Best 29 Biography Movies Highly Recommended Released in 1981

A teen girl in 1970s Berlin becomes addicted to heroin. Everything in her life slowly begins to distort and disappear as she befriends a small crew of junkies and falls in love with a drug-abusing male prostitute. Learn about Christiane F. / IMDB / YouTube

A radical American journalist becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia, and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States. Look into Reds / IMDB / YouTube

The abusive and traumatic adoptive upbringing of Christina Crawford at the hands of her mother, screen queen Joan Crawford, is depicted. See more about Mommie Dearest / IMDB / YouTube

In 1929, Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini appoints General Rodolfo Graziani as colonial governor to Italian Libya with orders to stamp-out all resistance from Libyan nationalists led by rebel guerrilla leader Omar Mukhtar. Check out Lion of the Desert / IMDB / YouTube

The life and career of Elvis Presley are chronicled in home movies, concert footage, and dramatizations. Get info on This Is Elvis / IMDB / YouTube

The life and music of Johann Sebastian Bach as presented by his wife, Anna. Find out about The Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach / IMDB / YouTube

Scientists and witnesses involved in the creation and testing of the first ever atomic bomb reflect on the Manhattan project and its fascinating leader, J. Robert Oppenheimer, who upon completion of his wonderful and horrible invention became a powerful spokesperson against the nuclear arms race. Read about The Day After Trinity / IMDB / YouTube

The story of Nostradamus and his predictions about the future. Get info on The Man Who Saw Tomorrow / IMDB / YouTube

Bill Sackter, a intellectually disabled man, ventures out into the world for the first time, having spent most of his life in a dreary inner-city institution. He is taken in by a kind family and learns for the first time in his life what it means to love. Details on Bill / IMDB / YouTube

The life and death of the Playboy centerfold model/actress Dorothy Stratten. Info on Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story / IMDB / YouTube

Peter the Fisherman and Paul of Tarsus assume leadership of the Church as they struggle against violent opposition to the teachings of Jesus Christ and their own personal conflicts. Explore Peter and Paul / IMDB / YouTube

The life of a young man, son of an English officer who lets himself become a prisoner of love resulting in fatalism and disgrace. Info on Francisca / IMDB / YouTube

Following the banning and burning of his novel, The Rainbow, D.H. Lawrence and his wife, Frieda, move to the United States, and then to Mexico. When Lawrence contracts tuberculosis, they return to England for a short time, then to Italy, where Lawrence wrote Lady Chatterley's Lover. Details on Priest of Love / IMDB / YouTube

The chronicle of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin and his tyranic rule from 1971 to his overthrow in 1979. Look into Amin: The Rise and Fall / IMDB / YouTube

A documentary film on the life and works of director Kenji Mizoguchi. Read about Kenji Mizoguchi: The Life of a Film Director / IMDB / YouTube

In this touching story, a dedicated African-American teacher in an inner-city school in the midwestern United States facing tough odds helps inner-city children to succeed. Meanwhile, she faces an adversarial colleague and a principal who disapproves of her teaching methods. To top it off, a youth regularly messes up the classroom after school to tick the teacher off. Explore The Marva Collins Story / IMDB / YouTube

A biographical romance about the famous Russian writer. Details on Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky / IMDB / YouTube

The story of how the Gospel of John changed the course of history for a tribe of headhunters. Info on Beyond the Next Mountain / IMDB / YouTube