The Aviator (2004)

Directed by: Martin Scorsese | 170 minutes | drama, romance | Actors: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly, Alec Baldwin, Alan Alda, Ian Holm, Danny Huston, Gwen Stefani, Jude Law, Adam Scott

American legend Howard Hughes made a name for himself as a film producer, industrialist, aircraft pioneer and conqueror of many actresses. Unfortunately, this visionary and entrepreneur was also a mentally vulnerable man, which caused him to withdraw from society and end up as a crazy hermit. This quintessentially American phenomenon has inspired many a director to film his colorful life, from The amazing Howard Hughes to the renowned ‘Citizen Kane’, although the latter was based on a combination of Hughes and William Randolph Hearst. Now such an American legend, director Martin Scorsese, has ventured into the life story of Hughes. With reasonable results.

‘The Aviator’ focuses on the period 1927-1947, from the production of the film ‘Hell’s Angels’ to the maiden flight of the flying behemoth The Hercules. In the intervening period, we witness the business and amorous pastimes of Hughes, and see how a hostile outside world drove the lone genius ever crazier.

As we can expect from Scorsese, the film is an example of cinematographic mastery. Editing, lighting, script, music, sets, effects, everything is equally well taken care of, with Scorsese approaching Howard Hughes’ obsessive perfectionism nicely. The acting is also top-notch. While there was some skepticism beforehand, Leonardo DiCaprio turns out to be a perfect Hughes, with that curious combination of charm, madness, intelligence and childish stubbornness. The other actors also do well, with the highlights being Cate Blanchett as Katherine Hepburn and Alec Baldwin as Juan Trippe, Hughes’ rival of Pan American Airlines.

Yet the film has not become a grand and compelling masterpiece. This is mainly because this is a piece of pure American history. The acted versions of Hollywood icons Katherine Hepburn, Ava Gardner and Erroll Flynn won’t thrill most moviegoers, while the political wrangling between PanAm and TWA will only appeal to aviation fanatics. Furthermore, Howard Hughes’ character hardly lends itself to identification. The genius lived in his own universe and as a spectator you can do very little with that. It doesn’t contain much more than a shred of pity and that makes this film too intellectual an exercise.

So is ‘The Aviator’ a bad movie? Absolutely not. Everything about the production oozes class and it will undoubtedly rain Oscar nominations for Scorsese and his partners. For DiCaprio, this production will probably open the door to real character roles and based on this film, that is fully deserved. But it remains doubtful whether the European public will fall en masse for this lesson of American cultural history and for that crazy guy in his flying behemoth.