CRAIG BROWN'S cut out and keep guide to films that played fast-and-loose with the facts ~ VeraLPoker

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CRAIG BROWN'S cut out and keep guide to films that played fast-and-loose with the facts

By Craig Brown for the Daily Mail

Published: 01:53 GMT, 8 January 2015 | Updated: 08:10 GMT, 8 January 2015

New biopics of Dr Martin Luther King, codebreaker Alan Turing and the Schultz wrestling brothers have all come in for criticism from those who claim they play fast-and-loose with the facts.

But, as this handy cut-out-and-keep guide to the most disputed movies of all time shows, Hollywood has often maintained an elastic attitude to the truth.

Jaws (1975): This Steven Spielberg blockbuster ran into trouble when lawyers acting on behalf of its leading character, a shark known as Jaws, issued a writ for libel, contending that not only was their client a lifelong vegetarian, but he had never preyed upon any bathers in the U.S. or elsewhere.

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This Spielberg classic ran into trouble when lawyers acting on behalf of its leading character, a shark known as Jaws, issued a writ for libel

However, Judge McKinley dismissed the case on the first day after the appellant ate his counsel.

Goodwill (1979): Bryan Forbes’s biopic of Princess Anne at the 1976 Olympic Games faced various quibbles over its factual accuracy.

The main charge laid against the film was that it showed Princess Anne (played by Melanie Griffiths) carrying off gold, silver and bronze medals for dressage and individual eventing, whereas in reality she had won no medals at all.

Concern was also voiced about the final scene, in which, amid cheering crowds, her triumphant horse Goodwill is carried the length of the Mall on the shoulders of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Laugh And The World Laughs With You (1982): The first of many films about the Kray brothers, this upbeat Tim Rice musical biopic was conceived as a vehicle for George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley of the band Wham!

On its release, a letter to The Times signed by more than 50 leading criminologists suggested Reggie Kray’s opening number There’s Nothing I Like More (Than Helping Other People) was a misrepresentation of his philosophy, and that, furthermore, neither Ronnie nor Reggie had founded the Salvation Army.

The Quiet Man (2008): On its release, Martin Scorsese’s visceral, brutal biopic of Iain Duncan Smith (Robert de Niro) was criticised by a handful of political commentators on the grounds that there was no historical record of IDS ever having left Kenneth Clarke, his close rival for the Tory leadership, dying in a pool of blood.

Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1937): Following the premiere of this pioneering biopic, the seven dwarfs took out a class action against Walt Disney, stating that they had ‘never met or consorted with the woman in question’ and that, furthermore, ‘her damaging allegation that we whistled while she cooked and cleaned for us is wholly without foundation’.

Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs - a Classic of its time, but there was trouble behind the scenes when the seven dwarfs took out a class action against Walt Disney

The case was settled out of court. It was later claimed that Snow White (real name Slush Greyish) had extensive facial surgery in order to surpass the looks of the Wicked Witch (real name Mary Best).

Teresa (2004): Critics of this biopic of Mother Teresa, which starred Meryl Streep in the title role, claimed that the real-life Mother Teresa had never:

a) been married to President Kennedy;

b) tight-rope walked across the Niagara Falls in order to rescue a stranded puppy; or

c) driven through the streets of San Francisco at speeds of up to 120mph so as to escape from a mafia hit-man.

But director Oliver Stone remained adamant that the film was ‘far more real than perceived reality’ and uncovered ‘a truth that lies deeper than simple facts’.

Yentob (2005): Barbra Streisand’s poorly received follow-up to Yentl (1983) faced criticism for its portrayal of UK TV mogul Alan Yentob (Harrison Ford).

‘There is not a shred of historical evidence that Yentob ever married Diana, Princess of Wales,’ claimed historian David Starkey on BBC’s Newsnight. ‘And the notion that he led the SAS storming of the Iranian embassy in 1980 is quite simply bogus.’

To counter Starkey’s arguments, Barbra Streisand issued a forceful statement through her lawyers, in which she said that ‘these small-minded carpings will never detract from the heroic legend that is Yentob’.

Zebedee: Revenge Of The Jack-in-the-Box (1994): When British director Michael Winner announced he had bought the rights to the popular TV series The Magic Roundabout, many of its fans voiced misgivings.

The casting of Charles Bronson as Zebedee, opposite Pamela Anderson as Florence, did little to reassure them.

The film’s Leicester Square premiere was picketed by more than a thousand furious Magic Roundabout fans, who complained, among much else, that there was no mention in the original series of Zebedee exacting revenge on the snail Brian (played by William H. Macy) by scrunching him underfoot.

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