MovieChat Forums > Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988) Discussion > An under-appreciated treasure of a film!...

An under-appreciated treasure of a film!!!

posted 18 years ago by filmmakeracf
9 replies | jump to latest

I recently saw many of Coppola's films at the American Film Institute Silver Theater here in Maryland. They had a Coppola festival.

I have always loved TUCKER and considered it to be a small masterpiece from Coppola.
That still rings true! This film is perfect from start to finish. It is one of Coppola's best looking films and it holds a wonderful performance from Bridges. He was amazing in this role. He has always been underrated as an actor and I feel that this is a role he should have won an Oscar for. He is brilliant. The story is top notch, the direction is Coppola's best since RUMBLE FISH, the look and feel are spot -on, the score by Joe Jackson is great, the scene with Dean Stockwell as Howard Hughes is amazing, and the whole movie is just 2 hours of great fun.

One of the unsung great films of our time.
**** out of ****
filmmakeracf

[–] 18 years ago

[deleted]

[–] escalera-2 17 years ago

It is a very wonderful picture. It reaches it's goal -- pure entertainment.

[–] ckn8 17 years ago

"I like Tucker, but the problem is it's so one-sided. I don't know the whole story exactly, I'm not a Tucker expert, but the movie portrays Tucker as a saint, and the big three as mustache twirling villians and it takes liberty with facts."

Well, to be fair... the big three have essentially been mustache twirling villains for 70 years at this point. They really DID railroad Tucker. I'm also not sure how you think the movie presents Tucker as a saint. Sure, he cared about safety and making a quality vehicle, that was true in real life. But the film also clearly shows that he was naive with business, the prototype barely worked, and never really followed through on his initial plan. Hence the subtitle, "A Man and his Dream." Essentially, Tucker was just that... a dreamer.

Either way, your point about feeling it should have been "honestly told" is a fair one, but you're ignoring the very device of the film. The opening card clearly states that the film is basically a glamorized PR vehicle for Tucker Corp. The one dimensionality, love it or hate it, is sort of the point. I'd agree that the whole thing doesn't really gel or work, however.

[–] kag2-1 17 years ago

Not a great film, but clearly a good movie with a powerful message about corporate influence and politics - remember, Detroit automakers fought seatbelts in the 1950's, airbags in the 1970's, not to mention giving us planned obsolescence, bad quality control, and not much innovation.

I really enjoyed Martin Landau's performance. Anybody else enjoy his acting here?

[–] scotbpens 15 years ago

To be fair, in the mid-1950s, Ford did offer an optional safety package they called "Lifeguard Design," which included a padded dashboard and seat belts. It sold like ice-cream cones in Maine in January. The car-buying public didn't really become safety-conscious until a decade later, with the publication of Ralph Nader's Unsafe at Any Speed.

Never underestimate the power of the free market.

All the universe . . . or nothingness. Which shall it be, Passworthy? Which shall it be?

[–] CCRider01 14 years ago

Tucker is one of those little gem movies that many people might stumble across, not really knowing much about the back story, and then end up really liking it.

In my case, it was a typical last minute grab at the video store. One block buster and one "surprise" film, many a nugget has been discovered this way. That will be the biggest "sorrow" when bricks and mortor video stores eventually go the way of the dinasour. Walking through the store ilses, finding and choosing films you normally would not give a look at.

[–] gary_w_trott 8 years ago

That will be the biggest "sorrow" when bricks and mortor video stores eventually go the way of the dinasour. Walking through the store ilses, finding and choosing films you normally would not give a look at.

That is what the $5.00 bin at WalMart is for, and that is where I found my DVD of this film.

[–] ntvnyr30 11 years ago

Coppola will one day get credit---much like Orson Welles is finally getting his due. "Tucker" and "The Cotton Club" are among 2 Coppola films that will get their much-deserved praise one day.

[–] RazzberryBeret 8 years ago

Couldn't agree more with everyone here. The late, great Martin Landau was amazing as well - got an Oscar nomination for this, I think. Joan Allen, Frederic Forrest, Christian Slater, Nina Siemaszko, Mako & Elias Koteas - all were wonderful. Have to say, it was great to see Jeff's dad Lloyd Bridges playing Tucker's foe, Senator Homer Ferguson.:)