Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988)

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

Director:

Francis Ford Coppola

Writers:

Arnold Schulman, David Seidler

Stars:

Jeff Bridges, Joan Allen, Martin Landau

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 8 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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
John X. Heart	...	Ferguson's Agent

Storyline

Based on a true story. Shortly after World War II, Preston Tucker is a grandiose schemer with a new dream, to produce the best cars ever made. With the assistance of Abe Karatz and some impressive salesmanship on his own part, he obtains funding and begins to build his factory. The whole movie also has many parallels with director Coppola's own efforts to build a new movie studio of his own.

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Plot Keywords:

car | industry | factory | dream | aerodynamics | 

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Taglines:

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.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 August 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tucker: L'homme et son rêve

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$23,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$19,652,638 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lucasfilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

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

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.40 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

While in post-production of Apocalypse Now (1979), Francis Ford Coppola met with Burt Reynolds about playing Preston Tucker, stating how much he resembled the young Tucker in real life. Unfortunately delays due to story development and logistics as well as commitments to other projects, the film was not made until 1988, by which time Reynolds was too old to play the part.

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Goofs

A wide shot is used showing the jury entering the courtroom with their verdict. The judge is shown standing as required for proper courtroom etiquette. Partway through the jury's entrance a cut is made to a slightly tighter shot but now the judge is dishonorably shown as seated.

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Quotes

Abe: Cars? You brought me here for cars?
Preston Tucker: [laughs, indicates a drawing] Does that look like a car to you? THAT, is a gold mine I'm handing you on a silver platter.
Abe: Forget it; you got no chance.
Preston Tucker: Now how can you say that? You haven't even heard my ideas yet.
Abe: Ideas? Einstein's in the idea business; he makes up numbers so high only dogs can hear them. But what does it cost him? a piece of paper, a couple of pencils.

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Crazy Credits

Photographs of the real Preston Tucker appear during the closing credits.

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Connections

Referenced in Jeopardy!: Million Dollar Celebrity Invitational Quarterfinal 5 (2010)

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Soundtracks

Tiger Rag
Recorded by The Mills Brothers
Courtesy of The Welk Record Group

User Reviews

TUCKER--What a historical film should be.

Impressive styling of the 1940s era and fine direction from Francis Coppola, whose middle name is Ford (ha!), makes TUCKER a historical tribute to the revolutionary, all-too-superior "car of tomorrow" that never was destined to bury the Big Three. It's not an entire biography of his life, but an account of triumphs and trials in his short-lived business. Jeff Bridges' character he portrays is a cheerful, mind-mannered guy who dreamed of making these autos since his childhood. There's plenty to like in this nostalgic trip, as this was made in a genuine vintage style. The opening best compares to a true classic sales promo, an indication of brilliant film work. Joe Jackson's cool 40s tunes he composed are extremely well made, although they get in the way sometimes. Drive on over to the video mart and check this selection out! Perhaps if we all had a Tucker....