Film a Clef

Related to the historical film, film a clefs are based on actual historical figures and are quite clear in their depictions, but the names are altered to avoid complications or legal repercussions. The name comes from the literary genre "roman a clef," or "novel with a key." Primary Colors, based on US President Bill Clinton, is a prime example of a film where the actors border on doing impressions of real-life figures who are not named in the film. Perhaps the most infamous film a clef, however, is Citizen Kane, which was based on the life of William Randolph Hearst. Hiding the identities of the characters hardly spared Orson Welles from attack, as Hearst, through his newspaper, launched an offensive against the film on all fronts. It is also common to make films about the workings of Hollywood in this manner, and The Bad and the Beautiful, with its obvious allusions to studio bosses and nods to Val Lewton, is such a film.

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