The Aviator

A Man and His Beautiful and Troubled Mind

Howard Hughes. The man, the myth, the legend, has just set out to direct one of the most famous aviator war films of all time, Hell’s Angels. Hughes is obsessed with the film and won’t release it to the public until it’s the picture (literally) of perfection. But it pays off, makes him millions and Hughes invests most of it in building the airline empire, TWA. He spends all of his time competing with PANAM monopoly CEO Juan Trippe, womanizing in various clubs, and fighting off the demons of OCD and/or paranoid schizophrenia. A lifetime spent with millions, famous actresses by his side, and all the success in the world, but will this buy Howard Hughes the happiness he seek?

Hello Howard Hughes, nice to meet you. I literally had never heard of this man, which surprised me because of how fascinating he was! However, I’m going to say right off the bat that The Aviator was quite a bore fest to me. The movie starts off with Howard as a boy, telling his mother that he was going to grow up and make planes and be rich. Cut to the next scene and it’s him making Hell’s Angels, ordering people around with a seemingly endless supply of money. How did he get all of his riches? Don’t look to the movie for answers because you won’t get them. I did like the 1930’s and 40’s feel, what with the cars, costumes, speakeasies, and the special cinematography that gave the movie that dusty gray look—know what I mean? Also, Cate Blanchett received an Academy award for her performance as Katherine Hepburn, hmmm. Didn’t get that one. Leo DiCaprio did a pretty good job playing Hughes, I wonder if he lost his own mind whilst playing such a troubled on-screen mind! Bottom line on this film is that 70% of the movie is about Hughes’ mental troubles and 30% about the actual aviation theme. So just don’t expect a lot from this film and you might find you’ll really enjoy it!

Motherly Advice: I watched The Aviator with my filters on medium and was quite surprised by how clean the film was. There were several thousand swear words that were cleared out so I think that’s where the PG-13 rating comes from. The scenes where they were in the clubs, you’ll see some scantily clad women, drinking, and smoking. The film deals with a lot of Howard Hughes’ mental illness which I’m not sure if the younger teens would be interested. It’s clean enough for 13 year olds, but because of the rather complex issues that Hughes deals with, I’d have to recommend this movie for ages 15 and up. (And all Psychology gurus).

Trisha - Fascinated with Hughes’ beautiful mind.

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, nudity, language and a crash sequence; 170 min; Directed by Martin Scorsese