Top 10 Movies That Are About Real-Life Feuds
#10: “Oppenheimer” (2023)
The Real People Behind Oppenheimer: What Happened After
Christopher Nolan’s epic finds J. Robert Oppenheimer, father of the atomic bomb, caught up in the communist witch hunts of the 1950s. But the most profound twist is that what it all really amounts to is a petty, one-sided squabble. Oppenheimer earns the ire and suspicion of Rear Admiral Lewis Strauss, who is so blinded by his own insecurity that he mistakenly believes Oppenheimer insulted him. So, he does what any completely rational human does. He sets out to ruin him. It’s professional pettiness blown way out of proportion. For all its high-minded and complex themes about humanity and the universe, it’s ironic that so much of the movie’s stakes are derived from one man’s wounded ego.
#9: “The Lion in Winter” (1968)
Top 10 Animated Movies that Deserve a Real Life Musical
Legendary actor Peter O’Toole had previously played the embattled King Henry II in “Becket,” where his character was locked in a battle of faith and power with Thomas Becket. But things took a devilish and bleakly funny turn a few years later in this Christmas-set story of royal intrigue. Katharine Hepburn won an Oscar for playing his queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, whose the 3 sons with the King vie for their father’s throne. The estranged royal figures feel more like sparring partners than a married couple. Their attempts to outwit each other are as hilarious as they are disturbing. But that’s what family’s all about, isn’t it?
#8: “RKO 281” (1999)
Top 10 Movies Impacted By Real-Life Events
Inspired by one of the biggest and dirtiest spats in Hollywood history, this HBO movie covers the making of what’s been considered the greatest film of all time. Liev Scheiber stars as director Orson Welles and James Cromwell is the publishing mogul, William Randolph Hearst, one of the people on whom the classic “Citizen Kane” is based. Unlike the movie that inspired it, it’s a bit juicier and outright in its attempts to be salacious, but it’s a stylish and effective piece of Hollywood gossip. It goes in-depth on Welles’ inspiration and Hearst’s campaign to boycott the movie and pressure studios and movie theaters to shelve it completely. “RKO 281” went on to be nominated for several Emmys, winning for casting, music composition and sound mixing.
#7: “The Death of Stalin” (2017)
Top 10 Thought Provoking Life After Death Movies
Writer-director Armando Iannucci is no stranger to treating politics like high comedy. He is the creator of “Veep” and “In the Loop,” after all. History buffs expecting a straightforward retelling of the power struggle between Nikita Khrushchev and Lavrenti Beria will either be shocked or knocked completely off their guard. Though it takes place in the wake of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s 1953 death, it appears tailored to the politics of the moment, specifically 2017. “The Death of Stalin” makes history come alive with raucous, vulgar, and cynical comedy. Clearly, this touched a nerve with the Russian government: they banned it outright.
#6: “I, Tonya” (2017)
Top 10 Real Life Horror Documentaries
Margot Robbie won widespread acclaim for her role as Tonya Harding, whose success in figure skating belies her underprivileged beginnings with a deeply abusive mother. The story lets us hear her side of that infamous 1994 incident when she was implicated in the vicious attack on her professional rival, Nancy Kerrigan. But don’t worry, it’s a comedy! Although the movie itself is told from Harding’s perspective, so much of the hype and reason for the movie’s existence is the build up and aftermath of that one event. Purporting to tell Tonya’s side of the story, “I, Tonya” makes it clear that she might not be the most reliable narrator.
#5: “The Great” (2020-23)
Top 10 Action Movies Based on Real-Life Events
Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult lead this somewhat warped look at the acrimonious marriage between Catherine the Great and her ill-fated husband, Emperor Peter III of Russia. While Hulu contended that the show was “anti-historical” and not meant to be taken literally, it’s obviously a take on historical figures, and one that is at least somewhat based on reality. The real Catherine’s memoirs described Peter as someone who imbibed and fooled around. To be fair, though, they both did their share of fooling around. Their power games set the stage for the show’s foul-mouthed satire. It may not be a faithful recreation, but it certainly brings out the humor and vitriol that swirled around their very real feud.
#4: “Feud” (2017-)
Before there was Capote and his swans, there was Bette and Joan. The careers of Joan Crawford and Bette Davis are almost mythical as their longstanding feud. Stories of the two great actresses butting heads on the set of “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane” have since passed into legend. “Feud’s” first season is a delicious recreation of their feud as well as an examination of the Hollywood machine that made them rivals in the first place. Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange were widely and rightfully praised in resurrecting the two screen goddesses. Come for the clever insults, stay for the humanizing and tender moments that reveal the vulnerability and insecurities that put them at each other’s throats.
#3: “The Favourite” (2018)
Top 10 Real Life Couples with the Best Chemistry On Screen
It’s an 18th century love triangle between the queen and her two favorite women. This Oscar winner was based on the increasingly unfriendly competition to be a favorite of Queen Anne of England. Lady Sarah Churchill, an ancestor of the future prime minister, and Abigail Masham find themselves at odds over who will take the place as queen’s favorite at court and in bed. While many of the details are exaggerated and even just speculated on, there really was an ongoing feud between them, and Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz play that animosity up to the utmost. If you’re expecting a stuffy costume drama, forget it. “The Favourite” is a bold and bizarre new classic.
#2: “The Social Network” (2010)
Top 10 True Story Movies Based on Very Recent Events
Jesse Eisenberg plays Mark Zuckerberg, the co-creator of Facebook, in this 2010 biopic. The social media juggernaut’s beginnings are retold as Zuckerberg finds himself in a potentially ruinous legal battle with twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. Through their lawsuit, we learn of how the website came to be. Their animosity is humorous at times, as the Winklevosses try every trick in the book to try to stop Facebook from taking off. Part of it’s funny just because of the uncanniness of Armie Hammer playing both roles, “Parent Trap” style. If one feud wasn’t enough, the destruction of Zuckerberg’s friendship with co-founder Eduardo Saverin forms the movie’s most profound and heartbreaking throughline.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
“Rush” (2013)
This 2013 Movie Covers the 1976 Feud Between Formula One Racers James Hunt & Niki Lauda
“Battle of the Sexes” (2017)
Bobby Riggs & Billie Jean King Face Off Before & During Their 1973 Tennis Match
“The Untouchables” (1987)
Based on the TV Show, G-Man Eliot Ness Battles Al Capone & His Bootlegging Empire
“Tombstone” (1993)
Retired Lawman Wyatt Earp Faces the Cowboys at the O.K. Corral
“Hatfields & McCoys” (2012)
Real-Life Skirmishes Between Two Feuding Families Inspired This Kevin Costner Miniseries
#1: “Amadeus” (1984)
You know that one coworker who is just kind of annoyingly good at everything and is constantly praised for it? Well, that’s kind of how Antonio Salieri feels about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in this biographical drama. They may both be composers, but they’re in different leagues. Salieri is the self-serious, frustrated wannabe while Mozart is a prodigiously talented and widely-celebrated genius. As played by Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce, the pair are a study in opposites. Despite being only loosely based on the composers and centering on a fictional rivalry from an Alexander Pushkin play, the Best Picture winner is a lively, visually arresting, and haunting study of their differences in talent, temperament, and positions in the classical music canon.
Do you agree with our picks or are you ready to start a feud? Pick a side in the comments.
