True Story Movies 2017 List

Amy Renner Amy Renner

Oct. 21, 2023

Top True Story Movies 2017

On this Page:
December 22 December 25 November 3 October 12 October 13 October 20 September 7 September 8 September 15 September 22 September 29 August 4 August 25 June 16 May 26 April 7 February 10 January 6 January 13

Limited

In June 1971, The New York Times, the Washington Post and the nation’s major newspapers took a brave stand for freedom of speech and reported on the Pentagon Papers, the massive cover-up of government secrets that spanned four decades and four US Presidents. At the time, the Post’s Katherine Graham (Streep) was still finding her footing as the country’s first female newspaper publisher, and Ben Bradlee (Hanks), the paper’s volatile, driven editor, was trying to enhance the stature of the struggling, local paper. Together, the two formed an unlikely team, as they were forced to come together and make the bold decision to support The New York Times and fight the Nixon Administration’s unprecedented attempt to restrict the first amendment.

Steven Spielberg, Jesse Plemons, Bob Odenkirk, Meryl Streep, David Cross, Alison Brie, Tracy Letts, Sarah Paulson

PG-13

64%

  • 4
Rent or buy Shop
ADVERTISEMENT

Limited

Follows the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother Gail (Michelle Williams) to convince his billionaire grandfather (Christopher Plummer) to pay the ransom. When Getty Sr. refuses, Gail attempts to sway him as her son’s captors become increasingly volatile and brutal. With her son’s life in the balance, Gail and Getty’s advisor (Mark Wahlberg) become unlikely allies in the race against time that ultimately reveals the true and lasting value of love over money.

Charlie Plummer, Dan Friedkin, Mark Wahlberg, Bradley Thomas, Ridley Scott, Quentin Curtis, Chris Clark, Mark Huffam

R

77%

  • 3
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

After powerful Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson loses the 1960 Democratic presidential nomination to Senator John F. Kennedy (Jeffrey Donovan), he agrees to be his young rival’s running mate. But once they win the election, despite his extensive legislative experience and shrewd political instincts, Johnson finds himself sidelined in the role of Vice President. That all changes on Nov. 22, 1963, when Kennedy is assassinated and Johnson, with his devoted wife Lady Bird (Jennifer Jason Leigh) by his side, is suddenly thrust into the presidency. As the nation mourns, Johnson must contend with longtime adversary Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Michael Stahl-David) and one-time mentor Georgia Sen. Richard Russell (Richard Jenkins) as he seeks to honor JFK’s legacy by championing the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Matthew George, Rob Reiner, Richard Jenkins, Michael Stahl-David, Liz Glotzer, Trevor White, Tim White, Joey Hartstone

75%

  • 2.5
Rent or buy Shop
ADVERTISEMENT

1 Day Only

When a snowstorm strands former professional hockey player Eric LeMarque (Josh Hartnett) atop a Mountain for eight days, he is forced to face his past and come to terms with his personal demons and rediscover the power of faith within him in order to survive.

Scott Waugh, Mira Sorvino, Madison Turner, Josh Hartnett, Sarah Dumont

PG-13

78%

  • 3.1
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Starring Chadwick Boseman, Josh Gad, Kate Hudson, Dan Stevens, Sterling K. Brown, and James Cromwell. Director Reginald Hudlin’s Marshall, is based on an early trial in the career of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. It follows the young lawyer (Chadwick Boseman) to conservative Connecticut to defend a black chauffeur (Sterling K. Brown) charged with sexual assault and attempted murder of his white socialite employer (Kate Hudson). Muzzled by a segregationist court, Marshall partners with a courageous young Jewish lawyer, Samuel Friedman (Josh Gad). Together they mount the defense in an environment of racism and Anti-Semitism. The high profile case and the partnership with Friedman served as a template for Marshall’s creation of the NAACP legal defense fund.

Kate Hudson, Chadwick Boseman, Josh Gad, James Cromwell, Keesha Sharp, Reggie Hudlin, Paula Wagner, Jonathan Sanger

PG-13

74%

  • 3.6
Rent or buy Shop
ADVERTISEMENT

Nationwide

All men are created equal… then, a few become firefighters. Only the Brave, based on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, is the heroic story of one unit of local firefighters that through hope, determination, sacrifice, and the drive to protect families, communities, and our country become one of the most elite firefighting teams in the country. As most of us run from danger, they run toward it – they watch over our lives, our homes, everything we hold dear, as they forge a unique brotherhood that comes into focus with one fateful fire.

Joseph Kosinski, Taylor Kitsch, Molly Smith, Eric Warren Singer, Miles Teller, Ben Hardy, Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Mike Menchel

PG-13

77%

  • 3.7
Rent or buy Shop

1 Day Only

Based on a true marriage journey, the film tells the story of ultra-marathon runner and college professor David Horton, his wife, Nancy, and their attempt to finish their marriage race well.

Kirk Cameron, Shari Rigby, Karen Abercrombie, Leland Klassen

73%

  • 5
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

Based on actual events and voicemail messages, 9/11 tells the story of five people trapped in an elevator in the World Trade Center's North Tower on September 11th, 2001. Having no comprehension of what has happened outside, these strangers work together and never give up hope as they try to escape before the unthinkable happens.

Luis Guzman, Whoopi Goldberg, Gina Gershon, Wood Harris, Martin Guigui, Dahlia Waingort, Warren Ostergard, Martin Sprock

R

54%

  • 2.2
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

Set amidst the colorful backdrop of mid-20th century New York City, Rebel in the Rye follows a young Salinger (Nicholas Hoult) as he struggles to find his voice, pursues a love affair with famed socialite Oona O’Neill (Zoey Deutch), and fights on the frontlines of World War II. It’s these experiences that will inform the creation of his masterpiece, The Catcher in the Rye, bringing him overnight fame (and notoriety) and leading him to withdraw from the public eye for the rest of his life. Costarring Kevin Spacey and Sarah Paulson, Rebel in the Rye offers a tantalizing window into the life and times of a little-understood genius who broke the rules and redefined American literature.

Nicholas Hoult, Kevin Spacey, Danny Strong, Molly Smith, Sarah Paulson, Victor Garber, Trent Luckinbill, Thad Luckinbill

PG-13

79%

  • 1
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

The extraordinary true story of an unexpected friendship in the later years of Queen Victoria’s remarkable rule. When Abdul Karim, a young clerk, travels from India to participate in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, he is surprised to find favor with the Queen herself. As the Queen questions the constrictions of her long-held position, the two forge an unlikely and devoted alliance with a loyalty to one another that her household and inner circle all attempt to destroy. As the friendship deepens, the Queen begins to see a changing world through new eyes and joyfully reclaims her humanity.

Stephen Frears, Ali Fazal, Adeel Akhtar, Simon Callow, Eddie Izzard, Tim Pigott-Smith, Lee Hall, Judi Dench

93%

  • 3.9
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Stronger is the inspiring true story of Jeff Bauman, an ordinary man who captured the hearts of his city and the world to become a symbol of hope following the infamous 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. It is Jeff’s deeply personal account of the heroic journey which tests a family’s bond, defines a community’s pride and inspires his inner courage to overcome devastating adversity.

Miranda Richardson, Todd LIeberman, Jake Gyllenhaal, David Gordon Green, David Hoberman, John Pollono, Tatiana Maslany, Clancy Brown

63%

  • 4.1
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Follows Barry Seal, a TWA pilot recruited by the CIA to provide reconnaissance on the burgeoning communist threat in Central America. Seal finds himself in charge of one of the biggest covert CIA operations in the history of the U.S., one that spawned the birth of the Medellin cartel and eventually almost brought down the Reagan White House through the Iran Contra scandal.

Tom Cruise, Jesse Plemons, Ron Howard, Caleb Landry Jones, Christopher Woodrow, Doug Liman, Benito Martinez, E. Roger Mitchell

R

46%

  • 3.7
Rent or buy Shop

Expansion

The extraordinary true story of an unexpected friendship in the later years of Queen Victoria’s remarkable rule. When Abdul Karim, a young clerk, travels from India to participate in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, he is surprised to find favor with the Queen herself. As the Queen questions the constrictions of her long-held position, the two forge an unlikely and devoted alliance with a loyalty to one another that her household and inner circle all attempt to destroy. As the friendship deepens, the Queen begins to see a changing world through new eyes and joyfully reclaims her humanity.

Stephen Frears, Ali Fazal, Adeel Akhtar, Simon Callow, Eddie Izzard, Tim Pigott-Smith, Lee Hall, Judi Dench

93%

  • 3.9
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

The Battleship Island is based on a true story during WWII when Korea was under the colonial rule of Japan. In 1944, 400 conscripted Korean civilians head out to Hashima Island. Nicknamed “The Battleship Island” after its resemblance to a war vessel, many were lured by false promises of high wages. Upon arrival, they found that workers are forced into slave labor. As the U.S. launches a massive counterattack on Japan, the Japanese decide to blow up the island in order to bury the truth about their awful treatment of the Korean slave labors. A Korean independence activist discovers the plan and works with others on the island for a mass escape.

Ryoo Seung-wan, Hwang Jeong-Min, So Ji-Sub, Song Joong-Ki, Lee Jung-Hyun.

72%

  • 3.5
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Michael's first assignment as their new pastor is to actually close down All Saints, a dilapidated country church with a dozen devoted members … and a mortgage well beyond its means. But when the church hesitantly begins welcoming Karen refugees from Burma—former farmers scrabbling for a fresh start in America—Michael feels called to an improbable new mission.

Toiling alongside the Karen people, the congregation attempts to turn their fertile land into a working farm to pay the church's bills and feed its people. Jeopardizing his family's future by ignoring his superiors, Michael must choose between completing what he was assigned to do—close the church and sell the property—or listening to a still, small voice challenging the people of All Saints to risk it all and provide much-needed hope to their new community.

Cara Buono, Barry Corbin, Chonda Pierce, Steve Gomer, Steve Armour, John Corbett, David Keith, Nelson Lee

PG

74%

  • 3.8
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Chronicles the life and legacy of Tupac Shakur, including his rise to superstardom as a hip hop artist, actor, poet and activist, as well as his imprisonment and prolific, controversial time at Death Row Records. Against insurmountable odds, Shakur rose to become a cultural icon whose career and persona both continue to grow long after his passing.

Benny Boom, Brian Tucker, Eddie Gonzalez, Jamal Woolard, Annie Ilonzeh, L.T. Hutton, David Robinson, John Singleton

R

90%

  • 3.3
Rent or buy Shop

VOD / Digital

An absurdist war story for our times, writer-director David Michôd (Animal Kingdom) recreates a U.S. General's roller-coaster rise and fall as part reality, part savage parody - raising the specter of just where the line between them lies today. His is an exploration of a born leader's ultra-confident march right into the dark heart of folly. At the story's core is Brad Pitt's sly take on a successful, charismatic four-star general who leapt in like a rock star to command NATO forces in Afghanistan, only to be taken down by a journalist's no-holds-barred exposé.

Lakeith Stanfield, Tilda Swinton, Brad Pitt, David Michod, David Michôd, Jeremy Kleiner, Dede Gardner, Emory Cohen

43%

  • 3.1
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

A curious and adventurous young woman eager to explore the world outside of England, Gertrude Bell (Kidman) goes to the British embassy in Tehran where she quickly falls in love with a secretary of the embassy, Henry Cadogan (Franco). This sparks the beginning of a life-long adventure among the beautiful but misunderstood peoples and cultures of the Middle East. Along the way, her path intersects with archaeologist T.E. Lawrence (Pattinson) also known as Lawrence of Arabia, and Major Charles Doughty-Wylie (Lewis), the British Consul General in the Ottoman Empire.

Nicole Kidman, James Franco, Cassian Elwes, Werner Herzog, Nick Raslan, Robert Pattinson, Damian Lewis

PG-13

48%

  • 2.9
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

A United Kingdom is the true story of the forbidden love of King Seretse Khama of Botswana (David Oyelowo) and Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike), a white woman from London, which caused an international uproar when they decided to marry in the late 1940s just as apartheid was being introduced into South Africa. It was a decision that altered the course of African history.

Rosamund Pike, David Oyelowo, Amma Asante, Rick McCallum, Guy Hibbert, Jack Davenport, Tom Felton, Nicholas Lyndhurst

PG-13

84%

  • 2.7
Rent or buy Shop

Nationwide

Hidden Figures is the incredible untold story of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae)—brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Ted Melfi, Janelle Monae, Jim Parsons, Donna Gigliotti, Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping

PG

75%

  • 4.4
Rent or buy Shop

Limited

Otto and Anna Quangel (Brendan Gleeson & Emma Thompson) are a working class husband and wife doing their best to ride out the war. When their son is killed fighting on the frontlines, however, everything changes. They begin pouring their rage and grief into postcards emblazoned with anti-Nazi slogans, risking everything to disseminate their messages of protest across the city. But this seemingly small act of subversion rattles the regime, including a police inspector (Daniel Brühl) who will not rest until the culprits have been caught.

Emma Thompson, Vincent Perez, Brendan Gleeson, Daniel Brühl

R

75%

  • 3
Rent or buy Shop
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Popular 2017 Genres

Explore more 2017 films categorized by genre.

More to Explore

Find and discover more on Movie Insider and across the web.

30-Day Free Trial

Watch thousands of movies 24/7 on Amazon Prime.

Go now
Production Listings

Find and discover movies filming now.

Go now