The Aviator

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3:03

The Aviator

PG-13

2004

2h 46m

Biography

History

Drama

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Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

227 Reviews

79%

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100,000+ Ratings

Billionaire and aviation tycoon Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a successful public figure: a director of big-budget Hollywood films such as "Hell's Angels," a passionate lover of Hollywood leading ladies Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett) and Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale), and an aviation pioneer who helps build TWA into a major airline. But in private, Hughes remains tormented, suffering from paralyzing phobias and depression. The higher he rises, the farther has to fall.

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Critics Consensus

With a rich sense of period detail, The Aviator succeeds thanks to typically assured direction from Martin Scorsese and a strong performance from Leonardo DiCaprio, who charts Howard Hughes' descent from eccentric billionaire to reclusive madman.

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Namrata Joshi

Outlook

01/08/2019

2/4

The Aviator does make for a rather fascinating and compelling stand-alone story about an industrious, fastidious, obsessive man...

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/28/2010

3/5

Good but not great, and not for younger kids.

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Richard Corliss

TIME Magazine

02/03/2010

This handsome movie is an oddly well-behaved one to come from the preternaturally energetic Scorsese.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Nov 22

3.5/4

At its best, the movie is a stirring tale about a man whose inner drive allowed him to climb ever higher, grazing the heavens before his inner demons seized the controls and forced the inevitable, dreary descent.

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Dave Giannini

InSession Film

02/20/2024

Leonardo DiCaprio and Cate Blanchett respectively light up the screen when they are together.

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KT Mahe

For Your Reference Podcast

02/15/2024

3/5

The Aviator is an adequate biopic lead by capable performers but the exhilaration sped to puberty level sensuality and hollow thrills.

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John Y.

@JYJr16 Dec 18

Scorsese and DiCaprio together again. Great supporting cast. A Citizen Kane type story for the 21st century.

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Dawn W

@dwolff4 Dec 15

Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator is a lavish, psychologically incisive biopic that chronicles Howard Hughes’s brilliance and self-destruction with operatic intensity. Eschewing a conventional celebration of genius, Scorsese embraces Hughes’s contradictions, depicting his obsessive-compulsive disorder as both a driving force behind his innovations and a source of profound personal torment. DiCaprio delivers a mesmerizing performance, capturing Hughes’s charm, ambition, and unraveling psyche with exacting nuance, while Blanchett’s Oscar-winning portrayal of Katharine Hepburn adds intelligence and emotional counterbalance. The film’s visual design is evocative of early Hollywood glamour through a two-strip Technicolor palette underscores a world built on illusion and meticulous control. Beyond its biographical narrative, The Aviator meditates on the cost of obsession and the fragile line between triumph and personal decay, solidifying itself as one of Scorsese’s most ambitious works.

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Aidan F.

@MrAidanCinema Aug 29

very good DiCaprio movie. Great performances and depictions of the real life Howard Hughes and the 1930’s/40’s era. great effects and storytelling. The last act of the movie was my favorite part. Overall very enjoyable watch. A little long for my liking but it is a Scorsese film anyway.

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Tyler S

@tylerking24 Aug 28

I mean, it was fine. I was honestly hoping I'd really like this, but I was just like, "meh." This was the movie that made me realize Leonardo DiCaprio is slightly overrated (hot take idk). I was really excited for where we were going in the first bit of the movie. Then I was less interested after like an hour. Still thought it was solid, just nothing great.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Aug 13

Success in 02 hours, 50 minutes, and 15 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated PG-13 for Language, Crash Sequence, Nudity, Sexual Content and Thematic Elements!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $102,600,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Larry K

@Larrymoses39 Aug 7

Was not expecting that. Leo is the GOAT

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Martin Scorsese

Director

Leonardo DiCaprio

Howard Hughes

Cate Blanchett

Katharine Hepburn

Kate Beckinsale

Ava Gardner

John C. Reilly

Noah Dietrich

Alec Baldwin

Juan Trippe

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The Aviator: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Billionaire and aviation tycoon Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a successful public figure: a director of big-budget Hollywood films such as "Hell's Angels," a passionate lover of Hollywood leading ladies Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett) and Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale), and an aviation pioneer who helps build TWA into a major airline. But in private, Hughes remains tormented, suffering from paralyzing phobias and depression. The higher he rises, the farther has to fall.

Director: Martin Scorsese
Producer: Michael Mann, Chris Brigham, Sandy Climan, Leonardo DiCaprio, Charles Evans Jr., Graham King
Screenwriter: John Logan
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Initial Entertainment Group, Warner Brothers, Appian Way, Miramax Films, Forward Pass, Cappa Productions
Rating: PG-13 (Language|Crash Sequence|Nudity|Sexual Content|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Biography, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 25, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 19, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $102.6M
Runtime: 2h 46m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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