Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- brooding
- paranoid
- intimate
- quiet night
- true crime viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found Jonah Hill and James Franco watchable together but judged the fact-based mystery muddled and unable to sustain interest.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Michael Finkel exchanges journalism guidance for access to Christian Longo and becomes personally invested in the prison relationship.
Longo presents his account of the alleged family murders while Finkel must determine what information is trustworthy.
Finkel is struggling after termination from The New York Times and treats the Longo story as a chance to recover his career.
The recurring prison visits and conversations between Finkel and Longo make their tense exchanges the film's primary dramatic engine.
Films like True Story, and why
Capote
shares a fact-based crime investigation, morally complicated reporter subject, and tense prison-centered psychological drama
Zodiac
shares a journalist's investigation into a notorious criminal, ethical uncertainty, and restrained true-crime atmosphere
The Life of David Gale
shares an intimate prison encounter, shifting identities, and psychological ambiguity within a crime drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Rupert Goold
- Release Date
- 2015-04-17
- Runtime
- 99 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (2122)
Cast
- Jonah Hill
- James Franco
- Felicity Jones
- Maria Dizzia
- Ethan Suplee
- Robert John Burke
- Charlotte Driscoll
- Kohl Sudduth
- Conor Kikot
- Stella Rae Payne
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is True Story about?
- A disgraced journalist risks his credibility and moral certainty when a captured murderer claims to have stolen his identity.
- What is True Story like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of True Story as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is True Story violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in True Story as mild.
- What did critics think of True Story?
- Critics broadly found Jonah Hill and James Franco watchable together but judged the fact-based mystery muddled and unable to sustain interest.
- Which films are like True Story?
- Films with a similar feel include Capote, Zodiac, and The Life of David Gale.
- How long is True Story?
- True Story runs 99 minutes.
- Where can I watch True Story?
- In United States, True Story is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
