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Sometimes Real Life is Dramatic Enough!
16 years ago
General
We've all been to those movies that are based on real life events right? They always say they're based on a true story... because odds are the true story isn't cool enough to make a thrilling movie experience.
Back when it came out in 2004, I went to see The Aviator, the bio-pic about Howard Hughes. I loved it, of course, but that's probably more because of my love of airplanes. It's a great movie and I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. Even if you're not an airplane nut, Hughes was a fascinating man, in and out of an airplane.
In the middle of the movie, they had a sequence where Hughes did a test-flight of the XF-11 aircraft. And I remember sitting in the theatre, thinking, "Okay. This part they definitely punched up a bit. I mean, c'mon: twin-contra-rotating props on piston engines? Twin boom design like the P-38? That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think? And then he goes out on a test flight, it gives him trouble and he wrecks it in the backyard of a house in Beverly Hills? Pretty damn convenient. Isn't all this a bit much to swallow?"
I vowed to go home and look it up. Imagine my surprise to find it's true!
Hughes took the XF-11 out for a test flight. It was supposed to be only 20 minutes, but he amended his flight plan once he was in the air to go up and fly around Southern California. Then an oil leak caused the rear prop on the starboard side to go into a flat plane, causing an imbalance in thrust. He fought the thrust difference, not knowing exactly what was wrong (the props were still spinning, after all). He eventually tried to land it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but fell short and hit two houses in Beverly Hills before wrecking it in the backyard of a third. The XF-11 exploded on impact.
Hughes fought his way out of the cockpit with broken ribs, a crushed collarbone and third-degree burns on his hands. He collapsed beside the flaming wreck, unable to move any more. It was Master Technical Sergeant William L. Durkin, visiting across the street, that ran over and dragged Hughes away from the wreckage.
And this entire affair is detailed brilliantly by Scorsese in the movie.
Sure, there's probably still some artistic license taken in the details of the scenes. We probably don't know exactly what Hughes said while flying. Or what the people in the houses were doing at the time of the crash (although the couple in the second house was in their bedroom as the XF-11's wing cut through the house). But the major parts of it that I was most skeptical about were all true-life events.
I guess some people's lives are dramatic enough that they don't need punching up. ^_^
Back when it came out in 2004, I went to see The Aviator, the bio-pic about Howard Hughes. I loved it, of course, but that's probably more because of my love of airplanes. It's a great movie and I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. Even if you're not an airplane nut, Hughes was a fascinating man, in and out of an airplane.
In the middle of the movie, they had a sequence where Hughes did a test-flight of the XF-11 aircraft. And I remember sitting in the theatre, thinking, "Okay. This part they definitely punched up a bit. I mean, c'mon: twin-contra-rotating props on piston engines? Twin boom design like the P-38? That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think? And then he goes out on a test flight, it gives him trouble and he wrecks it in the backyard of a house in Beverly Hills? Pretty damn convenient. Isn't all this a bit much to swallow?"
I vowed to go home and look it up. Imagine my surprise to find it's true!
Hughes took the XF-11 out for a test flight. It was supposed to be only 20 minutes, but he amended his flight plan once he was in the air to go up and fly around Southern California. Then an oil leak caused the rear prop on the starboard side to go into a flat plane, causing an imbalance in thrust. He fought the thrust difference, not knowing exactly what was wrong (the props were still spinning, after all). He eventually tried to land it at the Los Angeles Country Club golf course, but fell short and hit two houses in Beverly Hills before wrecking it in the backyard of a third. The XF-11 exploded on impact.
Hughes fought his way out of the cockpit with broken ribs, a crushed collarbone and third-degree burns on his hands. He collapsed beside the flaming wreck, unable to move any more. It was Master Technical Sergeant William L. Durkin, visiting across the street, that ran over and dragged Hughes away from the wreckage.
And this entire affair is detailed brilliantly by Scorsese in the movie.
Sure, there's probably still some artistic license taken in the details of the scenes. We probably don't know exactly what Hughes said while flying. Or what the people in the houses were doing at the time of the crash (although the couple in the second house was in their bedroom as the XF-11's wing cut through the house). But the major parts of it that I was most skeptical about were all true-life events.
I guess some people's lives are dramatic enough that they don't need punching up. ^_^
rakarra
~rakarra
I just saw The Aviator for the first time a month ago. Brilliant movie! It seemed like the only liberties it took was placing his germ-phobia-meltdown a little earlier in his life than actually happened, but I don't really have any real qualms about that. Loved it!
ZentratheFox
~zentrathefox
Okay, that alone makes me want to go see the movie. Will check Netflix and FiOS OD shortly! :P
Dain_Unicorn
~dainunicorn
It is funny, but sometimes Hollywood doesn't need to make stuff up.
Leucrotta
~leucrotta
Oh yeah. Weird crap happens all the time. I figure that it isn't that really weird dramatic stuff never happens, it's that weird dramatic stuff happens more often than expected - let's say 25% of the time rather than 10% of the time, still not all that often but it's a very distinct increase. Since people love dramatic stories, lines are going to get blurred where unbelievable fact overlaps with dramatically appealing fiction.
