10 Underrated Biopics of the 2010s, Ranked

While the 2010s saw the emergence of comic book films as the most popular genre of cinema, the decade proved that reality was often just as exciting as fiction. Films based on the lives of historical icons have the ability to inform, challenge, and entertain their audiences. A truly great biopic is more than just a summation of its subject’s life and work; great biopics engage the audience in their subject’s worldview and provide context for their achievements.

While the biopic genre isn’t considered to be a “flashy” one, some of the decade’s best biopics earned significant critical acclaim and financial success. While historical films like 12 Years a Slave, Green Book, and The King’s Speech won the Academy Award for Best Picture, biopics like Bohemian Rhapsody and American Sniper became surprising blockbuster hits. However, many of the best biopics focused on less well-known subjects, and therefore received less attention. Here are the most underrated biopics of the 2010s, ranked.

10 ‘Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll’ (2010)

Directed by Matt Whitecross

While he is best known for his groundbreaking motion capture performances, Andy Serkis has also given many great live-action performances. Serkis had one of his best roles to date as the infamous New Wave musician Ian Drury in the 2010 biopic Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll. The film explores the wild highs and lows of Drury’s life; although he created a sardonic, aggressive stage persona, Drury’s private life was haunted by a challenging battle with polio.

Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll is an intimate celebration of the significance of the New Wave movement and provides insight into why Drury was such an integral figure in modern British music history. Although the film does not lionize Drury’s aggressive tendencies, it does generate empathy for him by showing the immense physical pain he was in. While it’s often overshadowed by other musician biopics, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll is worth checking out for Serkis’ performance alone.

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9 ‘Imperium’ (2016)

Directed by Daniel Ragussis

Daniel Radcliffe’s career in the aftermath of the Harry Potter phenomenon has been fascinating, as he has often chosen complicated roles in dark films. Radcliffe gives one of his best performances to date, as the FBI agent Nate Foster in Imperium. Foster went undercover within a white supremacist group to uncover a potential terrorist attack, exposing himself to the darkest side of humanity. Like many great undercover cop movies, Imperium explores the challenges that Foster endures trying to capture the persona of a violent person.

Imperium is an intense cat-and-mouse thriller that explores the evil lurking in plain sight. The film explores the insidious nature of violent extremism, showing that one investigation will not single-handedly solve the country’s race relations issues. While by no means an easy film to watch, Imperium treats its subject with the serious approach that it warrants and features committed performances from Radcliffe and Toni Collette.

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8 ‘A Futile & Stupid Gesture’ (2018)

Directed by David Wain

Although the brilliant writers and artists of National Lampoon created comedy classics like Vacation and Caddyshack, David Wain’s 2018 Netflix biopic A Futile & Stupid Gesture explores the group’s origins. A Futile & Stupid Gesture chronicles the lives of the National Lampoon magazine’s founder Doug Kenny (Will Forte) and his collaborator Henry Beard (Domhnall Gleeson) from their days studying at Harvard to the production of Animal House in the late 1970s.

A Futile & Stupid Gesture was a fresh take on the biopic genre because the film acknowledges that it is not entirely accurate. Although the real Kenny died at the age of 33, the film features a fictionalized older version of the iconic comedy writer (played brilliantly by Martin Mull) that reflects upon his youthful experiences. Rather than proceeding like a formulaic “rags to riches” story, A Futile & Stupid Gesture captures the defiant comedic spirit of National Lampoon that made their work so iconic in the first place.

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7 ‘Danny Collins’ (2015)

Directed by Dan Fogelman

While Al Pacino starred in many great films in the early stages of his career, his work in the 2010s failed to rise to the same level of success as his breakout roles. However, Pacino delivered one of his best performances in recent memory as the titular musician in the 2015 biopic Danny Collins. Loosely inspired by a true story, the film chronicles the experiences of an aging folk singer that seeks to reconnect with his family.

Pacino gives a surprisingly uproarious comedic performance that feels like an outlier compared to the more serious roles he generally takes. While Danny Collins is guilty of utilizing some hackneyed emotional storytelling, the relationship between Danny and his adult son Tom Donnelly (Bobby Cannavale) is surprisingly tender. It may be easy to dismiss Danny Collins as a crowd pleaser, but there’s nothing wrong with a film that’s sole intention is to entertain.

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6 ‘Goodbye Christopher Robin’ (2017)

Directed by Simon Curtis

While the stories of Winnie the Pooh are associated with childhood joy and innocence, their creator A.A. Milne led a challenging life. Simon Curtis’ beautiful 2017 biopic Goodbye Christopher Robin stars Domhnall Gleeson as Milne in one of his best performances. The film explores how Milne’s trauma serving in World War II inspired him to write stories about wholesome childhood creatures. Creating characters like Winnie the Pooh, Tiger, and the other creatures of the Hundred Acre Wood allowed Milne to find the joy in life that he had thought was behind him entirely.

While Goodbye Christopher Robin does not shy away from the horrors that Milne witnessed, the film celebrates how artistry has the power to heal. Curtis draws beautiful visual parallels between Milne’s life and stories, exploring how they each influence each other. While it was overshadowed by Disney’s live action family film Christopher Robin, this 2017 biopic warrants just as much attention from Winnie the Pooh fans.

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5 ‘Race’ (2016)

Directed by Stephen Hopkins

While there have been many great films about Olympic sports, the 2016 biopic Race explores the rise of one of the most important and inspirational Olympic athletes of all-time. Race explores the life of the track and field athlete Jesse Owens (Stephan James), who won four Gold Medals for the United States during the 1936 Olympic Games. Despite his heroism, Owens was met with racial prejudice both at home and abroad as one of the few African-American athletes to compete at the world stage.

Race shows how Owens overcame obstacles at every stage in his career thanks to an incredible performance from James. Beyond simply capturing Owens’ physicality, James shows how his personal integrity made him a hero both on and off the field. The film also features a surprising supporting performance from Jason Sudekis, who proved that he could handle dramatic material with his role as Owens’ coach, Larry Snyder.

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4 ‘A Hidden Life’ (2019)

Directed by Terrence Malick

While the films of Terrence Malick often incorporate vague philosophical and spiritual qualities, his 2019 epic A Hidden Life tells a grounded story about the resistance against fascism. A Hidden Life follows the life of the Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter (August Diehl), who refused to swear loyalty to Adolf Hitler during World War II. Jägerstätter’s pacifism came at great personal cost, as he was imprisoned and tortured by German soldiers for refusing to join their cause.

A Hidden Life explores the unspoken power of nonviolence, and how refusing to accommodate evil can be the most heroic action of all. Rather than lionizing martyrdom, A Hidden Life examines the power of the individual. While some viewers may be cagey about the film’s three-hour run time, the gorgeous visuals, beautiful score by James Newton Howard, and emotional performance by Diehl make it an unmissable window into history.

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3 ‘Denial’ (2016)

Directed by Mick Jackson

The best biopic films are often those that provide insight on how historical events parallel issues that society still faces today. Mick Jackson’s 2016 biopic Denial explores an influential libel court case between the historian Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Wiesz) and the aggressive Holocaust denier David Irving (Timothy Spall). Utilizing the structure of a classic courtroom drama, Denial examines the horrific ramifications of denying the truth and the ever present threat of anti-semitism.

While the film’s important message is reason enough to make it worth watching, Jackson does a great job at using the course case itself as a means of examining societal views Weisz has rarely been better, giving a performance that speaks to the importance of the issues at hand. Denial’s warning about the dangers of appeasing extremist sects make it one of the essential modern biopics, and one of the most underrated.

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2 ‘Life’ (2015)

Directed by Anton Corbijn

Despite only starring in three films, James Dean became one of the most influential movie stars in history. Anton Corbijn’s 2015 biopic Life explores a young Dean (Dane DeHaan) during his rise to prominence. The film uses Dean’s relationship with the Life magazine photographer Dennis Stock (Robert Pattinson) to shed insight on how his private life differed from his public persona. Although Dean died at a young age, Life celebrates the incredible achievements of his final months.

Life is a tribute to 1950s cinema that doesn’t sensationalize Dean’s life; although it would have been easy to only focus on Dean’s cinematic achievement, the film explores how the young actor wrestled with his own stardom. DeHaan’s performance is one of his best, and Pattinson succeeds in giving a sensitive supporting role. Fans of classic cinema will want to check out this underrated drama about Hollywood iconography.

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1 ‘The End of the Tour’ (2015)

Directed by James Ponsoldt

While James Ponsoldt’s 2015 drama The End of the Tour explores the life of author David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel), the film speaks to universal truths about the joys and challenges of writing. The film explores the final months of Wallace’s life during a publicity tour for his latest novel. Wallace is interviewed by the Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky (Jesse Eisenberg), who begins to realize that he has more in common with the reclusive author than he may have expected.

While he’s best known for his comedic work, Segel gives a terrific dramatic performance that captures Wallace’s struggle to connect with his readers. Although the film veers in a serious direction with its focus on the merit of artistry, the chemistry between Eisenberg and Segel make it very entertaining. While The End of the Tour didn’t reach the same critical and financial highs as some of A24’s other films, it stands as one of the finest works that the studio has ever released.

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