French legal dramaAnatomy of a fallhas been added to Hulu’s catalog after winning Best Original Screenplay at the 2024 Academy Awards and Best Picture and Best Screenplay at the 2024 Golden Globes.
The script by Justine Triet, who also directed, and her partner Arthur Harari has left viewers wondering if the film is based on a true story.
Anatomy of a fall It follows German writer Sandra (Sandra Hüller) following the death of her French husband Samuel (Samuel Theis), whose body was found outside their home by her blind 11-year-old son, Daniel (Milo Machado Graner).
Sandra enters a difficult legal battle when the police cannot determine the cause of Samuel’s death.
Now, anyone who watches true crime knows that the basics of this story are nothing new. People kill their spouses in real life all the time. But are the details of the story based on a true story?
Anatomy of a fallWith a twist ending, it delves into Sandra and Samuel’s difficult marriage and Sandra’s difficult relationship with her lawyer.
Was any of that real? Are Sandra and Samuel based on real people? Here’s everything you need to know about whether the movie is based on a true story.
Is Anatomy of a fall Based on a true story?
Despite the certain familiarity of the story in Anatomy of a fall, the French film is not based on a true story. But while the characters are fictional, Triet expressed in a 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter which was inspired by true crime stories.
“I read these kinds of true crime stories almost daily and I watch, almost daily, these trial movies and series. They were an inspiration,” Triet said.
The filmmaker shared that she had always wanted to make a film about a legal trial, but often felt that the resolution was always too “obvious.”
” I don’t want to give away any spoilers for the movie, but the resolution here is not obvious. My intention in making this film is to have something quite complex and, even in the end, unclear,” Triet explained.
Triet said that, along with his co-writer, they wanted to “constantly create questions about the case and the trial” in the film. “You can look at it as a crime novel, but I think it’s primarily a movie about a couple’s relationship,” she shared.
Overall, Triet wrote the main character with actress Sandra Hüller in mind. In an interview with W Magazine, the director said: “When we wrote the script, we sent it to Sandra and she had to take French lessons… I thought that would be a way for her to say yes. It was a little trap!
