LOS ANGELES, Sept 9 — A pilot who became a drug smuggler, a child who survived Pol Pot's regime, the improbable friendship between Queen Victoria and an Indian servant, the 1967 riots in Detroit, and the kidnapping of an heir to the Getty fortune: Five films based on true stories are due for release on the big screen or Netflix between September and December 2017.
Three years after the success of Edge of Tomorrow, Tom Cruise and Doug Liman have renewed their cinema collaboration with the true story of Barry Seal, a former TWA pilot who was recruited by the Medellín Cartel, when it was led by Pablo Escobar in the 1980s. While he was employed to fly drugs to the US, the American also acted as an informer for the CIA and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. Directed by Doug Liman
With Tom Cruise, Sarah Wright, Domhnall Gleeson
Release date: September 13
Angelina Jolie examines the murderous Khmer Rouge regime through the eyes of Loung Ung, a five-year-old Cambodian who became a child soldier under Pol Pot. Following the death of her parents and other family members, Loung Ung was forced to survive on her own for several years before she escaped to a new life in the United States. In the year 2000, she published an autobiographical account of her experiences. Directed by Angelina Jolie
With Sareum Srey Moch, Kompheak Phoeung, Sveng Socheata
Release date: September 15 exclusively on Netflix
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Jeff Bauman in this film, which looks at the aftereffects of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. Bauman, in the crowd at the April 15 event to encourage his girlfriend who is participating, lost both his legs in the attack. As he helped authorities identify the bombers, he became a symbol of hope and survival in the nation. The film is based on Bauman's own memoir and looks at his adjustment to his new life.
Directed by David Gordon Green
With Tatiana Maslany and Miranda Richardson
Release date: September 13
Following on from his 2006 The Queen, on the life of Elizabeth II, Stephen Frears' latest opus focuses on one of the monarch's best-known ancestors, Queen Victoria. In the 1880s, towards the end of her life, Queen Victoria became friends with Mohammed Abdul Karim, a servant from India. Their relationship upset the established order and engendered much protest and jealousy in the royal entourage.
Directed by Stephen Frears
With Judi Dench, Ali Fazal, Eddie Izzard
Release date: September 22
‘All the Money in the World’
Ridley Scott tells the traumatic tale of the kidnapping of a member of the Getty family. In 1973, John Paul Getty III, the grandson of a multi-billionaire, was captured by the Italian mafia. Notwithstanding his immense fortune, his grandfather, John Paul Getty, initially refused to pay a 17-million-dollar ransom. However, the oil tycoon changed his mind a few months later when an Italian newspaper received an envelope containing one of the teenager's ears and a lock of his hair. Following the payment of close to three million dollars, the kidnap victim was found alive, but remained marked for life by the tragic consequences of his experiences as a captive.
Directed by Ridley Scott
With Kevin Spacey, Mark Wahlberg, and Michelle Williams
Release date: December 8 — AFP-Relaxnews
