Some historical fiction is uncontroversial because it presents the past merely as a backdrop for a story that does not suggest new facts or challenge widely accepted interpretations. Other successful creations go the other way, dispensing with the truth so brazenly that they render caveats fatuous because their narratives aren’t so much revisionist history as counterfactual fantasy. Only a pedant could object to Quentin Tarantino changing the course of World War II in Inglourious Basterds to tell a story of Jewish commandos assassinating Hitler in a French movie theater.
In between these extremes, however, are works that invite controversy by treating history in minute detail and yet, without comedy or even an ironic wink at the audience, they seek to overturn what everybody thought they knew.
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!