The Hoax

Review in a Hurry:  Richard Gere portrays real-life hoaxster Clifford Irving, who in 1971 conned a major publisher into buying his bogus biography of billionaire Howard Hughes. Sure, it sounds like The Aviator meets Catch Me If You Can, but this smart flick actually doesn't star Leo DiCaprio. Instead, it gives Gere his best role in years.

The Bigger Picture:  Though its release date was delayed for a year (usually not a good sign), The Hoax turns out to be a delightful surprise, marking a return to form for Gere and director Lasse Hallström (Chocolat, Cider House Rules). And would I lie to you? Never.

But Irving sure as heck would—and smile while he's snowing you. The roguish writer launches his outrageous scam after McGraw-Hill decides not to publish his latest novel. Wanting back in the game, he pitches them "the book of the century"—Hughes' much-desired memoir, which the recluse himself has asked Irving to pen. Trouble is, it's totally bogus.

But the hit-hungry publisher takes the bait. To reel 'em in—and to placate suspicious execs like Stanley Tucci— Irving forges documents, swipes a manuscript from a former Hughes associate, masters the mogul's speech patterns, and much more. With assistance from his loyal bud (Alfred Molina) and artist wife (Marcia Gay Harden), Gere keeps upping the ante till he swindles the suits out of a million buckaroos.

Hallström's direction is swift but always fluid, nimbly navigating the script's wild turns, even as the story veers into darker personal and political territory. Irving's pathological fabrications eventually make him come unglued, and Hughes himself has a hand—the film speculates—in President Nixon's undoing. Through it all, Gere proves pitch-perfect as the charming charlatan, and Molina nails the morally conflicted accomplice who hilariously struggles to keep up with his friend's tall tales.

You can believe this Hoax is for real.

The 180—a Second Opinion:  Don't dig the early '70s? Then the authentic period details and the backdrop of Vietnam and Watergate will probably strike you as anything but groovy. And once you realize how relevant the unpopular war and corrupt administration are to our current situation, well, it's an even bigger bummer, man.