# Why are "based on a true story" movies so arbitrarily fictionalized? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 3, 2015, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-based-on-a-true-story-movies-so-arbitrarily-fictionalized/721522 "2015-06-03T12:30:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 92
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2015, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-based-on-a-true-story-movies-so-arbitrarily-fictionalized/721522/92 "2015-06-10T21:11:13Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > You took his totally reasonable post completely out of context. > > "Who cares? It’s fiction. " So he knows it isn’t a “based on a true story” film or a documentary. > > “I go to movies to be entertained…” And what’s so wrong with choosing only entertaining films? Life is too fucking serious at times to be always doom and gloom. Why the fuck _not_ choose one venue where you want lighthearted 100% entertainment? I totally agree. **I go to movies to be entertained**. If I want serious, there’s work or the news or … Out of context? I quoted it in its entirety. You want context? OK let’s put his post in context. here is the post IT quoted for his reply: > [@Jurassic World looks dumb (New Trailer)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jurassic-world-looks-dumb-new-trailer/705622/8): > > And it’s factually inaccurate in a pretty big way. If I made a movie about, say, the Crimean War, and I had the British riding zebras into battle, “it’s not a documentary” would not be a valid excuse. And his reply: > [@Jurassic World looks dumb (New Trailer)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jurassic-world-looks-dumb-new-trailer/705622/43): > > Who cares? It’s fiction. > I go to movies to be entertained, not to study or learn about history. > > I’ve loved my fair share of “popcorn” movies. No plot? Flimsy reasoning? Totally incorrect information? Hell, as long as it has lots of special effects, CGI and maybe some explosions, I’ll probably like it. He’s not talking about Jurassic World, but about a movie with zebras in the Crimean war. One preferably made with CGI and explosions. He’s _denouncing_ historical accuracy. That’s what this thread is about! This is a thread about fictionalization in historically based movies. Oh, you think you’re special because you “go to movies to be entertained”? What the fuck do you think the rest of us go to them for? The air conditioning? We just want to be entertained with movies that don’t insult us. See the OP of this thread. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-based-on-a-true-story-movies-so-arbitrarily-fictionalized/721522)._