The Aviator (2004)

A biopic depicting the early years of legendary director and aviator Howard Hughes' career, from the late 1920s to the mid-1940s.

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writer:

John Logan

Stars:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale

Won 5 Oscars. Another 55 wins & 70 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Howard Hughes
Cate Blanchett	...	Katharine Hepburn
Kate Beckinsale	...	Ava Gardner
John C. Reilly	...	Noah Dietrich
Alec Baldwin	...	Juan Trippe
Alan Alda	...	Senator Ralph Owen Brewster
Ian Holm	...	Professor Fitz
Danny Huston	...	Jack Frye
Gwen Stefani	...	Jean Harlow
Jude Law	...	Errol Flynn
Adam Scott	...	Johnny Meyer
Matt Ross	...	Glenn Odekirk
Kelli Garner	...	Faith Domergue
Frances Conroy	...	Mrs. Hepburn
Brent Spiner	...	Robert Gross

Storyline

The script begins as a young Hughes directs one of Scorsese's favorite films, Hell's Angels. Hughes was so obsessed with perfection in the aerial sequences that he waits forever for perfect conditions, right down to cloud formations. The Aviator ends in 1946, when Hughes was still a dashing young man and romancing actresses like Ava Gardner and Katharine Hepburn.

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Plot Keywords:

aviation | spruce goose | 1920s | phobia | inventor | 

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Taglines:

Cate Blanchett as Katherine Hepburn the star who stole his heart.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, nudity, language and a crash sequence

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

El aviador

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$110,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$629,474 (Japan) (25 March 2005)

Gross:

$102,608,827 (USA) (27 May 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Forward Pass, Appian Way, IMF Internationale Medien und Film GmbH & Co. 3. Produktions KG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

170 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In preparation for her role as Katharine Hepburn, Cate Blanchett learned to play tennis and golf and took cold showers, something Hepburn is known for.

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Goofs

When the Spruce Goose first gets airborne, two members of the crew stationed behind the cockpit can be seen briefly exchanging a high five.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Allene Hughes: Q-u-a-r-a-n-t-i-n-e.
Young Howard Hughes: Quarantine. Q-u-a-r-a-n-t-i-n-e. Quarantine.

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Crazy Credits

There are two different Panavision credits used: the "Filmed with Panavision Cameras and Lenses" credit, and after that, the "Filmed in Panavision" credit, despite being shot in Super 35.

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Connections

References King Kong (1933)

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Soundtracks

"Stardust"
(1929)
Music by Hoagy Carmichael
Lyrics by Mitchell Parish
Performed by Vince Giordano and His Nighthawks Orchestra

User Reviews

A GREAT American TRAGEDY

This is an astonishingly beautiful and moving film. Martin Scorcese has created a seminal work -- one that brings the harrowing, big-studio, adult movie making of the 1970's and totally reinvents and reinvigorates it for today's audience.

The story traces the rise and demise of billionaire Howard Hughes as he struggles to find meaning and purpose in a life unfettered by concerns of money, talent or opportunity. Whether trying to get a plane off the ground or a young starlet into bed, Hughes attacks life with a fierce gusto -- plagued and prodded by obsessive compulsive germphobia that constantly threatens to consume and defeat him.

DiCaprio is amazing! It's the performance no one thought he was capable of. It is a dynamic, smart, funny, articulate, intense, mature and ultimately harrowing performance that relaunches his career as one of American's finest actors. At the end of the film, you just want to take him in your arms and sob. It's really that good.

Cate Blanchett is incredible as Katherine Hepburn. At first, I was a little thrown by how bravely she attacked the Hepburn trademark voice, but I was completely won over by the second line. It is a tender, funny, incredibly convincing star turn that supplies the heart for the first half of the film. The scene where she takes Howard home "for dinner" with the family is a classic! Kate Beckinsale does a surprisingly fine job with Eva Gardner -- conveying the slow burning passion of this Hollywood icon without ever lapsing into mere mimicry.

But, in the end, this isn't a love story -- it's a war story -- a war between Howard's unstoppable will and his fierce inner demons battling for Howard's soul. It is the major relationship in the movie and the true heart of the film -- one that fuels his eccentric genius and yet constantly threatens to rip his life apart. He tries to ignore it by sleeping with every beauty in town. He tries to outrun it, building faster and faster airplanes. Yet, it is his one constant companion from early childhood to his ultimate, inescapable end. And it is this relationship that leaves you devastated at the end of the film.

Brilliant!