Great Films for Realism
Realistic dialogue, characterization and decisions are rare and precious thing in cinema. Here are a few films that pull it off, even if only (in some cases) for a few moments.
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- DirectorEran CreevyStarsRiz AhmedDaniel MaysJason FlemyngShifty, a young crack cocaine dealer in London, sees his life quickly spiral out of control when his best friend returns home. Stalked by a customer desperate to score at all costs, and with his family about to turn their back on him for good, Shifty must out-run and out-smart a rival drug dealer intent on setting him up for a big fall. As his long time friend Chris confronts the dark past he left behind him, Shifty is forced to face up to the violent future he's hurtling towards.Far from perfect, but some of the dialogue captures the way working-class Londoners talk, and the characters are at least semi-credible.
- DirectorDavid AyerStarsChristian BaleFreddy RodríguezEva LongoriaA tough-minded drama about two friends in South Central Los Angeles and the violence that comes between them.Well-researched and evocative, if melodramatic and stylized, portrayal of the potentially dangerous effects of violent trauma on an already unstable man.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsLiam NeesonRalph FiennesBen KingsleyIn German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.A lot of scenes and characters based on real accounts, and played very believably, indeed brilliantly, especially Ralph Feinnes as the terrifying but emotionally vulnerable nazi commandant.
- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsEwan McGregorEwen BremnerJonny Lee MillerRenton, deeply immersed in the Edinburgh drug scene, tries to clean up and get out despite the allure of drugs and the influence of friends.Highly stylized, but with quite a few bits of very realistic dialogue and characterization, which evokes the working class Scottish culture.
- DirectorJustin KerriganStarsJohn SimmLorraine PilkingtonShaun ParkesFive youngsters embrace the 90s clubbing scene on a drug-fuelled weekend of partying in Cardiff.The best available representation of 90s rave culture in England. Over the top characters and stylized scenes, but still truer to life than any comparable film.
- DirectorMichael CiminoStarsRobert De NiroChristopher WalkenJohn CazaleAn in-depth examination of the ways in which the Vietnam War impacts and disrupts the lives of several friends in a small steel mill town in Pennsylvania.No other film makes even nearly the same effort to illustrate the changes that war can bring about in the lives of participants. Action is sometimes a bit unbelievable, but the characters - with their different reactions to traumatic experiences - are superbly conceived and acted.
- DirectorLaurent CantetStarsFrançois BégaudeauAgame Malembo-EmeneAngélica SancioTeacher and novelist François Bégaudeau plays a version of himself as he negotiates a year with his racially mixed students from a tough Parisian neighborhood.Everything that 'Dangerous Minds' should have been but wasn't. The portrayal of an inner city classroom, with its chaotic atmosphere and complex power dynamics, is uniquely naturalistic and credible.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.Based on real events, this evokes life in the favelas and offers characters who are highly credible if a little sketchy.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroCathy MoriartyJoe PesciThe life of boxer Jake LaMotta, whose violence and temper that led him to the top in the ring destroyed his life outside of it.Fights are stylized, but the scenes at home feel like a very authentic representation of the family life of a troubled and aggressive man.
- DirectorStanley KubrickAnthony MannStarsKirk DouglasLaurence OlivierJean SimmonsThe slave Spartacus survives brutal training as a gladiator and leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman Republic, as the ambitious Crassus seeks to gain power by crushing the uprising.Stylized and stiff as with all such films, Spartacus nevertheless manages to give us a nice combination of characters with depth and humanity, and pays much attention to real contemporary culture.
- DirectorRon SheltonStarsWesley SnipesWoody HarrelsonRosie PerezBlack and white basketball hustlers join forces to double their chances of winning money on the street courts and in a basketball tournament.Not exactly super-realistic, but the characters and their struggle with poverty are sympathetically and humanely represented, and the basketball is bloody decent too!
- DirectorNacho VigalondoStarsKarra ElejaldeCandela FernándezBárbara GoenagaA man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.Quite simply the most realistic representation of time travel ever, as silly as that may sound. The decisions of the characters are also mostly believable given the complexity of the plot.
- DirectorJohn G. AvildsenStarsSylvester StalloneTalia ShireBurt YoungA small-time Philadelphia boxer gets a supremely rare chance to fight the world heavyweight champion in a bout in which he strives to go the distance for his self-respect.Forget about the boxing. Actually a really gritty and humane representation of the life of a poor guy in 1970s Philadelphia.
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisPete PostlethwaiteAlison CrosbieAn 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.Pretty down-to-earth and accurate account of an ordinary man thrown into a real-life Kafkaesque nightmare, exposing the hypocrisy and cruelty of the contemporary British media and judicial system.
- DirectorJason ReitmanStarsAaron EckhartCameron BrightMaria BelloSatirical comedy follows the machinations of Big Tobacco's chief spokesman, Nick Naylor, who spins on behalf of cigarettes while trying to remain a role model for his 12-year old son.Not a particularly realistic film overall, but a very credible portrayal of a very common syndrome in the modern economy, a man who does an evil job but is actually a nice guy in his personal life.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsTom HanksMatt DamonTom SizemoreFollowing the Normandy Landings, a group of U.S. soldiers go behind enemy lines to retrieve a paratrooper whose brothers have been killed in action.A lot of realistic touches, if not entirely convincing.
- DirectorJean-Stéphane SauvaireStarsChristophe MinieDaisy Victoria VandyJoseph DuoA cast of unknown performers are used in this drama about child soldiers fighting a war in the West African Country Liberia.A rare credible representation of the civil wars of modern sub-Saharan Africa, which uses real ex-child soldiers and feels like a realistic portrayal of deeply troubled young men with almost no 'ordinary' life experience.
- DirectorRichard LinklaterStarsEthan HawkeJulie DelpyAndrea EckertA young man and woman meet on a train in Europe, and wind up spending one evening together in Vienna. Unfortunately, both know that this will probably be their only night together.Pretty good portrayal of two mutually attracted people getting know each other, with some good naturalistic dialogue.
- DirectorLouis MalleStarsAndre GregoryWallace ShawnJean LenauerTwo old friends meet for dinner; as one tells anecdotes detailing his experiences, the other notices their differing worldviews.A very naturalistic portrayal of a very weird (but very thought-provoking) conversation between a fairly normal intelligent guy and an eccentric spiritualist. Dinner by name dinner by nature!
- DirectorAndrew DominikStarsEric BanaSimon LyndonVince ColosimoChopper tells the intense story of Mark "Chopper" Read, a legendary criminal who wrote his autobiography while serving a jail sentence in prison. His book, "From the Inside", upon which the film is based, was a best-seller.Carefully researched and totally believable, despite being stylized and ridiculous. Eric Bana really captures the combination of charm and aggressive insanity and characterizes the eponymous violent psychopath.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsSigourney WeaverTom SkerrittJohn HurtThe crew of a commercial spacecraft encounters a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.As realistic as an outrageous sci-fi can be. Characters are believable and sympathetic, and the evocation of atmosphere corporate protocol and power feels very credible.
- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsCillian MurphyNaomie HarrisChristopher EcclestonFour weeks after a mysterious, incurable virus spreads throughout the UK, a handful of survivors try to find sanctuary.Not exactly realistic, but has some nice realistic touches about life after zombie meltdown which other films of the kind lack, making it much more convincing and compelling than the usual zombie flicks.