"The Aviator" will fly forever.

Rating: 10/10 (19 September 2005)

Okay, so "Million Dollar Baby" was great, but I still say that "The Aviator" should have won Best Picture (especially since Martin Scorsese has never won an Oscar). The story of Howard Hughes' (Leonardo DiCaprio) Hollywood years, the movie shows his determination to make "Hell's Angels" at any cost, his love affair with Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett), his persecution by PanAm CEO Juan Trippe (Alec Baldwin) and Sen. Ralph Owen Brewster (Alan Alda), and finally his experience with the Spruce Goose. And we can clearly see how Hughes was getting germ-phobic during these years.
Among other things, it's good to see DiCaprio breaking away from the "Titanic" mold. Further kudos to him for taking on a role as great as this one. "The Aviator" isn't one of those epics that prides itself only on visuals while lacking any real plot; it's all about the story (but then again, Martin Scorsese's movies always have real plots). Like "Gangs of New York", it looks at something that so many people probably wouldn't usually think of.
All in all, kudos to everyone who participated in this movie. Like I said, it deserved Best Picture. Oh well, at least it took home more Oscars than "Million Dollar Baby".