Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

The Aviator Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf January 21, 2018

After experiencing the critical and commercial disappointment of 1983’s “Superman III,” Christopher Reeve returns to the skies in 1985’s “The Aviator,” though he’s no longer in superhero mode. Trading blue and red tights for a leather jumpsuit, Reeve plays an emotionally and physically wounded pilot for the burgeoning air mail industry in this period piece, which pairs the star with Rosanna Arquette for maximum discomfort. The novelty of seeing Reeve in the air again wears off fairly fast, as “The Aviator” quickly reveals itself to be a leaden melodrama with mismatched stars and clunky screenwriting trying to marry mountainside survival activity with a postmortem analysis on wounded war pilots. The movie goes everywhere but up, failing to generate interest in the longevity of two annoying characters who insist on making a bad situation worse for themselves, with the production insisting it’s creating something of a romance when it’s actually inspiring a headache with this achingly insipid effort.

In 1918, Edgar (Christopher Reeve) was an ambitious military aviator trying to impart the wisdom of his 21 years to a younger, skittish pilot, with their training flight ending in a fiery crash, burning part of Edgar’s face. A decade later, Edgar is a loner, making a living as an air mail pilot in Nevada, working alongside pal Jerry (Scott Wilson), while boss Moravia (Jack Warden) offers employment hope for as many veterans as he can. Edgar latest assignment is to bring 17-year-old Tillie (Rosanna Arquette) to her aunt’s home in Washington, with her rich father, Bruno (Sam Wanamaker), hoping to cure the girl of her behavioral problems. Disapproving of the cargo, Edgar takes off on his routine flight, hoping to keep Tillie quiet during the trip. However, disaster emerges as an oil filling mistake manages to bring the plane down in the mountains. Left without food and shelter, Edgar and Tillie are forced to make nice with each other, trying to overcome hopelessness as they figure out a way down the mountain, finding their path blocked by hungry wolves.

“The Aviator” is directed by George Miller. Ahem, make that George T. Miller, clarifying who directed “The Road Warrior” and who made “Zeus and Roxanne.” Miller’s not an inspired helmer (with credits that include “Frozen Assets,” “The NeverEnding Story II,” and “Andre”) and perhaps a lousy choice for “The Aviator,” which demands a creative force capable of bringing out the emotionality of the story and its potential for big thrills. Instead of providing a rousing cinematic experience, Miller keeps the picture flat and small, failing to secure Edgar’s arc of disillusionment, with the pilot going from eager to erased in a matter of scenes, finding the character’s transition into a beaten man barely interested in life happening too quickly for comfort, sapping the effort of dramatic depth. Miller’s making a melodrama, but the material (an adaptation of an Ernest K. Gann book) feels like it wants to become something more interesting, rendering the editing abrupt as the tale sniffs around subplots, but never creates a grander inspection of aviator PTSD, with accidents and the horrors of war clearly impacting the pilots more profoundly than the finished feature lets on.

The A story concerns Edgar and Tillie in the air, on their way to Washington before a mechanical mistake forces them to crash in the mountains. “The Aviator” spends time with planes, achieving a few glory shots of air travel, but it soon focuses on survival interests, with the pair bickering about their chances, finding themselves stuck without hope as Tillie decides to smoke around the remains of the plane, causing an explosion. Banter is weak and performances are awful, watching Reeve and Arquette attempt to generate sparks without an ounce of chemistry, and the age divide between the characters (14 years) gives their eventual thaw a slight creepiness, as time bleeding on the side of a mountain while defending themselves from a pack of wolves is perhaps not the most ideal opportunity to make googly eyes at each other.

The B story of “The Aviator” concerns the war at home, with Moravia greatly concerned about Edgar, trying to put together a plan to find the lost pilot, dealing with Bruno’s demanding, dismissive ways. Jerry also has a desire to locate his friend, managing concern from his wife, Evelyn (Tyne Daly), who doesn’t want her husband to keep going up in planes, fearing she’ll never see him again. The supporting characters are the most interesting additions to “The Aviator,” providing a necessary sense of humanity and fear as rescue efforts prove to be problematic, and Warden has a nice scene where Moravia explains to Bruno why he hires veterans for the job, hoping to give the men some sense of stability while they deal with the loss of limbs and life that’s stained their existence. Less successful is the addition of Rose (Marcia Strassman), a friend of Edgar’s who craves something more with the pilot, only to be turned down softly by the loner. Again, the screenplay appears to be pushing Edgar and Tillie together, but Rose remains in the picture, offering unintentional comedy as the pilot is forced to accept the lonely woman as part of his future. How romantic.

The Aviator Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation offers an aged look at the visual achievements of "The Aviator," with fine detail difficult to locate, working with a softer view of period costuming and set decoration. Facial particulars aren't sharp, muting looks at make-up achievements on Reeve and stages of distress on Arquette. Mountain survival registers with passable distances. Colors are acceptable, offering snowy whites and decent greenery, and yellow airplanes offer some pop. Skintones are mostly natural, perhaps too pinkish at times. Delineation is acceptable, making evening encounters open for study. Source is in good shape, with no major stretches of damage.

The Aviator Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix delivers the melodramatic sweep the production is trying to communicate, with scoring retaining sharp instrumentation and sonic bigness when necessary. Dialogue exchanges are clean, preserving the softness of rescue concerns and the loudness of survival challenges, without distorted highs. Sound effects are crisp, with cracking gunshots, howling wolves, and the full roar of airplane engines. Explosions also contribute some heft.

The Aviator Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Theatrical Trailer (2:34, HD) is included.

The Aviator Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"The Aviator" supplies wolf attacks and hunting missions, and there's more physical catastrophe for Edgar and Tillie to deal with as they make an attempt to find help in the middle of nowhere. And yet, Miller summons zero excitement, more skilled at creating whiny, unpleasant characters than generating big thrills. Of course, there seem to be a few pieces of this puzzle missing, with the 90 minute run time suggesting liberal editing was employed to keep the movie sellable, but the overall clumsiness of scenes and performances is worse than an extended movie. Characters are short- sheeted, themes are cut short, and adventure feels small. "The Aviator" might've done just fine with George Miller, but with George T. Miller at the helm, potential for a soaring ride of combustible personalities, agonized backstories, and an even balance of plotting on land and in the air is never met.