TRUE LIFE STORY: MYTHMAKING IN BIOGRAPHICAL FILMS

Abstract

Biographical films, commonly referred to as biopics, are concerned with presenting a theatrical, narrative account of a subject’s life. These films possess the ability to promote certain myths through their interpretations of the subject’s life. In this thesis, I examine three specific films concerned with popular music entertainers as subjects in the larger genre of the biographical or historical film. The selected films scrutinized are Beyond The Sea, based on the life of Bobby Darin; Ray, based on the life of Ray Charles; and Walk The Line, based on the life of Johnny Cash. A textual analysis of these films is used to look at how specific myths and themes are carried out in these films. The scholarship regarding biographical films is currently limited, though the genre continues to gain popularity with filmmakers and audiences. The current text serves to expand the scholarship on this genre, as well as to suggest area for expansion.