Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Francis Ford Coppola

Writers:

Arnold Schulman (writer)
David Seidler (writer)

Release Date:

12 August 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

When they tried to buy him, he refused. When they tried to bully him, he resisted. When they tried to break him, he became an American legend. The true story of Preston Tucker.

Plot:

The story of Preston Tucker, the maverick car designer and his ill fated challenge to the auto industry with his revolutionary car concept.

Plot Keywords:

Car Factory | Corrupt Politician | Courtroom | Automobile Industry | Car Safety

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Jeff Bridges	...	Preston Tucker
Joan Allen	...	Vera
Martin Landau	...	Abe
Frederic Forrest	...	Eddie
Mako	...	Jimmy
Elias Koteas	...	Alex
Christian Slater	...	Junior
Nina Siemaszko	...	Marilyn Lee
Anders Johnson	...	Johnny
Corin Nemec	...	Noble (as Corky Nemec)
Marshall Bell	...	Frank
Jay O. Sanders	...	Kirby
Peter Donat	...	Kerner
Dean Goodman	...	Bennington / Drew Pearson's Voice
John X. Heart	...	Ferguson's Agent

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby SR (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Iceland:L | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Netherlands:AL | Sweden:7 | UK:PG | USA:PG (certificate #29156)

Filming Locations:

City Hall - 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

Michael McShane's film debut.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Widescreen images dependent upon lenses not available until 1953 even for theatrical films are used in internal documentaries and the public relation footage in a movie set in 1947 or 1948.

Quotes:

Preston Tucker: [revealing his graphics] The car of tomorrow... today.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "At the Movies: (2008-11-19)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

The Music Goes 'Round and 'Round

Gutsy, smart, way ahead of the curve

It's been a while since I saw this movie, and I was already acquainted with they story when I realized they'd made a movie about it. The movie lives up to the reality.

No question, Preston Tucker was brilliant. When Uncle Sam requested designs for combat vehicles, he submitted, and demonstrated, a design which significantly blew away all competitors. He was turned down because his design significantly outperformed what Uncle Sam asked for. Small-minded individuals, mired in the relatively wimpy requirements, wouldn't take the more advanced design. It boggled his mind that they would turn down "steak with all the trimmings" in exchange for a "plain hamburger." I've been in the Military, so it doesn't surprise me.

When he wanted to make a point about safety, emphasizing the need for safety glass and seatbelts (which were NOT standard equipment at the time), he invited the appropriate people to lunch, served medium-rare roast beef, then showed pictures of people who'd died in car accidents. Lots of blood, lots of "raw meat." My driver's education teacher, trying to convince us to be safer drivers, did the same (minus the fancy lunch). Anyway, the similarities between what they saw on the screen, and what they'd just eaten, caused many of them to be "re-acquainted" with their lunch. I sincerely doubt they ever forgot the presentation, and his point was very well made.

I like this guy. He's whip-smart, practical, maybe a little too optimistic.

I identify with him.

And they broke him.

Welcome to reality. Bites, doesn't it?

In the end, he knows he's beaten, but he still gets the last word in. I hope I manage to do so well.