Howard Hughes

Howard Hughes

I saw The Aviator in the cinemas yesterday. It runs around 3 hrs (it was a pre-premiere, and noone told us this, so most people were surprised), but it is quite interesting, and not only historically. Though I’d never heard about Howard Hughes before (which seems weird, considering the kind of person he was), which might have increased the fascination-factor a bit for me.

I also generally don’t like Leo much as an actor, but I’m beginning to realize that it’s mainly because of his boyish looks (which rob him of any chance af appearing credible and believable in most roles). With Gangs of New York and The Aviator, I’ve tried to focus on his actual acting skills more, and must admit that they are not bad (nothing near the diverse abilities of Johnny Depp, IMO, but still).

[SLIGHT SPOILER ALERT]I have no idea how close The Aviator comes to actually depicting the personality of Howard Hughes (still need to investigate), but the scenes in which he appears a delusional and manic hypochondriac are in some ways similar to how Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas intertwine shots that actually happen with images which are obviously a figment of someone’s distorted mind. This also made me think of Leonardo DiCaprio’s extreme performances in The Basketball Diaries and Romeo+Juliet.[/SPOILER OFF]

All in all, I think this is a fine picture. In any case, I’m still thinking about it, and usually that means I’m going to end up keeping it as a favorite and speak about it to others (for a while), Which Is Good. Apart from that, it just won three Golden Globes (best drama picture, best actor, best score) – though the importance and relevance of such an event can certainly be challenged.