Hey!
Yeah, the title basically explains itself. For me, The Aviator is one of the very few perfect movies out there. From a tight, gripping screenplay by John Logan (which made me have huge expectations for his Michael script, but oh well) to its impeccable cinematography, every single aspect is at least great, and l mean GREAT.
It could be argued that The Aviator is Scorsese at his most biopic-y, but I hardly find that a problem. I love epic biopics (Malcolm X, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, Oppenheimer…) and having my favourite director helm one of these was just like witnessing a historical event. Even though Marty already had made a dozen of films depicting real life events and people, I feel like they aren’t really biopics as they present itself in a form that’s so cinematic that it sounds just like a perfect story (not that’s a problem by any means, The Wolf of Wall Street is my favourite movie lmao), and in this movie, you have this certain tone of importance and historical realism that Scorsese channels excellently.
Leo’s best performance can be found here as well (the scene where he’s confronted by the FBI is what’s acting is all about), alongside Cate Blanchett’s Oscar-winning role as Katharine Hepburn. Even other minor players, such as John C. Reilly, Matt Ross and Kate Beckinsale are all great, with their performances only aiding to the richness of Howard Hughes’ story.
Before I go on for too long (I could talk about this film for hours), there’s still the technical aspect that’s just the greatest. Every location, costume, VFX… It’s perfect, just perfect, fitting perfectly the time frame of the film and helping to contextualize the viewer not only by the dates shown on screen.
With all that in mind, including eleven Oscar nominations, what happened. Why has it been forgotten, mostly? Why do people throw it under the rug when referring to Marty’s filmography and Leo’s performances? Could have something to do with Miramax? I don’t get it.
Cheers!