Scene 7 — 35:35
We see Abagnale forging pay checks with a typewriter — the model is unknown.
Scene 7 — 35:35
(Frank Taylor was one of Abagnale’s many aliases.)
Pay checks do not contain a codeline with a routing number!
To imitate the Pan Am logo on the checks, he gets it off Boeing toy planes. “I located a hobby shop that handled models of Pan Am’s jets and bought several kits in the smaller sizes. [...] I took one of the blank counter checks and across the top affixed a ‘PAN AMERICAN WORLD AIRWAYS’ decal from one of the kits. [...] In the upper left-hand corner of the check I applied the Pan Am logo [...]”. (book “Catch Me If You Can”, page 92)
Earlier, he had used the same elements to create a fake pilot ID. (book “Catch Me If You Can”, page 36) (You won’t see that in the movie, it would have spoiled the surprise. You see Abagnale soaking a model plane in the bath before you discover why he’s doing that...)
Are you ready for some more film
technique? When Abagnale is typing
away on his old typewriter, the typebars
hit the paper so violently that the flowers
on the table tremble. And that trembling
is shown before you see the
typewriter in action (scene 7, 35:08).
Spielberg doesn’t hesitate to announce
an off-screen presence through
vibrations
(and sound). Think of the way the
T rex
is announced indirectly in
“Jurassic Park”
(1993): the animal is so heavy that its
footsteps cause the earth to tremble, which
creates waves in the water glasses sitting
on the jeep’s dashboard (and later on
in a muddy puddle created by the dino’s
footprint).
IMDB page on Jurassic Park
—
Wikipedia page on Jurassic Park
A little bit later in the movie, he does it again (scene 8, 39:16): Abagnale is making out on a hotel bed with stewardess Marci, but we see the dinner plates from room service falling off the cart because of the bed’s vibration first. (The published screenplay describes the love scene as the moment Abagnale loses his virignity, not that this is obvious when you watch the movie.)
