The Ghost and the Darkness, which starred Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas, is actually based on the true story of Lt. Col. John Patterson who was hired to oversee the construction of a railway bridge over the Tsavo river in Kenya right when man-eating lions began attacking workers left and right. Apparently these attacks lead to over 140 deaths and it was soon discovered that this was all the work of just two lions. After a series of near-death experiences, John Patterson was finally able to kill the two lions. Patterson managed to survive the attacks and wrote a novel based on his experiences, which is what The Ghost and the Darkness is based on. But the filmmakers decided to add a second character, played by Michael Douglas, who enters the film halfway through in order to help with the lion attacks. It's right around that time when the film goes from being a decent-enough thriller and suddenly becomes a cheap knockoff of Jaws. Critics were sharply divided on the film including the late Roger Ebert who gave the movie half of a star and criticized the lion attacks in particular, saying it was as if the filmmakers were "telling the actors to scream while a lion rug was waved in front of the camera." Despite being nominated for a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor, the film still managed to win an Oscar for Sound Editing. Considering it was up against the Sylvester Stallone film "Daylight" and the Arnold Schwarzenegger action flick "Eraser," it's really not that impressive of an accomplishment.
