The Aviator
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly, Alec Baldwin, Alan Alda
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Rated: PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, nudity, language and a crash sequence.
Parental Notes: Most of this film will be fine for preteens, though they may find its candid portrayal of Hughes’ obsessive-compulsive disorder and an intense airplane crash sequence disturbing. It will likely appeal more to teenagers interested in the era or in Hughes as a person.
It’s not every day that a movie comes along which manages to somehow combine comedy, tragedy, and adventure, but “The Aviator” does just that. It’s a mind-blowing film, and not just because it includes exciting airplane sequences.
“The Aviator” is the story of Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio), Hollywood mogul, aviation pioneer, and walker of the line ‘twixt genius and madness. It covers his life from his arrival in Hollywood until the height of his aviation career when he got the Hercules (often referred to as “the Spruce Goose,” much to his dismay) into the air. He’s portrayed as both a heroic and a tragically human figure – we see him standing up to corrupt Senator Brewster (Alan Alda, relishing the villainous role) during his senate hearings, but we also see him washing his hands until they bleed and vainly struggling against the madness which claimed him entirely in his last days.
This biopic gives us a portrait of a great American figure during his glory days. Again and again we watch Hughes ignore the laughter of those who think he will fail and mortgage everything he owns (if he fails, his right-hand man Noah warns him, he will lose everything. “I won’t,” is Hughes’ reply). And we watch him turn out to be right again and again, whether it’s in making his amazingly over budget and wildly successful World War II epic “Hell’s Angels” or developing the biggest airplane ever built and proving to the world that it can fly. He collects famous and beautiful women, from Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale) to Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett), but isn’t able to keep any of them. Gardner, level-headed and practical, refuses to be bought with gifts and says he’s “too crazy” for her; Hepburn is too similar to him, and anyway once she met Spencer Tracy, the rest was history.
Scorsese has a knack for pulling intense and deeply authentic performances from his actors, and “The Aviator” is no exception. Between this and his last film with Scorsese, “Gangs of New York,” DiCaprio is well on his way to fulfilling the promise he showed eleven years ago when he first hit the big screen. He plays Hughes as a deeply driven man – but also a deeply difficult and problematic one. DiCaprio also has the courage to let himself be ugly both physically (Hughes was terribly scarred by a brutal plane crash) and emotionally (there’s something crushing about seeing a man who can stand up to a Senatorial committee becoming wrapped up in all the little rituals of a compulsive disorder).
“The Aviator” is a terrific film, by turns exciting, comic, inspiring, and tragic. The cinematography is lush and enthralling, and the actors inhabit their roles so effortlessly that it’s easy to forget they’re actors and just enjoy the story. It may not be your thing if you’re interested in mindless entertainment – it’s a character study – but it’s well worth seeing if you love movies about larger-than-life people.