依据真人真事改编，并一定程度上能够反映当时的历史事件和历史人物。与一般剧情片不同的是，在情节上依据现有的历史材料描绘典型环境，塑造人物形象，但在部分细节上可以有所取舍、以突出重点。

A biographical film, or biopic (/ˈbaɪoʊpɪk/; abbreviation for biographical motion picture), is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character’s real name is used. They differ from films "based on a true story" or “historical drama films" in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at least the most historically important years of their lives.