Recently Seen: The Aviator
Martin Scorcese is a master of the language of film. He understands the possibilities of cinema and brings this faith in the medium to every film that he makes. This does not always result in great movies, but a Martin Scorcese movie will always be authentic and innovative.
The Aviator is not a great Scorcese film, but it is a perfectly fine one. It tells the tale of Howard Hughes (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), one of the great originals of 20th Century America. Hughes was one of the richest men in the world. He led an eventful life, finding success in the glitzy world of film-making and blazing a path in the early days of commercial and military aviation. This dual career was dazzling and all the more amazing because Hughes was obsessive about both pursuits, although flying was always his most enduring love (hence The Aviator, and not The Producer). Hughes was also to die a recluse, having been mentally ill for years.
The movie traces Hughes's life in the 1920's up to 1946, ending with a triumphant maiden flight for the Hercules, his flying boat that had seemed earth-bound and been laughingly called the Spruce Goose. But this is not a feel-good biopic. Early on, we learn that Hughes sees things that others do not and his OCD driven tics are also revealed gradually but surely. We know that this is not just an eccentric millionaire genius, but a mentally troubled man, driven by demons he could not understand,
Perhaps the reason why this is not a great film is that we do not understand these demons either. We do not really understand Hughes and as such, we cannot empathise with him, although we may sympathise and even root for him. I suppose this could be a problem that was not within the film-makers' powers to resolve. In choosing Hughes as a subject, they had to work with a character about whose inner motivations little was known.
What they did have was a man who lived a colourful life, who did many interesting things and knew many interesting people. The film is about these events in Hughes's life and about Hughes's relationships with the people he knew. As these are enacted, Scorcese weaves in scenes to show us Hughes's mental decline, some of which are masterful film-making (I particularly liked the scene in the men's washroom when Hughes scrubs his hands and uses up all the towels and then finds himself unable to place his bare hand on the doorknob). There are also several well produced aviation set pieces, including one where Hughes crashes into a house and burns three quarters of his body. The music is wonderful, drawing on popular songs from the period, with very clever jazzy, big-band sounds serving as background music to several scenes. Visually, this is also a marvelous looking film and as always with a Scorcese picture, the attention to period detail is fantastic.
The movie depicts the events very well, but is less successful in depicting the relationships. Because the movie is so centred around Hughes, we do not learn much about the people around him or what they might have thought of him. The movie shows his relationship with two very famous women, Katherine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett) and Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale). Hepburn, in particular is featured prominently but always in relation to Hughes. The male characters fare rather better. We know without equivocation what rival airline owner, Juan Trippe (Alec Baldwin) thinks of Hughes and the spikiness of their relationship is obvious from the moment Trippe first shows up on screen. Senator Ralph Owen Brewster (Alan Alda) launches an investigation in Hughes's dealings with the US Military. The interaction between Hughes and the Senator is the highlight of the movie for me. I wonder why it was that the characterisations of the women in his life could not be so balanced and well-fleshed out.
The acting has many hits but also a few misses. Leonardo Dicaprio is an intelligent actor who immerses himself in this role. He has several wonderful scenes and was especially convincing as a man in the grip of destructive phobia. However, as a whole, the performance is more admirable than laudatory. Perhaps it has to do with Dicaprio's ridiculously youthful appearance, which no amount of dishevelledness could cover. He just seemed rather light-weight in moments which called for greater gravity. That said, he has to carry the show as he is in almost all the scenes and he more than pulled his weight on this difficult project.
Cate Blanchett won an Oscar for her supporting role as Kate Hepburn. She perfectly reproduces Hepburn's singular speech patterns, physical traits and archness. It is something of a marvel to watch and listen to, because she did look and sound so much like Hepburn in her earlier movies (sidenote: In this period of Hepburn's life, she made Bringing Up Baby, which is a great, funny film). I understand why some critics had said that this was impersonation and mimicry, rather than acting. But I blame this on the role, which gives Blanchett little to work with. She is on screen a lot, but usually as a cipher for Hughes's latest display of eccentricity. I have read a couple of biographies on Kate Hepburn and she was a fascinating woman, not just a great actress but fiercely intelligent and independent. Her family background itself could make for a mini-series, with her parent's socialist leanings, her siblings' overachievements and her mother's activism in the suffragette movement. It is a pity that the movie could not give Blanchett a chance to play a more multi-faceted Hepburn. Taken on the terms of what she had to do, this was a very fine performance indeed.
Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner, on the other hand, was bland and did not register much. She looked gorgeous, but not at all like Ava Gardner who was sensuous and beautiful in a very unconventional manner, with her slanting cat eyes and full lips. Beckinsale is a much more mainstream beauty, so this was a visual mismatch.
Alan Alda was nominated for an Oscar and it was justified, in my opinion. His performance is very understated and edged with a guarded wariness. He does not have any big histrionic scene, but he makes an impact in all the scenes he appears in. His jousting with Dicaprio during the hearing is a highlight of the movie. Alda palpaby conveys the Senator's deflation and crumbling confidence as he senses the tide turning towards Hughes.
My favourite of the supporting roles is Hughes's long suffering assistant, Noah played very well by John C Reilly. I wished he had been given a few more scenes as Reilly made this beleagured man so sympathetic and likeable.
This is a very respectable movie indeed, with fine acting, great production values and Scorcese's trademark sure-handed direction. The technique and technicalities are superb, and while the artistry is not at the same high levels, this is fine film-making. The movie falls short of greatness but is a valuable addition to the film vaults.
Movie rating: 7.5 out of 10.
The Aviator is not a great Scorcese film, but it is a perfectly fine one. It tells the tale of Howard Hughes (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), one of the great originals of 20th Century America. Hughes was one of the richest men in the world. He led an eventful life, finding success in the glitzy world of film-making and blazing a path in the early days of commercial and military aviation. This dual career was dazzling and all the more amazing because Hughes was obsessive about both pursuits, although flying was always his most enduring love (hence The Aviator, and not The Producer). Hughes was also to die a recluse, having been mentally ill for years.
The movie traces Hughes's life in the 1920's up to 1946, ending with a triumphant maiden flight for the Hercules, his flying boat that had seemed earth-bound and been laughingly called the Spruce Goose. But this is not a feel-good biopic. Early on, we learn that Hughes sees things that others do not and his OCD driven tics are also revealed gradually but surely. We know that this is not just an eccentric millionaire genius, but a mentally troubled man, driven by demons he could not understand,
Perhaps the reason why this is not a great film is that we do not understand these demons either. We do not really understand Hughes and as such, we cannot empathise with him, although we may sympathise and even root for him. I suppose this could be a problem that was not within the film-makers' powers to resolve. In choosing Hughes as a subject, they had to work with a character about whose inner motivations little was known.
What they did have was a man who lived a colourful life, who did many interesting things and knew many interesting people. The film is about these events in Hughes's life and about Hughes's relationships with the people he knew. As these are enacted, Scorcese weaves in scenes to show us Hughes's mental decline, some of which are masterful film-making (I particularly liked the scene in the men's washroom when Hughes scrubs his hands and uses up all the towels and then finds himself unable to place his bare hand on the doorknob). There are also several well produced aviation set pieces, including one where Hughes crashes into a house and burns three quarters of his body. The music is wonderful, drawing on popular songs from the period, with very clever jazzy, big-band sounds serving as background music to several scenes. Visually, this is also a marvelous looking film and as always with a Scorcese picture, the attention to period detail is fantastic.
The movie depicts the events very well, but is less successful in depicting the relationships. Because the movie is so centred around Hughes, we do not learn much about the people around him or what they might have thought of him. The movie shows his relationship with two very famous women, Katherine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett) and Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale). Hepburn, in particular is featured prominently but always in relation to Hughes. The male characters fare rather better. We know without equivocation what rival airline owner, Juan Trippe (Alec Baldwin) thinks of Hughes and the spikiness of their relationship is obvious from the moment Trippe first shows up on screen. Senator Ralph Owen Brewster (Alan Alda) launches an investigation in Hughes's dealings with the US Military. The interaction between Hughes and the Senator is the highlight of the movie for me. I wonder why it was that the characterisations of the women in his life could not be so balanced and well-fleshed out.
The acting has many hits but also a few misses. Leonardo Dicaprio is an intelligent actor who immerses himself in this role. He has several wonderful scenes and was especially convincing as a man in the grip of destructive phobia. However, as a whole, the performance is more admirable than laudatory. Perhaps it has to do with Dicaprio's ridiculously youthful appearance, which no amount of dishevelledness could cover. He just seemed rather light-weight in moments which called for greater gravity. That said, he has to carry the show as he is in almost all the scenes and he more than pulled his weight on this difficult project.
Cate Blanchett won an Oscar for her supporting role as Kate Hepburn. She perfectly reproduces Hepburn's singular speech patterns, physical traits and archness. It is something of a marvel to watch and listen to, because she did look and sound so much like Hepburn in her earlier movies (sidenote: In this period of Hepburn's life, she made Bringing Up Baby, which is a great, funny film). I understand why some critics had said that this was impersonation and mimicry, rather than acting. But I blame this on the role, which gives Blanchett little to work with. She is on screen a lot, but usually as a cipher for Hughes's latest display of eccentricity. I have read a couple of biographies on Kate Hepburn and she was a fascinating woman, not just a great actress but fiercely intelligent and independent. Her family background itself could make for a mini-series, with her parent's socialist leanings, her siblings' overachievements and her mother's activism in the suffragette movement. It is a pity that the movie could not give Blanchett a chance to play a more multi-faceted Hepburn. Taken on the terms of what she had to do, this was a very fine performance indeed.
Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner, on the other hand, was bland and did not register much. She looked gorgeous, but not at all like Ava Gardner who was sensuous and beautiful in a very unconventional manner, with her slanting cat eyes and full lips. Beckinsale is a much more mainstream beauty, so this was a visual mismatch.
Alan Alda was nominated for an Oscar and it was justified, in my opinion. His performance is very understated and edged with a guarded wariness. He does not have any big histrionic scene, but he makes an impact in all the scenes he appears in. His jousting with Dicaprio during the hearing is a highlight of the movie. Alda palpaby conveys the Senator's deflation and crumbling confidence as he senses the tide turning towards Hughes.
My favourite of the supporting roles is Hughes's long suffering assistant, Noah played very well by John C Reilly. I wished he had been given a few more scenes as Reilly made this beleagured man so sympathetic and likeable.
This is a very respectable movie indeed, with fine acting, great production values and Scorcese's trademark sure-handed direction. The technique and technicalities are superb, and while the artistry is not at the same high levels, this is fine film-making. The movie falls short of greatness but is a valuable addition to the film vaults.
Movie rating: 7.5 out of 10.
Labels: Movie Reviews
posted by gentleice the deptfordian at 1:54 AM
<< Home