{"id":2622,"date":"2016-05-14T23:31:21","date_gmt":"2016-05-15T03:31:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.drivingfordeco.com\/staging\/3617\/?p=2622"},"modified":"2016-06-24T16:53:56","modified_gmt":"2016-06-24T20:53:56","slug":"cant-get-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.drivingfordeco.com\/staging\/3617\/cant-get-right\/","title":{"rendered":"Why can’t they get it right!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Genius,<\/a><\/p>\n

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Movies have the ability to transport us anywhere past, present or future. And with today’s CGI technology\u00a0the past can be recreated with astonishing accuracy. So it boggles my mind that they can’t get things right.\u00a0\u00a0Let me state up front that I will go\u00a0to see\u00a0Genius, <\/em>the\u00a0film about story editor Max Perkins and his working relation with author Thomas Wolfe,\u00a0when it gets released next month. The cast is great, Colin Firth, Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Guy Pearce and Laura Linney (my favorite actress in movies today).\u00a0I love films that take place in the 1930’s, but nothing takes me out of the moment faster when the details are wrong.\u00a0And the trailer for Genius<\/em> had enough inaccuracies to get me upset enough to write this post.<\/h4>\n

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\"Train<\/a><\/h4>\n

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I don’t know where the scene above is suppose to take place, from the trailer I assume it is somewhere in the United States. \u00a0And the steam engine makes it old timey, but why couldn’t the filmmakers use an American locomotive instead of a British one. I will update this post if by some chance this scene takes place during a trip to England.<\/h4>\n

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\"Genius,<\/a><\/p>\n

Judging by the placement of the CGI’d Empire State Building in the shot above this is supposed to be lower 5th Avenue. What is wrong with this image, oh let me count the ways . . . first, contemporary London street lights in front of buildings that are nowhere near Manhattan. \u00a0And speaking \u00a0of street lights, only two are on the street. Don’t walk down this 5th avenue after dark, unless you bring a flashlight. Compare the above to a photo of the actual 5th Avenue, in 1948.<\/h4>\n

\"5th<\/a><\/h4>\n

Ok, even if you are shooting the film in the UK, do some research to at least know that 5th Avenue was a two-way street in the 1930’s. It didn’t convert to one way until January 14, 1966. Just take the two minutes to Google “5th Avenue, 1930’s” it will provide answers.<\/h4>\n

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Here is the shot that annoyed me the most –<\/h4>\n
\"Genius\"<\/a>

Max Perkins and Thomas Wolfe gazing at the 1930’s Manhattan skyline?<\/p><\/div>\n

There is not much in this shot and yet what is there is all wrong!!!!! For comparison here is a photo of the actual 1930’s mid-town Manhattan skyline –<\/h4>\n
\"Notice<\/a>

Notice that none of the buildings are illuminated with flood lights.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Since Driving For Deco’s last blog post was celebrating the 85th anniversary of the Empire State Building let’ s take a look there first and work our way to the right.<\/h4>\n

\"Genius<\/a><\/p>\n

Above is the fiction, below the real –<\/h4>\n

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\"Empire<\/a><\/h4>\n

In the 1930’s only the spire of the Empire State Building was illuminated at night.\u00a0The floodlighting of the building from the 72nd floor went into effect with the opening of the New York World’s Fair in April of 1964. NBC always had a television antenna atop the building right from its opening in 1931, but they were a lot shorter, no more than 20 – 30 feet.<\/h4>\n\n\t\t