How accurate are these true crime movies really?

'Hustlers' - Soon to be released, this all-star cast portray strippers that scam Wall Street clients out of their money. The film is based on a true story that made headlines via an article by Jessica Pressler titled 'The Hustlers at Scores.' But just how true is it going to be? We'll soon find out.

2 / 30 Fotos

'Goodfellas' (1990) - Scorsese's award-winning classic is based on the life of real criminal Henry Hill (Ray Liotta, center), and his journey in the mob. The cast prominently features Joe Pesci (left) and Robert De Niro (right).

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'Goodfellas' (1990) - An adaptation of the book 'Wiseguy' by Nicholas Pileggi, Hill said himself that the movie was "95% accurate." But it's said that some of the crimes and criminals were toned down a little, believe it or not.

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'The Untouchables' (1987) - The Untouchables are a group of lawmen led by Elliot Ness (Kevin Costner), who are attempting to bring down Al Capone (Robert De Niro) during the Prohibition era.

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'The Untouchables' (1987) - The Guardian called this movie "punch-drunk with inaccuracies." Elliot Ness comes off very straight-laced in the film, though he was reportedly an alcoholic, and most of these Untouchables members didn't actually exist (that includes Sean Connery's character).

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'American Gangster' (2007) - The film stars Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas, a drug lord who is eventually caught by Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), a New Jersey detective trying to weed out corruption in the force.

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'American Gangster' (2007) - The film has been accused of being more fiction than fact. For example, Roberts' character serves as a composite of many detectives on the real case, though he did exist and actually became Lucas' lawyer.

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'The French Connection' (1971) - Audiences follow Detectives Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle (Gene Hackman) and Buddy "Cloudy" Russo (Roy Scheider) as they attempt to capture a heroin smuggler.

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'The French Connection' (1971) - Based on a nonfiction book about a real-life 1961 drug bust, the film is fairly accurate, though it does exaggerate (like many Hollywood stories). The actual detectives from the case were on set for most filming days to serve as consultants. They even had cameos!

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'Catch Me If You Can' (2002) - The film follows the criminal life of Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio), an extremely successful forger and con man, as he tries to evade capture from FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks).

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'Catch Me If You Can' (2002) - Based off of Abagnale's own memoir, he's claimed that, while the story is exaggerated at some points, about 80% of it is accurate.

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'Bonnie and Clyde' (1967) - The film follows the exploits of Bonnie (Faye Dunaway) and Clyde (Warren Beatty), two bank robbers in Texas during the Great Depression.

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'Bonnie and Clyde' (1967) - The film has been accused of glorifying the robbers, showing some historically accurate events, but taking away anything that would detract from their Robin Hood-like image (unnecessary murders, self-serving motives, etc).

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'The Wolf of Wall Street' (2013) - The film shows the dramatic rise and fall of Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio), who made a fortune defrauding investors, using the money to live an outrageously extravagant lifestyle.

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'The Wolf of Wall Street' (2013) - The movie is actually based off the book written by Belfort himself, so the material may already have inaccuracies. But according to the FBI agent that investigated Belfort, everything he wrote about his own exploits was true.

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'The Big Short' (2015) - 'The Big Short' takes a deep dive into the 2007-2008 financial crisis, and follows several different men that benefit from the economic collapse.

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'The Big Short' (2015) - Based on the book of the same name by Michael Lewis, the film took liberties with the characters and their actions, though reportedly stayed fairly true to overarching historical events. Occasionally, even the characters within the film break the fourth wall to tell the audience when something isn't accurate.

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'Dog Day Afternoon' (1975) - Al Pacino stars as the protagonist in a film that tells the story of a poorly planned bank robbery in 1972, where the robber attempts to get money to fund his partner's sex change operation.

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'Dog Day Afternoon' (1975) - 'Dog Day Afternoon' is said to be "essentially pretty accurate to real-life events." The real robber, John Wojtowicz, actually showed the movie in prison and used some of the proceeds to get his partner's sex change.

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'American Hustle' (2013) - The movie stars A-list talent, including Amy Adams, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, and Jennifer Lawrence. It follows con man Irving Rosenfeld (Bale) as he works with FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Cooper) to uncover corrupt politicians.

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'American Hustle' (2013) - The film is loosely based off the real Abscam operation, involving Melvin Weinberg (Rosenfeld in the film). The movie opens with the accurate line "some of this actually happened." Things like Sydney Prosser (Adams) being involved in the scams and the love triangle between Sydney, Irving, and Richie never really happened.

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'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' (2007) - Jesse James (Brad Pitt) was a robber from the mid to late 1800s, who was eventually killed by Robert Ford (Casey Affleck), a member of his own gang. The film follows their relationship and the events leading up to his murder.

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'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' (2007) - One of numerous portrayals of Jesse James on screen, this film has been called one of the most accurate. That being said, many thought it was too solemn to do justice to the material.

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'King of Thieves' (2018) - The Hatton Garden robbery makes for a great film, as we follow a group of retired criminals that attempt to pull off the "largest burglary in English legal history"—without getting caught.

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'King of Thieves' (2018) - The film was impressively accurate, with writer Joe Penhall using everything from press releases to a "100-page transcript from Scotland Yard" to ensure that even the dialogue sounded just like the original robbers (pictured).

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'The Bling Ring' (2013) - Sofia Coppola directed this film starring Emma Watson, where a group of teenagers tracked down celebrities' homes using online sources and robbed them.

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'The Bling Ring' (2013) - Much of the events in 'The Bling Ring' were true, including down to certain quotes. However, Emma Watson told Rookie magazine that her character was "three steps removed from who she might be in real life."

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'The General' (1998) - The biopic depicts the life of Irish crime lord Martin Cahill (Brendan Gleeson, pictured), also known as "The General," in the form of a flashback, starting with his death.

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'The General' (1998) -

The film has been criticized for its allegedly inaccurate representation of who killed Cahill and why.

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How accurate are these true crime movies really?

What does "based on real events" truly mean for these films?

09/09/19 | StarsInsider

MOVIES Crime

We've all watched a movie that is supposedly "based on true events," but what does that actually mean? Hollywood is allowed to take a lot of creative license, so it's often up to the directors if they want to keep things just as they were or add a little more theatrics to the history.

The newest true crime film to hit the screens will be 'Hustlers,' starring big names like Jennifer Lopez, Keke Palmer, Constance Wu, Cardi B, Julia Stiles, and Lizzo. While the story is crazy enough on its own, audiences are waiting to find out if the film will stick to the facts, or go for the flair.

Click through this gallery to find out just how accurate some of your favorite true crime stories really are. Is your favorite fact or fiction?