When a fictional film claims it’s inspired by true events, audiences should be aware of a lot of changes made from the original story.

The balloon-flying adventure The Aeronauts took liberties to alter the original story to make it more exciting.

History buffs will recall the famous meteorologist James Glaisher flew significant heights into the skies to take measurements for meteorology. His co-pilot Henry Coxwell was the male aeronaut in the basket.

According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, Head of Library at the Royal Society, Keith Moore criticized the film by saying, “It’s a great shame that Henry isn’t portrayed because he performed very well and saved the life of a leading scientist.”

Moore was referring to the film that the aeronaut pilot was changed gender-wise into a fictional character named Amelia Wren, played by Felicity Jones.

LRM Online exclusive spoke with Director Tom Harper on this change last month during a press junket for the film.

He explained, “We realized very early on that the original flight was just two people or rather two guys in a basket. They didn’t talk to each other because they were so busy taking measurements. And while that’s admirable, it’s doesn’t make the most dynamic movie. They sit in silence for an hour and a half. We realized very quickly that we were going to have to bring in elements of other balloon flights to make the kind of big epic adventure we wanted. We also started thinking that maybe two men are the same.”

The Amelia Wren character jumps on the gender-bending storylines to include a bit of romance and feminism into the storyline. Wren, however, was still based on an actual historical figure.

“We have to create a new story anyway, so what other characters are out there that might rub up against one another and create the best drama? Then I started reading about Sophie Blanchard, who is this amazing flamboyant character. She was completely different from James Glaisher. She set off fireworks. She was an acrobat. Otherwise, let’s put these two people into a confined space for 90 minutes, then you really would have an amazing story,” said Harper.

In historical sense, Sophie Blanchard was a French aeronaut who was known for performances and ballooning ascents. She was known as an extreme risk-taker, who risked her life on numerous occasions with freezing temperatures and almost drowned from a balloon crash in a marsh. She was the first woman to be killed in an aviation accident, in which she launched fireworks that ignited the gas in her balloon. She ultimately fell to her death.

Blanchard’s historical personality was portrayed in the fictionalized Amelia Wren. Blanchard died more than a half-century before Glaisher made his actual flight.

In the end, the changes to The Aeronauts made a better story as audiences will be on the edge of their seats. It’ll get more people into theaters today and streaming on Amazon Prime later this month.

“We are making movie and never set out to make a documentary,” said Harper. “If you want to read the book, there are lots of accounts of what did happen. You know you’re watching a Hollywood movie is a different thing from going to a museum.”

The full interview with director Tom Harper will be released later today.

The Aeronauts is playing in theaters today and will be released on Amazon Prime on December 20.

Source: LRM Online Exclusive