MovieChat Forums > The Hoax (2007) Discussion > This movie would not have been . . .

This movie would not have been . . .

posted 17 years ago by mister187
17 replies | jump to latest

made if "The Aviator" was not already made. The general public didn't know Howard Hughes until "TA" made it big. "The Hoax" was only possible because of "The Aviator." Any thoughts?

[–] hippiedip 17 years ago

Actually, anyone over 40 would probably remember Howard Hughes regardless of either film. Hughes got as much press coverage during the seventies as any celebrity of the current day. The fact that his life was shrouded in mystery made him all the more fascinating to the press and public.

[–] hamiltime32 17 years ago

Yeah I couldn't disagree more with the original posters comment. Although I wouldn't have known, so many people would have. Hughes was gigantic. He was a crazy eccentric multi-billionaire who had rumors about everything he did. The press loved it. Oh yeah he also had a lot to do with Aviation making one of the biggest planes for military use and all.

Life, what a precious gift like boobs or rockets-Nick Frost.

[–] mister187 17 years ago

just kidding about that earlier

[–] MrPeteski 17 years ago

I think someone in HW got a hold of "F for Fake" - same story.

[–] m_ats 17 years ago

Yes, the people behind this project were aware of momentum conditions when deciding to go ahead with this movie.

[–] mosquito86 17 years ago

I was actually wondering about that, too. I think TA exposed a lot of people under 40 to an interpretation of Hughes's life. W/o having watched that..I might not have been able to pick up some references in the movie (to Hughes plane crash, senate hearings). Maybe TA influenced a bit of hte script writing on this movie (in terms of what they felt they could reference).

[–] nimgrewal 17 years ago

I don't think they would have made The Aviator if they hadn't made The Rocketeer first :)

[–] John_Titor_2036 17 years ago

I don't think they could've made The Rocketeer, if they hadn't made Flash Gordon (1980) first.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] Starving_Screenwriter 17 years ago

I don't think that the marketing of this film played off the Aviator at all, honestly. Do you remember seeing the trailer for the film? It said, "the biggest literary con of the century." with no mention of Hughes. While the films both focus on true events surrounding Hughes, I think that's as close a connection we get, both inside the stories and outside the films. This film was not capitalizing on the Aviator as much as it was an account of Irving.

Also, the fascination with Hughes was enormous up until the 80s. People couldn't get enough, and they wanted to get enough, of Hughes, so they were greatly interested in Irving's book. This was a huge hoax, and it was only a matter of time before they made a movie about it.

I thought this film took on a completely different personae than the Aviator, and therefore I can see no reason why that film made this one possible.

"Oh my god! There's a bear in my oatmeal!"

[–] pbl1 16 years ago

yes, everyone knows who Hughes was, but The Aviator put him back on the radar of public interest. Therefore, this story of a journalistic hoax could resonate more with the public than "Shattered Glass" could/did.

What the $%*& is a Chinese Downhill?!?

[–] s_surgical 17 years ago

Um Ive known who Howard Hughes was since i was a kid and I'm 25. But im also from Houston Texas so that might explain that.

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] dp-131 11 years ago

He was certainly well known to us Brits.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] shadaif 8 years ago

I knew of Howard Hughes long before The Aviator came out. And I'm not very old.

"The end of the shoelace is called the...IT DOESN'T MATTER!"