Welcome to History Lesson, where we take a closer look at the movies that dare to tackle real-life events with varying levels of accuracy, drama, and WTF casting choices. These films promise to educate and entertain, but more often than not, they rewrite history with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. We’ll be your guide through the land of miscast biopics, dramatic embellishments, and historical “inspired-by” liberties, breaking down whether these flicks are Golden Reel Award-worthy masterpieces or just a big-budget Wikipedia summary. Either way, it’s more fun than your high school history class—and there’s popcorn.
This time around we will take a look at Season 11's fact-based slate....
HISTORY LESSON: ISLA VISTA
Luca Guadagnino’s Isla Vista aims to be a profound exploration of Elliot Rodger’s 2014 killing spree but instead feels like a two-hour True Crime YouTube video with a better budget. Nick Robinson grimaces his way through the lead role as the “incel messiah,” delivering a performance so convincing it’ll make you want to delete your Tinder account. Meanwhile, the rest of the cast — Colin Firth, Ming-Na Wen, and Sarah Paulson — stand around looking vaguely concerned, presumably wondering how their agents sold them on this script. Chloe Grace Moretz fares better as Claire, a woman who exists primarily to be ogled by Elliot and subjected to his resentment. But don't worry, her arc ends when she vomits into a sink after watching his YouTube manifesto. Empowering!
For a film that pretends to dissect misogyny and social alienation, Isla Vista spends an awful lot of time fetishizing Elliot’s grievances and tantrums. The narration — delivered from Elliot’s perspective — is less an indictment of his worldview and more of a monologue for a Black Mirror audition tape. Guadagnino tries to elevate the material with stylish visuals, but it’s like putting designer curtains on a burning building. And while the film does touch on timely issues like toxic masculinity and online radicalization, its commentary is so surface-level it might as well come with a “This Film Is Not Deep” disclaimer. Ultimately, Isla Vista fails to interrogate its subject in any meaningful way, leaving us with a glossy but empty portrait of a monster nobody asked for.
HISTORY LESSON: NEWBURY STREET
Todd Field’s Newbury Street is what happens when you take the real-life Chuck Stuart murder case, pump it full of Boston attitude, and give it a decadent fur-coat aesthetic. Matt Damon stars as Chucky Stewart, a fur-store manager with a penchant for bad decisions, including robbing his own store, cheating on his pregnant wife (Cristin Milioti), and blaming her murder on an innocent black man. Bryce Dallas Howard smolders as his mistress, while Norbert Leo Butz steals scenes as his ex-con brother who unravels Chucky’s carefully constructed web of lies. With David Arquette’s clueless detective rounding out the cast, the film serves up a darkly comedic thriller that alternates between gripping and jaw-droppingly absurd.
But let’s talk history: the film is “inspired” by the 1989 case of Charles Stuart, who killed his wife and concocted a racist story about being carjacked in Boston’s Mission Hill neighborhood. Newbury Street takes that grim premise and runs wild, piling on layers of noirish melodrama and black comedy - like a Boston-set Fargo. The real Stuart case rocked Boston, exposing deep racial divides, but here it’s played more for thrills than sociopolitical commentary. It’s not exactly accurate — Damon’s Chucky feels more like a pulp antihero than a cold-blooded opportunist — but the film leans into the chaos, offering a darkly entertaining, if morally dubious, riff on a notorious chapter of Boston’s history.
HISTORY LESSON: THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY
David Fincher’s The Devil in the White City serves up a heaping plate of historical drama with a side of serial killer creepiness, all set against the backdrop of the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. On one side, you have Russell Crowe’s Daniel Burnham, an architect desperately trying to prove that Chicago isn’t just a meatpacking dystopia by building a city of gleaming white buildings. On the other, Benjamin Walker’s H.H. Holmes, America’s first serial killer with a hotel so sinister it makes The Overlook look like a Holiday Inn. Between Burnham’s obsession with outclassing the Eiffel Tower (spoiler: it’s a giant Ferris Wheel) and Holmes turning murder into an industrial process, the film offers the ultimate contrast: dreams vs. nightmares.
And yes, most of it really happened, though Fincher leans into the grim absurdity. The fair really was a dazzling showcase of innovation and culture, but Holmes’s so-called “Murder Castle” feels like something out of a Scooby-Doo episode: secret passages, gas chambers, and trapdoors galore. Did Holmes really claim he was transforming into the Devil? Who knows, but in true Fincher fashion, you’ll believe it because it’s just that unsettling. The movie’s meticulous detail ensures you’ll marvel at the Ferris Wheel while squirming at the body count. It’s The Social Network meets Se7en — but with more top hats.
HISTORY LESSON: RADISSON
Radisson brings the fascinating and chaotic life of Pierre-Esprit Radisson to the big screen, with Christian Bale playing the titular fur trapper, adventurer, and world-class backstabber. The film chronicles Radisson’s wild escapades in 17th-century North America: getting kidnapped by Iroquois, dodging murderous French governors, and betraying just about everyone he meets. It’s The Revenant meets Pirates of the Caribbean, but with fewer bears.
The historical accuracy? Surprisingly strong — Radisson really did hop between allegiances like a squirrel on hot coals, betray the French for the English, and end his days as a broke "ruined gentleman." But director Joe Wright cranks up the drama with scenes like a teary-eyed betrayal by Rami Malek’s Médard and a slow-burn chase featuring Alexander Ludwig as a knightly bounty hunter. While it occasionally veers into melodrama, Radisson captures the messy realities of colonial survival with plenty of intrigue, moral ambiguity, and questionable haircuts. It's a rollicking ride through history, but don't be surprised if you end up rooting for the beavers.
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