The Aviator [DVD]

I saw this movie, not really expecting it to live up to it's unpublicised hype as usually when a film gets the critics attention it is well made but boring. This movie gripped me from the start to the end and was without a doubt the best film I've seen in years. In fact, I would not go to the cinema for weeks after because I knew that nothing could live up to it. The portrayal of obsessive compulsive Hughes was matched by the obsessive compulsive filming. Look out for the colours being changed in the nightclub to emphasise the blue and red on the screen (including blue peas). Admire the Art Deco attention to detail even on stairwells and floors. I was all set to hate Cate Blanchett as Katherine Hepburn but she was brilliant and very convincing - you forgot she was Cate. The time flew through this movie and I could happily have watched the rest of Hughes story. It inspired me to find out more about Howard Hughes and found some even more wonderful stories about him - I wanted more...

I am not a Di Caprio fan but I have to be fair - he reallygave a 100 % into this role.There was a mini series called ' The Amazing Howard Hughes ' andTommy Lee Jones played Howard Hughes and he played a less sympatheticHughes compared to Di Caprio.The Aviator was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, and won five, including Best Supporting Actress for Cate Blanchett. It also won the BAFTA Award for Best Film.Cate Blanchett { who I have never really been a fan of } was Outstanding and it was a joy to see her and she stole every scene.Now I don't have a clue if there will be a Aviator II or Aviator III but this does cry out for a sequel.

I really enjoyed this movie, not only because its a great scorsese film but because of the amazing picture and perfect sound. Obviously, its a relatively new film, so you would expect the audio to be spot on, but many of my blu rays are audio set in such a way that you have to turn up the volume when there is dialogue, but then quickly turn it down again when an action scene commences. This was not the case with The Aviator, I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish.Well that's the film, now the extras.There just as good as the film. On the same disc as the film, they include much more than written on the back of the blu ray itself, including a great documentary about Howard Hughes (DiCaprio's character), and commentary from Scorsese and many more actors and producers.So you ask, Why only four stars? Well, when I recieved this blu ray through the post I noticed the plastic (that holds the poster/information/front cover picture) was slightly damaged on the spine of the case, don't know whether it happened during delivery or was sent it that condition, but whatever the reason, it has lost one star.Apart from that, a great film, great picture and sound quality and great extras, don't think twice!!!

I watched this film twice back to back , admittedly i had seen it at the cinema , and think it is better suited to a large screen showing , i thought Scorcese,s interpretation was brilliant , resonant of a "old style film " every scene has a purpose , basically to give you an insight into the genius of Howard Hughes , i dont think that is an exagerration as his combination of business acumen , vision,and sheer daring , must amount to genius .he would override his best emgineers when insisting on some aspect of aeroplane design , he put his money where his mouth was , and when it came to putting his ideas to the test , he was the first one to take the plane for a test flight !likewise in business he would morgatge his entire wealth on some businees venture .the film also shows his ruthless streak with anyone that crossed him .And then when all seemed invincible, his descent into madness .For me such an examination of a fascinating life was simply gripping .My favourite film of 2005;-)

Every 3rd or 4th film by the marvellous director Martin Scorsese is an 'Epic' type of production - this is one of his more recent efforts, dating from 2004, and is dedicated to (try) and cover the life and times of the eccentric/reclusive, 'multifaceted', tycoon Howard Hughes (1905-1976).On Blu-ray, everything is as sharp and vibrant as one could hope for to depict the wide variety of scenic surroundings and action shots/'machinery' associated with the earlier life of Hughes (as his later years were when he became a true recluse). The sound presentation is also very good, as it needs to be for what is often an active soundtrack.Although it is now that I would normally want to give some detail about the film subject matter, I feel I have to cover more of my observations about the presentation 'early' as one factor is so significant.and that is the colour palette used for the first 1/3 or so of the film.....For me, I found the massively cyan-biased colouring of the picture utilised for such a large portion of the film (and especially as it is at the beginning) a HUGE turn-off; it is so OTT and distracting that it almost made me stop watching - the impression is that unpleasant. It is bad in the same way that the J.J. Abrams film 'Star Trek' is spoilt by the regular injection of false lens flare and light strobes/streaks - made worse as it is, unlike this film, never-ending...I don't really care what justification Scorsese had for doing it (and apparently he explains his reasoning on the disc commentary), it is just so OTT it unnecessarily spoils things. I've included some screencaps to try and give some idea of my observation...However, it did not sway the opinions of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as one of the 5 Oscars this film won was for 'Best Cinematography' (no corresponding BAFTA though....).The Amazon synopsis for this film on this webpage describes the aim of this biopic very well.Not that it is really possible to ignore my earlier criticism, in all other respects this film is a good watch with good structure, acting performances, expansive sets and competent use of CGI; all essential ingredients for the subject-matter and lengthy running time ! The soundtrack is English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1.Despite not being as well-furnished as some Blu-ray releases in other countries, this disc is still quite well specified on the extras front, with that Scorsese commentary and many featurettes with a combined running time not that far short of that of the feature film !The Amazon synopsis lists them all for you, handy as my inclusion of a photo of the back of the disc box shows it doesn't do that as well.....So, as long as you can withstand that artistry 'blue period' of the (substantial) first portion of the film you will hopefully eventually be won over by the other more positive aspects of this production and perhaps be a little wiser about the intricacies, major influences and ultimately the legacies of the flawed genius that was Howard Hughes.