The Aviator (2004)

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Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, John C. Reilly, Alec Baldwin, Kate Beckinsale, Alan Alda, Gwen Stefani
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writer: John Logan
Genre: Drama / Biopic
Running Time: 2 hrs. 49 min.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, nudity, language and crash sequence.
Country: United States
Language: English
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338751/
U.S. Box Office: $102,608,827
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Plot (Screenplay): 5 / 5
Music (Score): 5 / 5
Acting (Cast): 5 / 5
Pacing (Editing): 3 / 5
Visuals (Cinematography): 5 / 5
Overall Rating: A (92%)

Some say that this movie is boring. Sure, I’m not denying it. Pacing could have been better.

BUT, after picking it up on DVD by chance and watching it a 2nd time, I totally changed my mind!

I’m 20 years old, so Howard Hughes’ early life was even way before my parent’s time. All I knew about him before watching this movie was that Simpsons parody of Mr. Burns in the casino episode (”$pringfield”). The germ phobia, jars of urine, the long nails, etc. So that’s pretty much what stood out after watching this movie the first time in the theater.

Hoooowwwever…. After watching it a second time, I was really starting to respect the man! He wanted to be everything: a test pilot, a producer, an engineer, a daredevil. Makes you want to go out and accomplish something. So even though I originally thought Hughes was just some creepy old guy who wore kleex boxes on his feet, Scorsese does a good job bringing out the best in him, even when his obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) gradually gets worse. When he hits rock bottom, he manages to bounce back with a vengence (against a certain senator).

Again, this film raises a lot of OCD awareness. Kind of like what A Beautiful Mind did with schizophrenia.

Couple other things to note:
1) There are LOTS of technical aspects to look out for. Like for one, notice that all the shades of green, like trees and plants, are replaced by shades of blue for the first 50 minutes. It’s a tribute to the two color styling in the 1920’s-1935). Things like this make the film visually pleasing.

2) Great acting; DiCaprio, Blanchett, and the rest of the cast have this this infectious energy that they bring to the screen. Lots of cameos to look out for too, like Jude Law.

Bottom line: Go see this movie (when you’re not drowsy)! I hope you’ll be inspired by his achievements as much as I have!

Favorite scene: Shooting Hell’s Angels at the beginning of the film with the Bach music. Amoung many others!

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Rotten Tomatoes rating: 88%
Consensus: “Highly evocative of the period, Scorcese’s biopic of Howard Hughes is being hailed as another excellent film from the master.” -rottentomatoes.com