Movies That Made a Huge Impact

It was announced yesterday that Bernie Tiede, the man who is the basis for the 2012 movie 'Bernie,' was released from prison on Tuesday. In 1999 he was convicted of murder and has been incarcerated ever since. However, a judge decided that his original sentence was too harsh, and that he can be released on $10,000 bond. How did Bernie get such a lucky break? A lawyer, who saw the movie at a film festival, was inspired to help Tiede reduce his original life sentence. What other movies have made a difference somehow? Let's take a look at a few of my favorites.

This 1988 documentary, which is now streaming on Netflix, is a great movie that discusses the murder of Dallas police officer Robert Wood. The film suggests that the wrong person was sent to prison for the crime. 'The Thin Blue Line' presented such strong evidence about the case that a hearing was held in 1989 for Randall Adams, the man convicted of Wood's murder. He was released from prison and wrote about his ordeal in the 1992 book 'Adams V. Texas.'

This 2006 documentary, which is also streaming on Netflix, is a really intriguing story about a woman, Becky Fischer, who runs a summer Christian camp for children in North Dakota. It's creepy watching little kids being brainwashed by the pastor. Fischer was forced to close the place down after the movie came out. Concerned people contacted Fischer by writing letters and sending emails. Some even harassed Fischer, making her feel unsafe. I don't condone what some vandals did to the campground, nor do I think it's OK that some people made disturbing phone calls to Fischer, but it's probably for the better that the camp no longer exists.

It's no secret that some liberties were taken with a handful of the facts presented in this 1991 film, but what historical drama or biopic doesn't do that? 'JFK' is probably my favorite Oliver Stone movie. It has an exciting plot and the movie's cinematography is really impressive. It's also one of the many movies in which Gary Oldman plays a part so convincingly that you don't realize it's him until you see his name in the credits. He's really the modern day Laurence Olivier, just disappearing into his roles. Kevin Costner was also perfectly cast as Jim Garrison. I still get stressed out thinking about his long courtroom monologue that he had to memorize. So, how does this example fit into this blog post? In 1991, Stone showed the movie to Congress. As a result, this led to the President JFK Assassination Records Collection Ace of 1992 and the formation of the US Assassination Records Review Board. In 2017, all existing assassination-related documents will be made public. Last year, Warner Bros. released JFK: 50 Year Commemorative Ultimate Collector's Edition (Blu-ray).