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The Hoax [2007]
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Better than average Gere
Review date: 2008-11-21 Rating: 8 out of 10
Not normally a big fan of Richard Gere, but this film show a return to form for him. When watching the film you're never quite sure what has been added for dramatic affect and what is part of the original true story. However, that resonates quite well with the fact that Irving himself appeared not to know the difference between fact and fiction either. Well worth a watch.
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Reviews
Below average stab at a genre done so much better recently.
Review date: 2008-08-21 Rating: 4 out of 10
Want to see a movie about a con artist? A really good one? Then watch Catch Me If You Can. The Hoax isn't a terrible movie, I'd give it 2.5 stars if I could, but it falls short in areas where we've seen it done so much better in recent years.
Whereas Catch Me If You Can studies a confidence man who did everything we see in the movie, although less glamourously I'm sure, The Hoax seems to take artistic license too far and leaves you thinking just that. Representing one of the most infamous literary scandals of the 20th century, it presents things that just didn't happen as if they are historical fact, something Hollywood has done a few too many times for me.
It's entertaining enough, all the performances are decent (although Gere is a bit lacklustre) and you will probably enjoy it if you're not familiar with the real story the movie is based on. If you are, avoid it.
An interesting true story translated into a quite slow 'just OK' film
Review date: 2008-05-30 Rating: 6 out of 10
This is the story of how a struggling author called Clifford Irving was so desperate for success he decided to make up a story that he was in contact with Howard Hughes who had agreed for Irving to write his life story. Shockingly, Irving's publisher's believed this, leading to a huge chain of events where this hoax snowballed out of control.
The story itself is an amazing one, especially considering as it was actually true. So I was looking forward to seeing how exactly Irving, played by an in-form Richard Gere, actually managed to pull this stunt off. The film itself portrays the key events well, showing vividly the pivotal moment where Irving suddenly takes the dramatic decision to embark on the hoax. The attention to detail and planning that went into maintaining and fueling the sham are very convincingly acted, drifting between high drama and moments of comedy as some of the lies Irving creates to deflect awkward questions get more and more outrageous.
But what lets the film down is that the plotline moves along very slowly, the film's almost 2 hours long but there's a lot of bloat and irrelevant subplots that could easily have been left out. For someone responsible for such an amazing deception you should come away at least feeling a bit of admiration for his ingenuity, or a little sorry for him, or maybe even be cheering him on. But Irving is portrayed in this film in a way that makes you not really feel anything for him, he doesn't come across as particularly likeable or humorous, he doesn't seem a very warm character, you just end up not caring if he pulls it off or not. This is a real pity as a plot as audacious as this should have a lot more emotional engagement with the viewer, you should feel almost as caught up in it as the characters, but in the end you just feel very detached from it all and quite underwhelmed.
A good film, but with a storyline as fascinating as this, it should have been a lot better.
Surprisingly gripping!
Review date: 2008-03-23 Rating: 10 out of 10
Having never been a real fan of Richard Gere's work, I wasn't really sure that I would enjoy this film - how wrong I was. Whilst the premise of this film seems a little unusual (we know (obviously) from the start that he's perpetrating a hoax), the execution and subsequent ending, I think were handled really well.
The only really flaw with the film was the sub-plot with the women in Irvings life which I felt was quite weak.
This isn't a fast moving film but the direction was superb interspersing footage from the time and from Howard Hughes' past to build up a really good background to the story.
The film takes on an excellent twist as Irving gets more embroiled in his own plot leaving the viewer to start questioning what they are watching as Irving becomes more like Hughes himself.
Was it the drink... did it really happen...? Watch it to find out!
Interesting ... but not gripping!
Review date: 2008-03-20 Rating: 6 out of 10
I thought I might enjoy this film, as the basic premise sounding intriguing enough - however, I did find it a tad slow, and the plot/characters not especially convincing.
I didn't think this one of Richard Gere's better performances; he plays Clifford Irving, a desperate writer who fools the publishing world into believing he is Howard Hughes' official biographer. Despite his outrageous lies/claims, I felt Irving was portrayed as both dull and not an especially likeable character, and this, perhaps, prevented me from fully engaging with the film. Alfred Molina, (who plays Irving's researcher/assistant), puts in the best performance, but it wasn't enough to make it worth watching. The plot/action dragged in the final third, and it was something of an effort to keep watching right through to the end.
Perhaps worth renting, but not a DVD I'd recommend to buy.
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Marcia Gay Harden
Hope Davis
Julie Delpy
Michael J. Burg
Richard Gere
Creators:
Richard Gere (Primary Contributor)
Michael J. Burg (Primary Contributor)
Director(s):
Recording label: Momentum Pictures
Manufacturer: Momentum Pictures
EAN: 5060116721294
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2008-02-11
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 111 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2007