No, sources suggest that "The Legend of 1900" is a part-fairy tale, part-tragedy film based on the novel by Alessandro Baricco.
Part of why this film works so well is because of its main character. Roth excels in his portrayal of 1900, a man who commands the ebony and ivory yet shies away from what he does not understand. Played with both resolve and panache, 1900 is an enigmatic and charismatic character that audiences can easily warm up to and identify with.
Vince, whose character never veers to far from fulfilling the role of narrator and sounding board for 1900, fills his role admirably, though it would have been nice if we had been given more background on an otherwise throwaway character.
Finally, Clarence Williams III does a memorable turn as Jazz great Jelly Roll Morton in the film's highlight sequence where the two musicians square off against one another to find out who is the best.
While movies based on real-life events could technically be considered yet another category of “recycled” content, when placed in the hands of the right director and actors, the truth can be far more compelling than fiction. Check out these 15 best movies inspired by true events shared by Complex.com.