Killarney
You make a good point about the impacts of works of fiction when they are publicised as being based on true events, even if aspects of the storyline is fictional or expanded for effect.

It is always best to be truthful, whether in film, in official documentation, in media and in formal inquiries such as the one at the moment dealing with historical child abuse by various institutions. Given the tensions in Ireland I imagine there is often distortions in the telling of stories on both sides.

The Catholic Church is no stranger to its own propaganda and distortions, in the same way that many organisations and public bodies close ranks in the face of criticism and exposure.

All I can offer is I am glad these stories have come to light. Without exposure these entrenched behaviours and cultures continue and worse, victims continue to feel isolated and without justice.

Well, Blue Jasmine is a classic so I'm tipping Cate Blanchett for the Oscar anyway ;)

It's not surprising that there has been some degree of "artistic license" used in the telling of this story - every film does this.

The film "Schindler's List" is riddled with half-truths and distortions but the meaning of the film remains.

However, the full story of what happened in the Magdalene Laundries has been well documented and much of the whole truth has been left out of the film.

No mention was made of the girls and babies buried in unmarked graves or the general cruelty imposed on the inmates in what were essentially prisons and slave markets.

An official Irish Government apology for what was done to the girls was made only last year.

We have been hearing the stories of cruelty and abuse behind the mask of respectability in our own institutions lately.