Wait, that's not how it happened! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most egregious crime movies that played fast and loose with historical fact.
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00:00 If you're still in need of something to read, here's the story of Bonnie and Clyde.
00:05 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most egregious crime
00:09 movies that played fast and loose with historical fact.
00:12 Did you say 300 for a payroll check?
00:16 Number 10.
00:17 The Irishman
00:18 A late opus of Martin Scorsese, The Irishman tells the story of Jimmy Hoffa's infamous
00:22 disappearance.
00:23 Yeah.
00:24 Okay.
00:25 According to the movie, he was killed by a gangster named Frank Sheeran, on the orders
00:29 of crime boss Russell Buffalino.
00:31 Either way, he's gone.
00:34 The problem here doesn't stem from Scorsese, as he nicely adapts Charles Brand's 2004 book
00:39 I Heard You Paint Houses.
00:40 The problem stems from the book itself, its entire conceit, that Sheeran killed Jimmy
00:44 Hoffa is unverifiable.
00:46 Despite some good evidence that corroborates Sheeran's story, his confession has been doubted
00:50 by many experts, including Harvard Law School professor Jack Goldsmith.
00:54 If Sheeran did indeed make the story up, or at least embellished most of the facts, then
00:58 that would make The Irishman one giant lie.
01:01 "Hoffa disappeared Wednesday afternoon.
01:04 Now more than 48 hours later, with no word yet on what happened to Hoffa.
01:09 Police are extremely concerned."
01:11 Number 9.
01:12 Pain and Gain
01:13 Turning a real crime that killed two people into a comedy was probably not the best idea.
01:17 "I can deal with his impotence.
01:18 I cannot deal with your incompetence.
01:20 What the f-"
01:21 In the late 1990s, a group of Florida bodybuilders started the Sun Gym Gang, named after the
01:25 gym they all frequented in North Miami.
01:27 Their crimes culminated in the kidnapping and murders of Frank Riga and Christina Furton.
01:31 "He fell.
01:32 The thing just hit him in the head when he fell down."
01:34 Michael Bay turned this tragic story into a dark comedy, and the tone discrepancy serves
01:38 as one of the film's biggest errors.
01:40 But it's also filled with historical inaccuracies, like adding made-up characters, shortening
01:44 the much larger-in-real-life gang, and changing some smaller facts, like how Paul Doyle met
01:48 Frank Riga.
01:49 The gist is certainly there, but you know what they say.
01:52 The devil's in the details.
01:53 "Why are you saying I did it?
01:54 We did it."
01:55 "No, you drove."
01:56 "It's a good thing, too."
01:57 "We did a good thing."
02:02 Number 8.
02:03 The Untouchables
02:04 A classic of the mob genre, Brian De Palma's The Untouchables was a huge success upon release.
02:08 "He pulls a knife, you pull a gun.
02:11 He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue.
02:14 That's the Chicago way."
02:15 Grossing over $100 million and earning four Oscar nominations, it was a big hit with both
02:20 critics and general audiences, despite its history being riddled with bullet holes.
02:24 The movie tells the story of the titular Untouchables, who work to bring down Al Capone in the early
02:28 1930s.
02:29 "We can get him on income tax evasion if we can just show that any of the money from
02:34 the organization's business is going to him."
02:36 But "story" is the important word here, as most of the film's events are completely
02:39 made up for dramatic purposes.
02:41 Virtually every blockbuster action scene, including the thrilling border raid and the
02:44 train station shootout, never actually happened.
02:47 Furthermore, the film greatly glorifies the Untouchables' role in bringing down Capone.
02:51 "Your Honor, we would like to withdraw our plea of not guilty and enter a plea of guilty."
02:56 7.
03:00 Foxcatcher
03:01 Shortly after leaving the office, Steve Carell switched genres and became literally unrecognizable
03:05 as murderer John DuPont.
03:06 "So the world championships are coming up soon?"
03:12 "I want you to win.
03:17 That's why you're here."
03:21 A philanthropist and wrestling enthusiast, DuPont ran Foxcatcher Farm and killed Olympic
03:25 wrestler Dave Schultz in 1996.
03:27 "Hey John, what's happening?
03:29 Hey, whoa."
03:30 "No John."
03:31 "Do you have a problem with me?"
03:33 The film takes a few notable diversions from the real story, like changing how Schultz
03:37 met DuPont and having him live in the farm's guesthouse after moving to Pennsylvania.
03:41 Furthermore, Dave and his brother Mark never actually lived together on Foxcatcher Farm.
03:45 "How you doing?"
03:47 "Good.
03:48 You good?"
03:49 "What's up?"
03:50 And speaking of Mark Schultz, he was none too pleased with how the film turned out,
03:55 often posting unfavorable reactions online and criticizing the film's depiction of
03:59 him and his brother.
04:00 6.
04:01 Public Enemies
04:02 If there's one thing the list will prove, it's that you should never trust a Depression-era
04:05 gangster flick.
04:06 "Let's play a game, Mr. President.
04:07 It's called spin the dial."
04:10 The Untouchables plays fast and loose with historical fact, as does Michael Mann's
04:13 Public Enemies.
04:14 This film uses the story of John Dillinger and Melvin Purvis to tell a grander tale about
04:18 Depression-era crime and the birth of the FBI.
04:21 "We are pursuing hardened killers.
04:23 It will be dangerous.
04:25 And those of you who aren't prepared for that should go."
04:29 It's a fascinating subject, yet the story is filled with historic nonsense.
04:33 The deaths of many characters are altered for dramatic purposes, including those of
04:36 pretty boy Floyd, Homer Van Meter, and babyface Nelson.
04:40 As for Dillinger himself, the real man didn't kill as many people as he does in the film,
04:43 and he never actually spoke to Purvis.
04:45 "You act like a confident man, Mr. Purvis.
04:48 You got a few qualities.
04:50 Probably pretty good from a distance."
04:52 5.
04:53 Dog Day Afternoon
04:54 Considered one of the greatest movies ever made, Dog Day Afternoon dramatizes the failed
04:58 bank robbery conducted by John Watovich and Salvatore Naturale.
05:06 Most of the names are changed for the film, which is fine enough considering its dramatic
05:09 deviations from the real story.
05:11 Watovich was unhappy with how the film turned out, calling it 30% accurate and criticizing
05:15 its fictional elements.
05:16 For example, he never actually spoke with his mother during the robbery.
05:19 "I got it all worked out, Ma.
05:20 Don't worry."
05:21 Even more egregious was the film's insinuation that he betrayed Naturale, a fact that Watovich
05:26 vehemently denied.
05:27 His ex-wife, Carmen Bifolco, also took umbrage with her portrayal and sued Warner Bros. for
05:32 invasion of privacy.
05:33 The lawsuit failed, with the court ruling in favor of the movie's studio.
05:40 4.
05:41 JFK Oliver Stone's crime drama has been credited
05:46 with popularizing the theory that John F. Kennedy was killed in government conspiracy.
05:50 "You know who killed President Kennedy.
05:52 Was there a conspiracy here in New Orleans?"
05:53 The film takes a firm stance in that regard, and in that way, it becomes a three-hour piece
05:57 of historical fiction.
05:59 Its entire thesis is potentially made up, and even though the conspiracy theory is a
06:02 wildly popular one, it's still a conspiracy theory without a firm basis in fact.
06:06 "That's some bullet.
06:10 Anyone who's been in combat will tell you, never in the history of gunfire has there
06:13 been a bullet this ridiculous."
06:15 While Oliver Stone's filmmaking was revered and praised, the movie's story received
06:19 harsh criticism in the press, particularly for its stance that JFK was assassinated by
06:23 the American government.
06:24 For many, this was a wildly untrue and perhaps even dangerous assertion to make.
06:28 "The truth is the most important value we have, because if the truth does not endure,
06:33 if the government murders truth, if we cannot respect the hearts of these people, then this
06:38 is not the country in which I was born in, and it's certainly not the country that
06:42 I want to die in."
06:43 3.
06:44 Argo
06:45 Ben Affleck's modern classic concerns the Iran hostage crisis and the resulting Canadian
06:49 caper that rescued six American diplomats.
06:51 "You want to set up a movie in a week, you want to lie to Hollywood, a town where everybody
06:55 lies for a living, then you're going to sneak 007 over here into a country that wants
07:00 CIA blood on their breakfast cereal, and you're going to walk the Brady Bunch out of the most
07:05 watched city in the world."
07:06 Take notice of that title, "Canadian caper."
07:09 You would know that watching Argo, which is vehemently pro-America.
07:12 The film dramatically glorifies the role of the CIA while considerably downplaying the
07:16 importance of the Canadian government.
07:18 "Since the incident, the number of guards at the airport has doubled.
07:21 Thorough background examination should be expected."
07:25 This criticism was directly made by many prominent individuals of the time.
07:29 For example, Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor called the CIA a "junior partner" in the
07:33 operation, and former President Jimmy Carter admitted that 90% of the plan was Canadian.
07:38 Even the post-script text needed to be altered in post, as it insinuated that Taylor did
07:42 not deserve credit for the operation.
07:44 This couldn't be further from the truth.
07:46 "If we get caught, you and Pat go on trial for harboring the enemy.
07:49 You know that."
07:50 "Pat and I have discussed it.
07:51 It's the risk we took."
07:52 2.
07:53 Bonnie and Clyde
07:54 This is the most important crime film ever made.
07:57 Bonnie and Clyde received 10 Oscar nominations and shocked audiences with its groundbreaking
08:01 depictions of graphic violence.
08:03 "This afternoon we killed a man.
08:05 We were seen.
08:06 Now so far nobody knows who you are, but they know who I am.
08:09 They're gonna be running after me and anybody who's running with me."
08:11 Come for its importance in cinema history, not for its realistic depiction of the titular
08:15 duo.
08:16 Like their famous car, the film is absolutely riddled with holes.
08:19 These aren't just minor details, but major deviations that significantly alter both story
08:23 and character.
08:24 Bonnie and Clyde never sent photos to the media, and Frank Hamer did not have a personal
08:28 vendetta against the duo.
08:29 "Big ol' Texas Ranger waves his gun at us, and we just welcome him like he was one
08:36 of our own."
08:37 He hadn't even met them before the famous execution.
08:40 Speaking of that, Clyde never realized that they'd been trapped, as he was killed instantly
08:43 with a shot to the head.
08:44 "Hey, isn't that Malcolm there?"
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09:04 1.
09:06 Catch Me If You Can
09:07 One of Spielberg's more grounded films, Catch Me If You Can, relays the literally unbelievable
09:12 story of conman Frank Abagnale.
09:14 "I'm a co-pilot based out of San Francisco.
09:16 I flew a flight into New York last night, but the problem is I'm headed out to Paris
09:21 in three hours."
09:22 The problem is that the story is based on Abagnale's own self-written memoir, meaning
09:25 we have to take his word as gospel.
09:27 As it turns out, we were the victims of Abagnale's greatest con.
09:30 "Pretty impressive resume, Dr. Connors."
09:33 "Well, unfortunately, the only thing I need is an emergency room supervisor for my midnight
09:40 to 8 a.m. shift."
09:42 Doubts have been raised about the book's veracity since 1978, when reporters debunked
09:46 his claims of being a Louisiana prosecutor.
09:48 But the biggest bombshell came in 2020 when journalist Alan Logan found evidence that
09:53 contradicted most of Abagnale's stories.
09:55 His tall tales are either made up or wildly exaggerated, meaning the entire film is a
09:59 work of pure fiction.
10:00 "Who are you to say something like that, huh?"
10:03 Which inaccuracy set off your inner historian?
10:05 Let us know in the comments.
10:06 "We're all guys, you know."
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10:16 [Music]