well, I guess a good example here would be Seabiscuit, which actually was "based on a true story". I would say Disney most likely rushed Hidalgo to the theatres to capitalize on the popularity of that film . The hollywood machine is very cognizant of current trends. The exploits of Seabiscuit can be documented. Those of Hidalgo can not-and probably never happened. I don't know how much of the actual story of Seabiscuit was "fictionalized" though. How many times have you listened to someone telling funny stories, then all of a sudden they change gears and proclaim "true story". Automatically the listeners interest is heightened that the new story is supposedly true to life. That is also a strong selling point in popular film.