The Aviator (1985)

A 1920s mail pilot and a rich man's daughter crash-land on a mountain full of hungry wolves.

Director:

George Miller

Writers:

Ernest K. Gann (based upon the book by) (as Ernest Gann), Marc Norman (screenplay)

Stars:

Christopher Reeve, Rosanna Arquette, Jack Warden

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christopher Reeve	...	Edgar Anscombe
Rosanna Arquette	...	Tillie Hansen
Jack Warden	...	Moravia
Sam Wanamaker	...	Bruno Hansen
Scott Wilson	...	Jerry Stiller
Tyne Daly	...	Evelyn Stiller
Marcia Strassman	...	Rose Stiller
Will Hare	...	Old Man
Robert Pierce	...	Student Pilot
Glenn Neufeld	...	George Hansen
Frano Lasic	...	Daniel Hansen
Ron Travis	...	Probosky
Jeff Harding	...	Carson
Paul Reid Roman	...	Counterman
Paul Lichtman	...	Customer

Storyline

A 1920s mail pilot and a rich man's daughter crash-land on a mountain full of hungry wolves.

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Plot Keywords:

two word title | army | year 1918 | u.s. mail pilot | texas | 

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Taglines:

He is a veteran pilot, a man who has seen and done it all... But now, for the first time, he has a passenger. And his greatest adventure is about to begin...

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director George Miller once said of the film's aerial sequences: "The special effects on this film were spectacular because we were able to spend a lot of time on the flying sequences." Christopher Reeve has said of them: "My favorite days involved flying, acting, and a little directing as well. A camera would be mounted on the wing, and I would take off with instructions from the director of photography to find a suitable location to film myself on the mail run. The director and crew would hang around the airfield until I returned a couple of hours later."

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Goofs

The Boeing Stearman plane used in the film had his maiden flight in 1936. It can't have flown in the early 1920s.

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Quotes

Moravia: [on the phone] I think that someday the world will be entirely populated with bureaucrats such as yourself because the real people will do away with themselves out of frustration!

User Reviews

A good view of the birth of commercial aviation

Few people know that Christopher Reeve was also an aviation enthusiast who had his own Beechcraft Baron. And he transferred that enthusiasm to his screen persona, an ex WW1 pilot who, scarred by an incident, goes on to flying mail planes in the early 1920s.

Roseanne Arquette played the spoiled rich girl who becomes his first passenger.

They crash land in the Nevada mountains and the rest of the movie concerns their survival and both of their personal transformations.

If you'd like to get a good idea about the birth of commercial flying I'd recommend the movie.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 March 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Aviator

Filming Locations:

Croatia

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,304,192

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,304,192

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Mace Neufeld Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1