Movie

Based on a True Story

2017 · 97 min

A slow-burning, unsettling psychological duel that blurs the line between friendship and obsession, leaving you uneasy.

Directed by: Roman Polanski
Genres: Thriller, Mystery
Starring: Emmanuelle Seigner, Eva Green, Vincent Perez

Overview: Delphine is the author of an autobiographical novel that has become a bestseller. Exhausted by the promotional tour, just when she feels out of place, paralyzed by the idea of having to start writing again, she meets Elle, a young, attractive, intelligent, intuitive woman who seems to understand her better than anyone.

Your rating is saved. See your suggestions, or find titles like this one below.

Rate it, and Mesmero finds titles that feel like it. You do not need an account.

Search YouTube for a trailer

In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.

Directed by: Roman Polanski
Genres: Thriller, Mystery
Starring: Emmanuelle Seigner, Eva Green, Vincent Perez

In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone: tensestrength 3 of 3
eeriestrength 2 of 3
darkstrength 2 of 3
melancholicstrength 1 of 3
Pacing: slow-burn, 1 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: demanding, 4 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: obsession
identity
isolation
deception
loneliness
Places: big city
home
Era: contemporary
Audience: adult
Form: twist ending
unreliable narrator
Content intensity: Gore mild
Language mild
Violence mild
Sex mild

All scales, 0 to 10

Scales, 0 to 10
Scale	Value	0 to 10
Action	2
Horror	4
Humour	2
Realism	7
Romance	2
Tension	8
Darkness	7
Complexity	7
Emotional weight	7

Titles like Based on a True Story

Movie

Verity

2026

A sleek, chilly thriller that keeps you uneasy, constantly second-guessing what's real and who's lying.

Tense, eerie · about obsession and deception · twist ending

Via: tense
eerie
obsession
deception
twist ending
Pacing: measured
Attention: engaged
Runtime: 117 min

Details

VerityHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

The Tenant

1976

A suffocating, queasy descent into paranoia that makes ordinary rooms feel hostile and watches you squirm.

Same writer: Roman Polanski · Slow-burn · about obsession and identity · twist ending

Also: Same writer: Roman Polanski
Via: obsession
identity
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 126 min

Details

The TenantHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Personal Shopper

2016

A haunting, slow-burn plunge into grief and the uncanny, where the line between the supernatural and the psychological blurs, demanding patience and rewarding it with unsettling ambiguity.

Same director: Olivier Assayas · Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about obsession and identity · twist ending

Also: Same director: Olivier Assayas
Via: tense
eerie
obsession
identity
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 106 min

Details

Personal ShopperHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Rosemary's Baby

1968

A slow, suffocating creep into paranoia, where everyday domesticity turns sinister and the dread lingers long after.

Same writer: Roman Polanski · Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about isolation · twist ending

Also: Same writer: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
eerie
isolation
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 138 min

Details

Rosemary's BabyHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Chinatown

1974

A slow, sun-drenched descent into corruption and moral rot, with a knotty mystery that tightens like a noose and a devastating final punch.

Same director: Roman Polanski · Tense, dark, slow-burn · twist ending

Also: Same director: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
dark
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 130 min

Details

ChinatownHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Never Here

2017

A slow, uneasy plunge into paranoia, where watching and being watched blur until you doubt what you saw.

Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about obsession and identity · twist ending

Via: tense
eerie
obsession
identity
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 110 min

Details

Never HereHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

The Ghost Writer

2010

A slow-burning, paranoid puzzle that keeps you leaning in, with a chilly atmosphere and a lingering sense of unease.

Same writer: Roman Polanski · Tense, dark, slow-burn · about deception · twist ending

Also: Same writer: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
dark
deception
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 128 min

Details

The Ghost WriterHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Repulsion

1965

A slow, suffocating descent into a fractured mind, where ordinary rooms turn menacing and every sound feels like a threat.

Same writer: Roman Polanski · Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about identity and isolation

Also: Same writer: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
eerie
identity
isolation
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: demanding
Runtime: 105 min

Details

RepulsionHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Frantic

1988

A tense, disorienting plunge into a foreign city where every stranger feels like a threat and time is running out.

Same writer: Roman Polanski · Tense, dark · about obsession and isolation · twist ending

Also: Same writer: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
dark
obsession
isolation
twist ending
Pacing: measured
Attention: engaged
Runtime: 120 min

Details

FranticHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

The Last Client

2022

A claustrophobic, slow-burning psychological duel that keeps you tense and uneasy as the walls close in.

Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about obsession and identity · twist ending

Via: tense
eerie
obsession
identity
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: engaged
Runtime: 95 min

Details

The Last ClientHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

The Ninth Gate

1999

A slow, seductive descent into occult mystery, steeped in old books and European shadows, with an unsettling, ambiguous pull.

Same director: Roman Polanski · Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about obsession and deception · twist ending

Also: Same director: Roman Polanski
Via: tense
eerie
obsession
deception
twist ending
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: engaged
Runtime: 133 min

Details

The Ninth GateHidden from your suggestions.

Movie

Veronica

2017

A quietly unsettling two-hander that keeps you leaning in, unsure who to trust as secrets surface.

Tense, eerie, slow-burn · about obsession and identity

Via: tense
eerie
obsession
identity
Pacing: slow-burn
Attention: engaged
Runtime: 81 min

Details

VeronicaHidden from your suggestions.

Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres: thriller, mystery
Directed by: Roman Polanski
Written by: Olivier Assayas, Roman Polanski
Starring: Emmanuelle Seigner, Eva Green, Vincent Perez, Dominique Pinon, Brigitte Roüan, Camille Chamoux, Josée Dayan, Noémie Lvovsky
Music: Alexandre Desplat
Cinematography: Paweł Edelman
Runtime: 97 min
Country: France, Poland, Belgium
Languages: French

TMDB IMDb Letterboxd Wikipedia Wikidata

Something wrong on this page? Tell us.

Based on a True Story

How it feels

More like this

Titles like Based on a True Story

Where to watch in the UK

Details