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Marie (a.k.a. Marie: A True Story) is a 1985 film starring Sissy Spacek as the real-life Marie Ragghianti, former head of the Tennessee Board of Pardons and Paroles, who was removed from office in 1977 after refusing to release prisoners who (it was discovered) had bribed aides to then-Governor Ray Blanton. Ragghianti, a single mother and political appointee, was hounded for failure to cooperate with the culture of corruption with which she found herself confronted (many of Blanton's aides faced prosecution for their roles in the scandal, and he was eventually removed from office early). The film was based on the book Marie: A True Story by Peter Maas.
It was directed by Roger Donaldson, with a screenplay by John Briley (best known as the screenwriter of Gandhi); and also starred Jeff Daniels, Keith Szarabajka, Morgan Freeman, Fred Thompson (as himself [he was Ragghianti's attorney]; this was his first film role); Lisa Banes, John Cullum, Graham Beckel, and Macon McCalman. It was rated PG-13. Most reviewers agreed that Spacek's ability to sell herself in the role brought the film above the somewhat hackneyed story line; and several went out their way to praise the acting performance of attorney Thompson (until then known, if at all, as a peripheral figure in the Senate probe of the Watergate scandal).
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