PIC of the Week – Tucker: The Man and His Dream
Article series by Ray Schillaci
When was the last time we had a really great Francis Ford Coppola vehicle presented to us on Blu-ray? Well, it’s been too long. Lionsgate has stepped up to the plate and given us a winner with Coppola’s Tucker: The Man And His Dream. A good solid piece of storytelling with the aid of not one, but two veteran screenwriters. Arnold Schulman, best known for his Oscar nominated Love With The Proper Stranger and 1969 Oscar nominee Goodbye Columbus, and Oscar nominated David Seidler, who gave us The King’s Speech in 2010. Add to that the sumptuous cinematography of Vittorio Storaro, famous for Apocalypse Now. Then, we also get “The DUDE”, Jeff Bridges, portraying the famed Detroit engineer Preston Tucker, who in the 1940s had the cajones to go up against the BIG three auto companies (GM, Chrysler, and Volkswagen) with his own design for the car of the future.
Such a wonderful story about the little guy facing insurmountable odds against big corporate. Even though Coppola did the film in the late ’80s, and the story takes place in the 1940s, Tucker’s struggles are still very much relatable today and remains an engrossing tale. From the very beginning as a child, we see Tucker’s love of cars. He ends up designing an armored car for the military during WWII, and builds gun turrets for planes all out of a small shop in Michigan. The business is family run including his wife and oldest son.
But, as the war nears an end, Tucker needs something else to keep the family business going. That’s when he comes upon the idea of “the car of the future”, introducing completely new safety features: disc brakes, seat belts (which some of us will argue over), a pop out windshield, and headlights that would swivel when you turn. Tucker starts seeking talent outside the family. He hires a fresh new designer to develop his dream and brings on a New York financier, Abe Karatz, to help put the new company on the map.
Tucker’s rise to fame and his struggles are exhilarating to watch. The tale is a much smaller film than Coppola’s The Godfather or Apocalypse Now. Tucker is more akin to the simpler yet craftsmanlike tale that he gave us in 1997’s The Rainmaker. Both films are considered comedy/dramas and succeed beautifully in their telling thanks in large part to the writing and directing.
Something can also be said of the illustrious cast that has been gathered as well. Martin Landau was nominated for best supporting actor as Abe Karatz, and won the Golden Globe Award. Alongside him were fellow thespians Joan Allen, Frederic Forrest, Elias Koteas, Christian Slater, and famed Japanese actor Mako, best remembered in The Sand Pebbles, Conan the Barbarian, and Pearl Harbor.
Now, do I have a beef with this presentation? It seems like these days I’m always squawking about the lack of extras. Not on this Blu. But, I can’t help but wonder why Lionsgate has opted to offer an Ultra HD 4K download, but not a 4K disc? This leaves cinephiles out in the cold, especially Coppola fans. That being said, there is a nostalgic amber-look running throughout, but there is also the shift to cooler colors now and then that play with our emotions. All in all the video presentation is beautifully detailed, and still it keeps me wondering why no 4K disc?
The audio is a nice surround Dolby TrueHD 5.1 that only compliments the presentation. Dialogue is never lost on this one as has been the complaint of late. And, a generous portion of extras have been rolled out for this 30th Anniversary Edition that includes:
¥ New Deleted Scene (optional commentary by Coppola)
¥ New Francis Ford Coppola Introduction
¥ Audio Commentary by Francis Ford Coppola
¥ Under The Hood: Making Tucker
¥ Tucker: The Man and the Car, 1948 Promo Film (optional commentary by Coppola)
Best Price – Walmart & Target – $9.69, It’s a steal!
