Real events that inspired thriller movies and series

Films presented as “based on real events” often pique our curiosity about the characters’ lives. It is common for us to be interested in the lives of these real people and to seek to know what, in fact, happened and what is, let’s say, “poetic license” of authors and directors. That’s exactly what today’s post is about. But be careful! The text contains several spoilers🇧🇷

we, from awesome.club, we analyze stories of real people, the news that served as the basis for the movie scripts and even the case of a ghost that scared a family. Stay with us!

Dee Dee Blanchard appeared to be a perfect mother despite all the difficulties. Everyone knew that her daughter Gypsy had a lot of problems. She lived in a wheelchair and was fed through a tube. In addition, according to Dee Dee, the daughter had vision and hearing problems. So the doctors operated on the girl. Dee Dee, as far as is known, has always fought to improve her daughter’s life.

Only, in 2015, Dee Dee was murdered at home. The daughter disappeared without her wheelchair and without medication. Afterwards, it was revealed that Gypsy asked her boyfriend to kill her mother and then ran off with him. The medical examination showed that the young woman did not have any disease. All the diagnoses had been the invention of the mother, who for many years had tortured her daughter with unnecessary procedures and tests.

“I was on medication for asthma, seizures and for a number of problems. Painkillers, tranquilizers and so on. He breathed with a special device that only hurt; in addition, there was a tube that controlled everything I ate. My mom spent all this time stuffing me with medication,” says Gypsy. She was indicted for murder and is serving a 10-year prison sentence for complicity in her mother’s murder.

The series “The Act” was inspired by these events.

On November 15, 1966, police received calls from two couples who said they had seen a humanoid-looking moth-like creature that had glowing red eyes. The creature would have followed their vehicles for 5 km. That same day, some gravediggers told the same story to the police and said they had seen a similar creature in the cemetery. Local firefighters described the being as a huge bird with red eyes. The locals named the mysterious creature the Moth Man.

Police continued to receive messages with reports of the creature until December 15, 1967. That day, a tragedy occurred on a bridge in West Virginia that claimed the lives of 46 people. Researchers of supernatural phenomena link the event to the appearances of the Moth Man.

The movie “The Prophecy of Shadows” was based on these events.

Argentine Robledo Puch was sentenced to life in prison for 11 murders and 25 other crimes. Looking at the photos above, you might not believe that an angelic looking boy would have been able to commit such crimes. But these characteristics earned him the nicknames of “Ángel Negro” and “Ángel Rubio” – in Portuguese, Anjo Negro and Anjo Loiro.

Puch had two accomplices. They practiced robberies and always killed witnesses. The curious thing is that these accomplices died in a very suspicious way. The young man was diagnosed with psychopathy and aggressive traits, which he exhibits in prison. That’s why he was denied parole. Robledo Puch is still considered a very dangerous person and, therefore, must stay away from society. The black (or blond) angel has become one of the most dangerous and well-known criminals in Argentine history.

The film O Anjo, released last year and produced by none other than Pedro Almodóvar, is based on the biography of this murderer.

One day, filmmaker Wes Craven read an article in the Los Angeles Times that talked about a couple who immigrated to the US from Cambodia, fleeing the feared Khmer Rouge regime, which devastated the Asian country in the 1970s. he had terrible nightmares and because of that he didn’t want to sleep, which ended up damaging his health. Doctors recommended that the family move to another location. At first, the change worked and the child began to sleep well, indicating that the problem had been resolved. One night, however, the parents were awakened by their son’s screams, and by the time they arrived in the room, he was already dead.

The story impressed Craven, who (also inspired by the memory of an old man who stared at him as a child) created the memorable Freddy Krueger, the central character of A Nightmare on Elm Street, based on these events. The film — and its sequels — has become an 80s horror classic.

It is worth mentioning that there are many cases of death because of nightmares. The conditions are always the same: the person has a nightmare, screams and the heart stops. The main risk group is Asian men. So much so that this type of occurrence even gained a specific term: Sudden Asian Death Syndrome.

In 1981, after having read the autobiographical book “Papillon”, by French writer Henri Charrière, the young Israeli Yossi Ghinsberg decides to travel to Bolivia in search of an adventure in the country’s jungles. There, he, American photographer Kevin and Professor Marcus, team up with a supposed geologist and guide, Karl, to delve into the jungle in search of a remote Indian village.

They set out in a boat along the Tuichi River, a tributary of the Amazon, visiting villages. But food reserves begin to run out and they start a fight for survival, even having to eat monkeys. Faced with a series of incidents, the adventurers realize that Karl is not a geologist, but was interested in the illegal extraction of gold. The situation generates tension in the group and they decide to separate.

Marcus and Karl decide to continue their journey; Yossi and Kevin decide to go along the river. Yossi and Kevin’s boat is destroyed in a rapid and the companions are separated. Yossi is carried away by the waters and Kevin finds himself lost in the forest. Yossi spends a few days trying to find his mate, but in vain.

After spending three weeks in the forest without food and equipment, Ghinsberg is rescued by Kevin, who had been saved by fishermen. Marcus and Karl were never found again.

The movie “In the Jungle” with Daniel Radcliffe was based on these events.

In 1977 a very strange event took place in a town house in Enfield, England. The family (mother and four children) were about to go to bed when Peggy Hodgson’s two daughters heard a strange noise. At first, Peggy thought it was just a children’s game, wanting to scare her. But, when she entered her daughters’ room, she saw a dressing table moving. Peggy said she hadn’t heard footsteps or shuffling before the phenomenon.

The next day the family called the police, who were unable to explain the bizarre events. The Enfield case caught the attention of inventor Morris Gross and writer Guy Lyon Playfair. They observed some strange cases in the house and even managed to record the youngest speaking in an old man’s voice, indicating that she was supposedly possessed. You can listen to the audio here.

Eventually, the story was revealed and the girls confessed that they were playing with the researchers to test their competence.

O movie 🇧🇷The Haunting of Enfield🇧🇷 he was based in this historyOlaugh🇧🇷

On April 24, 1973, Edmund Kemper, a man who seemed quite sympathetic and reasonable, was sentenced to life imprisonment for eight crimes. Although he appeared to be a friendly gentleman, Kemper would kill high school students and their relatives.

In 2005, a similar case occurs. Another man, at first above suspicion, was sentenced to life in prison for a string of murders. Denis Rader was considered a good husband and exemplary family man, but, as he wrote to the police, he committed all the crimes because he wanted to be popular and appear in the newspapers.

These stories inspired the creators of the crime series “The Fall” with Gillian Anderson.

What movies based on true stories would you recommend to our readers? Tell us in the comments section!