If you follow my stuff you probably already realize that I kind of go out of my way to call out DiCaprio because I don't think he is nearly as good an actor as he thinks he is, he just is very marketable and knows the right directors. I am willing to admit that his movies are good but many times I think all of his movies would be just a little bit better if they were Matt Damon movies.
The Aviator is an exception to my "Leo is over-rated" rule because he is fantastic in this movie and actually perfected a fake accent for it (you may recall how i called him lazy for not even attempting a French accent in The Man with the Iron Mask.
The Aviator is a biographical picture, based largely on fact about the tumultuous life of Howard Hughes who was a aviation pioneer, very successful businessman, and obsessed with producing films
source
He had a difficult time interacting with most people because he had extremely severe Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and later in life developed an intense and irrational fear of germs. I have known people that had mild OCD and I always thought they were just faking it for attention but one of my pals literally could not focus on a conversation with you if you did something terrible like not put your drinking glass back in the "correct" place or put your fork on the spoon side of your plate. It is a very real and strange disorder, and I thought Leo did a wonderful job portraying it.
The rest of the cast features some heavy hitters such as Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, Willem Dafoe, Alec Baldwin, and John C. Reily in a non-comedic role. This is where I have to get critical of DiCaprio again. While his performance is sound, his slight frame and boyish looks yet again don't make him a terribly believable adult. Obviously there is nothing he can do about this and for the most part being so perpetually young is a tremendous blessing that everyone longs for. However, that does not change the fact that anytime he is wining and dining Cate Blanchett it looks like he is out on a date with his mom.
I believe that this film is one of the best movies that Leo was ever in and the fact that it is based somewhat on fact makes it even more interesting to me. I find films even more fun when you actually know something real at the end of it that you didn't know at the start. I had heard the name Howard Hughes and knew he was famous, but i didn't know what for. Leo and everyone else in this film does an outstanding job and it is highly recommended by this guy.