Films that claim to be true - Actually completely fictional

Paranormal Activity (2007)

• This was an overnight success and had marketed that it was a completely true story and this is actual found footage. 
• However, simply watching the film itself shows the audience that this is fictional as in the credits the usual "Any character that appears similar to any persons alive or dead etc..." 
• And as it has spawned 5 sequels (including a Japanese sequel) and one spin off - the audience have become aware that the "true story" of this film is actually a hoax and it shouldn't be taken seriously. It should be taken with a pinch of salt.

The Blair Witch Project (1999)

This film was the staple of the "found-footage" sub-genre. To make this film seem really authentic they took 3 unknown actors, used their names in the film and placed posters like the one below to market the film:























They also made this film look really authentic by getting the actors to actually hike through the woods - actually pitch a tent and sleep in it and get them to film it all. The directors didn't give them a script so much of the dialogue was improvised and a lot of shocks and surprises were in store for the three principal actors involved as set up by the directors. Again, this can simply be debunked by fully watching the credits as it informs that the film is a fake. Also, simply looking up the actors on imdb.com shows that the actors have done work since this film and they are not dead or missing.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre - True Story

• "The film which you are about to see is an account of the tragedy which befell a group of five youths, in particular Sally Hardesty and her invalid brother, Franklin. It is all the more tragic in that they were young. But, had they lived very, very long lives, they could not have expected nor would they have wished to see as much of the mad and macabre as they were to see that day. For them an idyllic summer afternoon drive became a nightmare. The events of that day were to lead to the discovery of one of the most bizarre crimes in the annals of American history, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre."  - This is the opening narration from the infamous famous horror film "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Supposedly, this film is based on a true story that happened on the 18th August 1973, however, this film was actually filmed before this date which shows it to be fake and already it is telling lies. It was only made to be on that date to make the film seem modern and scary to the target audience at the time.
• www.imdb.com
• Would this film still have been successful if they didn't try to suggest it was a completely true story?
  Elmer Wayne Henley

Ed Gein

• Born August 27th 1906 in La Crosse County, Wisconsin - not even from Texas.
• Died July 26th 1984 in  Madison Wisconsin.
• Nicknames: The Plainfield Ghoul, The Mad Butcher
• Found "Not Guilty by reason of insanity".
• Inspired the characters Norman Bates (Psycho), Jame "Buffalo Bill" Gumb (The Silence of the Lambs),  "Jed"Leatherface" Sawyer/Thomas "Leatherface" Hewitt (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise) and Dr. Oliver "Bloodyface" Thredson (American Horror Story: Asylum)
• Date apprehended: !6th November 1957
• Scolded by parents - especially his mother - when he tried to make friends with other children at his school. - http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/notorious/gein/begin_2.html
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