Good but surprisingly uncompelling

Rating: 7/10 (23 September 2005)

Much of this film didn't make sense until I watched some of the associated documentaries on the second features DVD. Now I see that many of the scenes are recreations of documented events in Hughes' life.
Visually the film is attractive and DiCaprio does a credible job of living the role, but there is little plot or story and overall it tends to drag. I'm fascinated by planes and the history of aviation, so halfway through the film I was surprised to find I was completely uninvolved with this narrative. The story wakes up a little during the congressional hearings, with DiCaprio sparring against Alda - just sufficiently to keep me hanging on to the end.