Publisher's Synopsis
Box set containing two popular Oscar-winning dramas. 'The Aviator' (2004) is a fast-paced biopic documenting the life of one of the most colourful Americans of the 20th century, Howard Hughes. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Hughes, the son of a Texan inventor who dies and leaves him with a small fortune. Hughes moves to Los Angeles to become a Hollywood film producer and produces such classics as 'Hell's Angels', 'The Front Page' and 'Flying Leathernecks'. He also becomes involved in the aviation industry, designing new planes, setting air speed records and flying around the world risking his life testing aircraft. As his ideas become bolder, his approach becomes more eccentric, and he gains many powerful enemies. 'Cold Mountain' (2003) is a sweeping American Civil War drama based on the novel by Charles Frazier, directed by Anthony Minghella (The English Patient, The Talented Mr Ripley). Jude Law stars as Inman, a wounded Confederate soldier who is slowly making the perilous journey back to his home town of Cold Mountain in North Carolina, meeting a string of colourful characters along the way (played by actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Natalie Portman, Ray Winstone and Kathy Baker). At home waits Ada Monroe (Nicole Kidman), the pre-war sweetheart to whom he has vowed to return. In his absence Ada, the shy and reserved daughter of a preacher (Donald Sutherland), has befriended the feisty Ruby (Renée Zellweger), a tough-talking young woman who can work the land as well as any man. Ruby supports Ada both emotionally and practically as she waits for Inman's return - but as the war drags on and her letters go unanswered, Ada finds it increasingly difficult to keep the faith.
