Sometimes, filmmakers make movies based on historical events or take references from them. But to add some movie magic to it, they change certain events or add certain elements to it. Many times the makers take little creative liberty to add certain characters or remove some, add a romantic story. They sometimes even take it too far and the audience watches it believing it’s true. These movies are loved by the audience but do not sit well with historians. Here’s a list of fan-favorite movies that get history all wrong.
Pocahontas has got history all wrong
The Disney movie tells a love story between an English soldier and the daughter of the Algonquin chief. This happens in the 17th century when the English invade Virginia. The movie has got history all wrong. According to the movie, when the English arrived both John Smith and Pocahontas are adults. But historically, she was only 10 years old at that time. Also, the story of a child from the tribe rescuing Smith might be inaccurate as there is almost no evidence. Another inaccurate event of the film is its end. According to historians, Pocahontas and Jon Smith did not end up together. The girl was married off to another man, her name changed to Rebecca, and became a Christian.
Pearl Harbor is not historically accurate
One of the major points of World War II was the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. This event led to the infamous bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Michael Bay adaptation of the event does not have much in common with history apart from the fact that Japan bombed the US. The movie focuses on two characters named Danny and Rafe. In the film, the two get into planes and shoot enemy fighters. But according to historians, only a few Japanese soldiers died in the attack. There were other incidents like Rafe knowing Origami when foreign troops only learned it after the war was over. But nothing beats President Roosevelt standing up from a wheelchair to give his speech.
Argo gets history all wrong
Despite winning awards for Best Picture and Screenplay in 2013, Argo is not very historically accurate. The film tells the story of a CIA agent in an undercover operation in Tehran to rescue during the hostage crisis of 1980. The agent is disguised as an American producer for the mission. Apart from the offensive portrayal of Iranian people was only the start of the inaccuracy. One of them is the film showing that the Government was not in favor of the film crew plan. But in reality, it was the one they chose from the three options presented. In fact, many of the best and most thrilling moments in the movie were inaccurate.
Braveheart dramatized History a lot
Based on the story of William Wallace, the man who revolted against King Edward I of England. The story of the Scottish Soldier has been dramatized a little too much. So much that Mel Gibson has messed up the ages of the Historical figures. The fight scene from the movie was not as tactical and more haphazard compared to the real fighting style of the Scottish people. Even the costumes were inaccurate. Also, the Battle of Sterling Bridge did not include the bridge in the movie. The romantic angle between William Wallace and Isabella of France is also historically inaccurate. During the war, the girl was only 3 years old.
Alexander portrays history inaccurately
The movie is based on the conquest journey of Alexander the Great. But it is not historically accurate. In fact, the director Oliver Stone and Warner Bros. were threatened to face a lawsuit. Lawyers asked the makers to say that the movie is fictional. Many of the events shown in the movie are all mixed up. In reality, they occurred at different locations and timelines. As in the film the battles of Granicus, Issus, and Gaugamela are mixed into one. Many of the emperor’s major life events are compressed into small moments in the film. It is so full of inaccuracies that four Director cuts could not fix it.
Related: 6 Hollywood Films That Portrayed Historical Figures Wrongly & Later Apologized To Their Families
