Best Based on magazine, newspaper or article Movies
Ranked by how strongly each film carries the visual signature of based on magazine, newspaper or article cinema — measured across 1,017 indexed frames from 13 films, against a 404,689-frame catalogue baseline. Not by box office, and not by vote.
Based on magazine, newspaper or article films over-index on police officer, computer monitor and desk — the objects that make the genre recognisable before a line is spoken.
- 1
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Sidney LumetDP Victor J. KemperIMDb 8.0TMDB 7.8See in full on FrameThrower →
Based upon a real-life incident which occurred in August 1972 in which a Chase Manhattan Bank branch in Gravesend, Brooklyn, New York, was held siege by Sonny, a Vietnam veteran turned bank robber determined to steal enough money ($2500) for his "wife" (Leon, a man; the two, were, according to an onscreen TV news report, married in a church by a priest who was defrocked shortly after, although Leon says to the police that Sal is "married and has children") to undergo a sex change operation. (The real life character upon whom Leon is based did, in fact, get the operation.) On a hot summer afternoon, Sonny and two cohort, Stevie and Sal, go to rob the (fictional) First Savings Bank of Brooklyn. Stevie soon gets nervous and flees. Although the bank manager and female tellers agree not to interfere with the robbery, Sonny finds there is not much to steal, as most of the cash has been picked up for the day. Sonny then gets an unexpected phone call from Captain Moretti of the NYPD, who tells him the place is surrounded by the city's entire police force. Having few options under the circumstances, Sonny nervously bargains with Moretti, demanding safe escort to the airport and a plane out of the country in return for the bank employees' safety.
- 2
Bad Education (2019)
Cory FinleyDP Lyle VincentIMDb 7.1TMDB 6.7See in full on FrameThrower →
A Long Island school superintendent and his assistant are credited with bringing the district unprecedented prestige. Frank is a master of positive messaging, whether before an audience of community leaders or in an office with a concerned student or parent. That changes when a student reporter uncovers an embezzlement scheme of epic proportions, prompting Frank to devise an elaborate cover-up.
- 3
The Old Man & The Gun (2018)
David LoweryDP Joe AndersonIMDb 6.7TMDB 6.4See in full on FrameThrower →
Based on the true story of Forrest Tucker (Robert Redford), from his audacious escape from San Quentin at the age of 70 to an unprecedented string of heists that confounded authorities and enchanted the public. Wrapped up in the pursuit are detective John Hunt (Casey Affleck), who becomes captivated with Forrest's commitment to his craft, and a woman (Sissy Spacek), who loves him in spite of his chosen profession.
- 4
Dark Waters (2019)
Todd HaynesDP Edward LachmanIMDb 7.6TMDB 7.5See in full on FrameThrower →
A tenacious attorney uncovers a dark secret that connects a growing number of unexplained deaths to one of the world's largest corporations. In the process, he risks everything — his future, his family, and his own life — to expose the truth.
- 5
She Said (2022)
Maria SchraderDP Natasha BraierIMDb 7.3TMDB 7.2See in full on FrameThrower →
New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor break one of the most important stories in a generation — a story that helped launch the #MeToo movement and shattered decades of silence around the subject of sexual assault in Hollywood.
- 6
Marielle HellerDP Jody Lee LipesIMDb 7.2TMDB 7.0See in full on FrameThrower →
Two-time Oscar®-winner Tom Hanks portrays Mister Rogers in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, a timely story of kindness triumphing over cynicism, based on the true story of a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and journalist Tom Junod. After a jaded magazine writer (Emmy winner Matthew Rhys) is assigned a profile of Fred Rogers, he overcomes his skepticism, learning about empathy, kindness, and decency from America's most beloved neighbor.
- 7
The Peacemaker (1997)
Mimi LederDP Dietrich LohmannIMDb 6.0TMDB 6.0See in full on FrameThrower →
Two trains crash somewhere in Russia, one carrying a nuclear payload. A nuclear explosion follows the crash and the world is on alert... However, White House nuclear expert Dr. Julia Kelly doesn't think it was an accident... Special Operations Intelligence Officer Colonel Thomas Devoe doesn't think so either... Together they must unravel a conspiracy that goes from Europe to New York, to stop a terrorist who has no demands...
- 8
Hustlers (2019)
Lorene ScafariaDP Todd BanhazlIMDb 6.3TMDB 6.5See in full on FrameThrower →
Inspired by the viral New York Magazine article, "Hustlers" follows a crew of savvy former strip-club employees who band together to turn the tables on their Wall Street clients.
What based on magazine, newspaper or article films are made of
How much more often each element appears in a based on magazine, newspaper or article frame than in an average frame from the catalogue. A ratio, not a share — police officer is not in most frames, it is simply far more common here than anywhere else.
- police officer6.1×
- computer monitor5.8×
- desk2.6×
- necktie2.4×
- chair2.4×
- blazer2.2×
- tie1.9×
- suit jacket1.7×
How based on magazine, newspaper or article films are shot
Weaker signals than the objects above, and worth saying so: most dramatic genres skew dark and night-heavy, so these numbers separate based on magazine, newspaper or article from the catalogue far more than they separate it from its neighbours.
- 25%widevs 20% baseline
- 54%dayvs 43% baseline
- 88%eye levelvs 69% baseline
- 16%closeupvs 21% baseline
- 34%nightvs 42% baseline
What breaks the pattern
Only The Brave (2017) is the least typical film here — it carries the least of what the rest of this list is made of. Which is either a failure of the genre label, or the most interesting film on the page.
Method
Every frame in the FrameThrower catalogue is tagged for shot size, lighting, time of day, camera angle, colour and the objects visible in it. This page aggregates those tags across 1,017 frames from 13 films carrying the based on magazine, newspaper or article label, and compares each figure to the same measurement across the whole catalogue (404,689 frames). Films are ranked by how closely they match the theme’s over-indexed elements, weighted by how distinctive each element is; one film per series. Only films with at least 20 indexed frames and 500 TMDB votes are listed.
Machine-readable: /api/list/based-on-magazine-newspaper-or-article
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