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The Aviator features an amazingly large all-star cast, including Kate Beckinsale (Van Helsing) in a small role as Ava Gardner and cameos by Jude Law (Closer) as Errol Flynn, pop star Gwen Stefani as Jean Harlow, singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright as a club singer, and his folk legend father Loudon Wainwright III as another. Matt Ross and the always-reliable John C. Reilly (Chicago) are both good in supporting roles as Hughes' chief aviation engineer and financial consultant, respectively. Both Baldwin and Alda have fun immersing themselves in slimy, Machiavellian roles.

Of course, filmgoers are most curious how the relatively young DiCaprio fares in a movie that requires him in nearly every scene and demands considerable range. Some have said that he is too young and short for the part, but they forget that the actor is now 30 (The Aviator focuses on Hughes from 22 to 42) and 6'1" (only a little shorter than the real Hughes). What people are really objecting to is that DiCaprio is a little too slight and fair for the role. There's some truth to that, as the actor isn't entirely convincing as a man in his 40s, though he becomes a little more believable after growing some facial hair.

Chick rocker Gwen Stefani has a cameo as Jean Harlow

Beyond the physical, DiCaprio delivers the performance of his career—certainly worthy of an Oscar nomination and a strong follow-up to his good work in Gangs of New York and Catch Me if You Can. He's got the charm, arrogance, and mania down for the part, and he successfully carries the picture. Yet just as strong, and perhaps even more memorable, is Blanchett, who delightfully captures Hepburn's bossy mannerisms while convincingly lending the role some much-needed heart.

As for Scorsese, he may be one of the most highly regarded film directors today, but he's yet to win an Oscar or offer a bonafide hit film. Unsavory subjects, heady style, gratuitous R-rated language, and graphic violence have tainted much of his past work and turned off many a filmgoer. The Aviator is probably Scorsese's most accessible movie yet, a true Hollywood biography of impressive scale, combining old-time filmmaking with the director's usually brisk and clipped style. He flexes his cinematic muscle here, offering variation in scope by combining modern CGI for the aerial scenes with beautiful set design that faithfully recreates the Golden Age of Hollywood. Expect the Academy to give Scorsese some overdue honor this year.

Alan Alda is Senator Ralph Owen Brewster, who tries to bring Hughes down

Additionally, the screenplay by John Logan (The Last Samurai, Gladiator) is very well written, helping keep a sprawling historical epic engaging with heart and humor. There are several scenes of memorable dialogue, often infused with laughs. If one Hepburn seems like too much to handle, imagine when Hughes has dinner with six more members of Katharine's candid and aristocratic family. There's also fun in watching Hughes clash with the MPAA over his bawdy western epic The Outlaw, considered risqué for its time. On top of all this, Oscar-winning composer Howard Shore (The Lord of the Rings) delivers another strong score to lend the film extra weight.

Time will tell how much of a classic The Aviator really is, but evaluating it as the sum of its parts, this is indeed likely the frontrunner for the Best Picture Oscar in 2005. It's almost predictable in the way it delivers the cinematic goods, yet there's no denying that it is a compelling and entertaining look at a larger-than-life individual. The movie thankfully sticks to presenting the general facts of Hughes' life, allowing viewers to draw their own conclusions about a wildly successful man who ultimately proved to be his own worst enemy: "There's too much Howard Hughes in Howard Hughes." Like Icarus flying too close to the sun, this was a man who attempted to balance too much—indulging his disorders, desires, and vision all at once—in his relentless pursuit of "the way of the future."

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