The Corporate Definition of a "True Story"

The demonologist, a book detailing the cases handled by Ed and Lorraine Warren reveals that the Annabelle doll that o familiar to many from the film series , was initially a gift, began to exhibit unsettling behavior, such as moving independently, leaving written messages, and shifting objects within the room. Currently, the doll is displayed under glass at the Warrens' Occult Museum in Connecticut, where it continues to evoke fear.

Numerous visitors who have disregarded the warning "do not touch the glass" and provoked the doll have experienced severe car accidents on their way home. However, the chill you might feel creeping up your spine isn't due to the doll; it's simply the cold rejection faced by the local news anchor when he invites his co-anchor to visit the doll with him.

Perhaps next time you could join me at the museum? No, absolutely not. Are you sure? There isn't enough money in the world for that. That’s quite a cold response.

It’s evident that a common thread among these films is that their resolutions often diverge from reality. For instance, the parents in the story reportedly lived in their farmhouse with spirits in the basement for over ten years. Janet's possession by Bill Wilkins has been investigated numerous times, ultimately concluding that the Enfield poltergeist was largely a mix of simple furniture pranks and the talents of girls skilled in ventriloquism. Real life doesn’t neatly resolve like movies do.

Nonetheless, the facts surrounding these cases, the individuals involved, and the events recounted—whether they were hoaxes or not—largely reflect what transpired. This leads to an intriguing question: Is that sufficient to label these as true stories? We have strict laws against false advertising, so is there a specific threshold of truth required in a fictional work before it can be deemed true or at least based on true events?

Let’s examine another horror film, "The Strangers," which also claims to be inspired by real events. The plot revolves around three masked intruders who invade a home and begin to torment the family for no reason.

.What was the reality behind that situation? It turns out that the screenwriter received an unexpected visit from some strangers who were involved in local robberies. That's the gist of it. Additionally, consider the opening texts of The Blair Witch Project and Fargo, which explicitly claim that the events depicted are either real or based on actual occurrences.

So, what are the true stories behind these two films? The answer is simple: nothing at all. Both narratives were entirely fictional. The films asserted their authenticity and managed to convince many viewers, particularly during the 90s when people were more inclined to believe everything they encountered online. In fact, this tendency persists today.

How do movies manage to pull this off? In the U.S., most advertising regulations are overseen by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). However, these regulations primarily focus on preventing misleading health claims or misrepresentations regarding tangible products, which do not apply to films. Even if they did, the FTC often struggles to enforce these rules effectively.

For instance, when Apple promoted the iPhone 3G as being twice as fast and half the price, neither claim was accurate. When consumers filed lawsuits over the misleading advertisements, Apple's defense was that it was unreasonable for anyone to take those statements literally.

They argued, "Plaintiff's claims are barred by the fact that the alleged deceptive statements were such that no reasonable person in Plaintiff's position could have reasonably relied on or misunderstood Apple's statements as claims of fact." Indeed, it seems implausible that anyone could misinterpret those bold, capitalized claims as mere marketing hyperbole regarding their new product. This discussion ties into an episode focused on poltergeists and hauntings.

I firmly believe that the most frightening aspect of this situation is corporate greed. Movies often claim to be based on true events, yet they can completely fabricate details and evade legal consequences. However, there's an interesting twist: films that are only partially accurate are more susceptible to lawsuits. This is primarily because fictional characters and their made-up families cannot take legal action, but real individuals depicted in the film certainly can.

Take, for instance, the Denzel Washington biopic "The Hurricane," which tells the story of a championship boxer wrongfully convicted of murder. In the film, Washington's character, Hurricane Carter, faces off against another boxer, Joey Giardello. Although Carter is shown defeating Giardello, he ultimately loses the match due to the judges' racial bias against him. This portrayal did not sit well with the real Joey Giardello, who was alive and ready to take legal action when the film was released in 1999.

Giardello filed a lawsuit against the filmmakers for depicting him as incompetent and tarnishing his reputation. The judge from the actual fight described the film's representation of Giardello as absurd. Ultimately, Giardello reached an out-of-court settlement with the producers, and interestingly, the DVD commentary features the director acknowledging Giardello's prowess as a fighter.

The Conjuring franchise has also faced legal challenges, not due to the accuracy of its content, but because Gerald Brittle, the author of the demonologist's stories, held the rights to the Warrens' narratives. He sued Warner Brothers for nearly a billion dollars, claiming copyright infringement.

So how did Warner Brothers manage to avoid the lawsuit? They argued that their use of the plots fell under fair use, asserting that the stories were based on historical facts. In essence, Warner Brothers' legal defense hinged on the premise that tales of ghosts, possessions, and haunted dolls were so factual that they could not be copyrighted—and they ultimately emerged victorious.

This is quite surprising for two main reasons. Firstly, it suggests that you are legally better off fabricating a story and presenting it as truth in your marketing than you are by relying on actual events, which could expose you to the risk of legal action. Secondly, within the framework of the criminal justice system, entities such as ghosts, witches, and demonic possessions are considered part of historical fact.