The Aviator is a biopic about the aviation magnate and Hollywood
director Howard Hughes. With Leonardo Di Caprio in the title role, Martin
Scorsese directing it, and a supporting cast including Cate Blanchett, Alec
Baldwin, Kate Beckinsale and John C. Reilly, I was really looking forward to
watching it.
Howard Hughes starts out as a director, and produces a few very
successful films. Early on we see that he is completely devoted to this, and
has a really need to get every aspect of his production as perfect as possible.
This manifests later as profound obsessive compulsive disorder, but the early
signs are there once you watch it back. After a very successful directing
career he marries a woman (Cate Blanchett), but his successful lifestyle soon
begins to causes their marriage problems. Hughes starts to focus on aviation
and buys a large share of an airline company. Breaking a number of airspeed
records, and experiencing a number of horrific crashes, Howard Hughes soon
becomes a massive influence on aviation but then the cracks start to appear.
His life becomes thrust into the public eye more and he becomes paranoid and
compulsive. He is then investigated by the Senate and manages to defend himself
successfully. However at the end of the film his compulsions become worse and
the film end with him repeated ‘the way of the future’ over and over.
Scorsese is an absolute genius in my opinion, and has directed
some of my favourite ever films. While The Aviator does not quite make the list,
it is a very good film, and is fantastically made. For example, all the
aeroplane scenes were shot using scale models because of the criticism that
Pearl Harbor received for using CGI. This makes the film more of a spectacle,
and makes it seem a lot more realistic. Scorsese’s impressive attention to
detail shines through as well. For example, he made Cate Blanchett watch all
the film that her character Katharine Hepburn had starred in up to the point of
filming so that she could perfect her mannerisms. Not being particularly
knowledgeable about Hepburn’s films, I can’t say whether or not Blanchett does
a good job, but the level of devotion to perfection that Scorsese has (and
indeed that Hughes had), is a hallmark of the best directors.
Di Caprio is wonderful to watch as the main character Howard
Hughes. I really like him as an actor, and as a person, and think that The
Aviator marks another example of his impressive skills. His perfection of the
obsessive compulsive mannerisms of Hughes is brilliant, and while I don’t know
how true to Hughes they are, he is very convincing when he displays them. Di
Caprio conveys the fill range of emotions that Hughes experiences in the film
with immense precision. When he is directing the films there is a sense of tension
when something hasn’t gone perfectly, and when Hell’s Angels premiere’s the
anxiety Di Caprio shows in anticipation of the audience’s reaction permeated
through the screen (although that might just be me getting weird). He seems
completely comfortable in the cockpit of an aeroplane, and Di Caprio’s ability
to turn this joy and elation into sheer panic so convincingly completes the
tension of the crash scenes. Since 2002, Di Caprio has appeared in all but one
of Scorsese’s films and, given time, this could become as iconic a pairing as
De Niro and Scorsese. Di Caprio’s acting stock is definitely on the increase,
and The Aviator is just one example of why.
Although, it is not a film
that is completely made by Di Caprio, and the supporting cast add an awful lot
to the impact of the film. Cate Blanchett is fantastic as Hughes’ first wife,
and manages her accent perfectly throughout the film. Her relationship with
Hughes is intriguing. Although they may grow apart, when she comes to visit him
in his isolation there is a sense that the chemistry is still there. Alec
Baldwin plays Hughes’ main rival Juan Trippe, the chairman of Pan Am airways.
His determination to impede the progress of the protagonist makes him a
dislikable character in the film, and this is only compounded by the influence
he has over the politicians. No-one seems to want to help Hughes succeed except
those who he employs. Even then Hughes is suspicious of nearly everyone around
him. Alec Baldwin comes to represent the people plotting against Hughes and the
eventual defeat of the Senate investigation is one of the best moments of the
film. A quick mention must also go to John C. Reilly. When I reviewed Carnage I
think I mentioned how strange it was not to see him in a comedy role, and once
again in The Aviator it felt a bit odd. However, he does very well and seems to
be forging himself a more serious acting career. All the evidence so far
suggests that this can only be a good thing.
The Aviator is not a high powered, joy-filled, rollercoaster of a
film. It does have its ups and its downs in terms of keeping the audience’s
interest. However, as with any biopic, it is an opportunity to find out a
little bit more about something new, and if you get into it, it is thoroughly
enjoyable. It is very long (just short of three hours), but if you have the
patience to sit down and engage with it, I think it will be well worth your
time.
Other films starring Leonardo Di Caprio
Django Unchained - http://mattsthoughtsonmovies.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/django-unchained.html
The Great Gatsby - http://mattsthoughtsonmovies.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/the-great-gatsby.html
Other films directed by Martin Scorsese
Another Scorsese-Di Caprio film
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