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We’ve all heard movies described as “based on a true story,” but what does that actually mean? I’m always surprised by the fact that some people seem to equate this to watching a documentary. Sure, some movies stick close to the source material, but even the most faithful adaptations make changes to the story. Of course, there are some movies that alter so much that any similarities to the actual events seem to be accidental.

In each entry of this column I’m going to be looking at a different movie “based on a true story” or whatever phrasing is attached to it and compare it to the actual story. Hopefully I’ll be able to separate fact from Hollywood. But I’m also going to be talking about what those changes mean and why they were made. Do the changes have some artistic merit or are they just attempts to make the story fit into a neat Hollywood package?

After unsuccessfully spending years trying to have their creation published, two Jewish young men; Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster finally had a breakthrough. Their character Superman was published and introduced to the world in 1938. Of course no one at the time - including the creators - could have foreseen the amount of success Superman would have.

Over the seven plus decade of his existence he has become one of the most well known - and profitable - fictional characters in the world. Unfortunately his creators didn’t always get to reap the monetary rewards of their creative work. In fact almost for as long as the character has been around, there have been copyright disputes. To this day, the creators’ heirs find themselves trying to regain control of the character. But misfortunes have hardly been exclusive to Siegel and Shuster. Superman has been so closely associated with bad luck that there is even something called “The Superman Curse.” This refers to series of troubles that creative people went through after being involved in adaptations of Superman in various media.

Arguably the most notorious victim of “The Superman Curse” is George Reeves. Reeves played the title character on Adventures of Superman from 1952-1958. Unfortunately, in 1959, at the age of 45, Reeves was found in his home dead from a gunshot wound. The death was ruled a suicide, but there has been controversy surrounding the circumstances of his death. Many believe that Reeves was actually murdered. And Hollywoodland (2006), directed by Allen Coulter, tries to shed some light on one of Hollywood’s biggest mysteries. The movie stars Ben Affleck as George Reeves.

What the Movie Got Right

The main focus of Hollywoodland is Reeves' life during the Superman years and his subsequent death. Because of this the movie doesn’t spend too much time on his childhood. However a character does - in passing - mention that Reeves never knew his father and that his mother had lied to him growing up.

Although Reeves' acting career began promisingly - with a role in Gone with the Wind - by 1951, it had stalled. But at a party, Reeves meets a beautiful woman, Toni Mannix (Diane Lane) and the two quickly hit it off and wind up spending the night together. The next day he learns that Toni is married to Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins), the general manager of MGM. At first Reeves fears that having an affair with Toni could kill his career, but Toni assures him that she and her husband have an open relationship. Emboldened by this and the hope that she might help his career, Reeves and Toni continue their relationship. The two fall in love and before long Toni begins buying George many expensive gifts, including a car and a house.

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