So did you hear the news? Yep, Leo has finally done it! After two decades, the 41-year-old has finally won a coveted “Best Actor Oscar” for his role in The Revenant.
And we’re so very happy!
Kind of like these guys:
Okay, truth be told, we’re not actually as crazy as those folks (we didn’t set alight a teddy bear), but we are happy he won.
Why?
Well apart from being a great actor and all that, we think he’s done a lot for the travel industry.
So, without further ado, let’s take a walk down memory lane and pay tribute to the films that solidified Leo’s place in cinematic history and promoted the best industry in the world: travel.
The Beach.
Based on the novel by Alex Garland by the same name, “The Beach” is the quintessential Asian backpacking saga that inspired millions around the world to don a backpack, pack a LP guidebook, and head over to the Land of a Thousand Smiles: Thailand.
Released in the year 2000, the film was shot on Koh Phi Phi in the south of Thailand – between the large island of Phuket and the west Strait of Malacca coast. In the film, Leo plays a 24-year-old American who flies to Thailand in search of sun and adventure.
Warning: watch the film (or read the book), and you’ll long to drop everything and follow in Leo’s footsteps.
The Aviator.
Based on a true story, in the Aviator Leo plays Howard Hughes: an aviation pioneer and director of Hell’s Angels, who also struggles with a mean case of OCD.
The film follows his struggles in his personal and professional life, and highlights the exciting yet turbulent period of the 20s to 40s which was a great time for aeronautical invention.
Directed by Martin Scorsese, the film was nominated for a bunch of Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Leo.
Blood Diamond.
Released in 2006, Blood Diamond is set during the Sierra Leone Civil War – a volatile period between 1996 to 2001 – and stars Leo as a white South African mercenary-turned-diamond-smuggler.
Leo was nominated for an Oscar in this film, but lost out in the end (Forest Whitaker got the Academy Award for his portrayal of dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland).
We think the film was important in shedding light on the political-economic troubles in this part of the world, and for that we raise our glasses.
Titanic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCy5WQ9S4c0
Titanic is an epic film that tells the story of the ill-fated maiden voyage of the R.M.S. Titanic – then the largest moving object of that time – which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean after hitting an iceberg from Southampton in the UK to New York City.
In the film, Leo stars as Jack Dawson, a poor artist who falls in love with first-class passenger Rose DeWitt Bukater (played by Kate Winslet).
The film captures the spirit of cruising as the passengers attempt to cross the Atlantic, wining and dining on the way, and finding a little romance too.
Oh, and in case you didn’t know, modern cruise ships completely dwarf the R.M.S. Titanic. Check this out:
Catch Me if You Can.
Last but certainly not least, we couldn’t finish this list without paying tribute to Leo’s antics in Catch Me if You Can (released in 2002).
Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is based on the true story of Frank Abagnale Jr., who, before turning 19, successfully conned millions of dollars’ worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, and legal prosecutor.
Although it’s scary that someone completely unqualified could be (partly) in control of a jet aircraft, we think it highlights the glamour and prestige of being a pilot.