao-hsien Hou Tianlu Li 1369
63 Sherman's March 1986 Ross McElwee Ross McElwee 1382
64 Story of G.I. Joe 1945 William A. Wellman Ernie Pyle 1388
65 October Sky 1999 Joe Johnston Homer Hickam 1396
66 What's Love Got to Do with It 1993 Brian Gibson Tina Turner 1402
67 Sid and Nancy 1986 Alex Cox Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen 1414
68 Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould 1993 François Girard Glenn Gould 1488
69 28 Up 1985 Michael Apted Various People 1507
70 Lenny 1974 Bob Fosse Lenny Bruce 1508
71 The Motorcycle Diaries 2004 Walter Salles Che Guevara and Alberto Granado 1536
72 American Splendor 2003 Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini Harvey Pekar 1537
73 The Private Life of Henry VIII 1933 Alexander Korda King Henry VIII 1550
74 Finding Neverland 2004 Marc Forster J.M. Barrie 1613
75 Bugsy 1991 Barry Levinson Bugsy Siegel 1614
76 The Great Ziegfeld 1936 Robert Z. Leonard Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. 1631
77 A River Runs Through It 1992 Robert Redford Norman Maclean 1633
78 The Aviator 2004 Martin Scorsese Howard Hughes 1662
79 The Madness of King George 1994 Nicholas Hytner King George III 1673
80 The Sea Inside 2004 Alejandro Amenábar Ramón Sampedro 1681
81 The Long Day Closes 1992 Terence Davies Terence Davies 1698
82 Caro Diario 1993 Nanni Moretti Nanni Moretti 1713
83 Samurai 1: Musashi Miyamoto 1954 Hiroshi Inagaki Musashi Miyamoto 1716
84 Entre Nous 1983 Diane Kurys 1731
85 Shadowlands 1993 Richard Attenborough C.S. Lewis 1733
86 24 Hour Party People 2002 Michael Winterbottom Tony Wilson 1742
87 The Hurricane 1999 Norman Jewison Rubin "Hurricane" Carter 1745
88 The Story of Adele H. 1975 François Truffaut Adèle Hugo 1756
89 The Time to Live and the Time to Die 1985 Hsiao-hsien Hou Hsiao-hsien Hou 1840
90 Mommie Dearest 1981 Frank Perry Joan and Christina Crawford 1864
91 Cinderella Man 2005 Ron Howard James J. Braddock 1928
92 The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith 1978 Fred Schepisi Jimmy Governor 1935
93 Selena 1997 Gregory Nava Selena Quintanilla-Pérez 1951
94 Queen Margot 1994 Patrice Chéreau Margot de Valois 1954
95 Midnight Express 1978 Alan Parker Billy Hayes 1960
96 Henry & June 1990 Philip Kaufman Anaïs Nin 1976
97 Boys Town 1938 Norman Taurog Edward Joseph Flanagan 1996
98 The Great White Hope 1970 Martin Ritt Jack Johnson 2002
99 Without Limits 1998 Robert Towne Steve Prefontaine 2003
100 Somebody Up There Likes Me 1956 Robert Wise Rocky Graziano 2010
101 Ali 2001 Michael Mann Muhammad Ali 2017
102 In the Name of the Father 1993 Jim Sheridan Gerry Conlon 2021
103 Casualties of War 1989 Brian De Palma 2028
104 Calamity Jane 1953 David Butler Calamity Jane 2030
105 42: Forty Two Up 1998 Michael Apted Various People 2046
106 Becket 1964 Peter Glenville Thomas à Becket 2081
107 Bird 1988 Clint Eastwood Charlie Parker 2100
108 Samurai 3: Duel at Ganryu Island 1956 Hiroshi Inagaki Musashi Miyamoto 2120
109 The Dream of Light 1992 Víctor Erice Antonio López García 2128
110 Samurai 2: Duel at Ichijoji Temple 1955 Hiroshi Inagaki Musashi Miyamoto 2133
111 Bound for Glory 1976 Hal Ashby Woody Guthrie 2165
112 Girl, Interrupted 1999 James Mangold Susanna Kaysen 2176
113 Knute Rockne, All American 1940 Lloyd Bacon Knute Rockne 2201
114 Childhood of Maxim Gorky 1938 Mark Donskoy Maxim Gorky 2209
115 Best Boy 1979 Ira Wohl Philly Wohl 2211
116 Chopper 2000 Andrew Dominik Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read 2219
117 Gentleman Jim 1942 Raoul Walsh James J. Corbett 2223
118 The Buddy Holly Story 1978 Steve Rash Buddy Holly 2240
119 Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters 1985 Paul Schrader Yukio Mishima 2262
120 Pollock 2000 Ed Harris Jackson Pollock 2269
121 Gorillas in the Mist: The Story of Dian Fossey 1988 Michael Apted Dian Fossey 2273
122 Frida 2002 Julie Taymor Frida Kahlo 2304
123 The Times of Harvey Milk 1984 Rob Epstein Harvey Milk 2306
124 Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie 1988 Marcel Ophüls Klaus Barbie 2356
125 Mask 1985 Peter Bogdanovich Rocky and Rusty Dennis 2361
126 Capote 2005 Bennett Miller Truman Capote 2367
127 The Queen 2006 Stephen Frears Queen Elizabeth II 2369
128 My Mother's Castle 1990 Yves Robert Marcel Pagnol 2375
129 Annie Get Your Gun 1950 George Sidney Annie Oakley 2400
130 My Father's Glory 1990 Yves Robert Marcel Pagnol 2435
131 Kinsey 2004 Bill Condon Alfred Kinsey 2436
132 I Want to Live! 1958 Robert Wise Barbara Graham 2439
133 The Testament of Orpheus 1960 Jean Cocteau Jean Cocteau 2447
134 Walk the Line 2005 James Mangold Johnny Cash 2466
135 Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing 1955 Henry King 2469
136 Love Me or Leave Me 1955 Charles Vidor Ruth Etting 2476
137 Before Night Falls 2000 Julian Schnabel Reinaldo Arenas 2487
138 Van Gogh 1991 Maurice Pialat Vincent Van Gogh 2492
139 Danton 1983 Andrzej Wajda Georges Danton 2493
140 35 Up 1991 Michael Apted Various People 2506
This page was last modified on February 29, 2008