"Apollo 13" (1995), Director Ron Howard's Historical Drama About the Incredible Saga of Apollo 13

[DonRocks]

Apollo 13 - Because I became an engineer instead, and they're the heroes here.

I just knew I was missing a big one.  Awesome flick.

And yes, this is a "favorites" thread, not a "best" thread.  Two different concepts. Thanks for understanding.

I remember watching this in the theater, and liking it. It's probably worth a second viewing for me - why do you two like this as much as you do? I'm particularly interested in your answers since you're sci-fi buffs. Don't you hate the word "buff?"

How far did this film deviate from reality?

Could Ron Howard be the greatest living all-around movie- and TV-industry talent, especially given the longevity of his career (which could keep going for another twenty years)? Could he be the greatest of all-time? He reminds me of Dick Clark.

[DanielK]

I can't answer how far this is from what happened. And it's not that it's the greatest movie ever (remember the topic that this post came from).

But once you watch it, the scenes are so memorable, that when you come across it surfing channels, you are compelled to keep watching.

I don't think Ron Howard is the *greatest* talent - I find much of his work overly sentimental and not "great-with-a-capital-G", but he is certainly very influential and multi-talented.

[porcupine]

I remember watching this in the theater, and liking it. It's probably worth a second viewing for me - why do you two like this as much as you do? I'm particularly interested in your answers since you're sci-fi buffs. Don't you hate the word "buff?"

How far did this film deviate from reality?

Could Ron Howard be the greatest living all-around movie- and TV-industry talent, especially given the longevity of his career (which could keep going for another twenty years)? Could he be the greatest of all-time? He reminds me of Dick Clark.

Not as much as I hate the word "sci-fi".  

Short answer: because even though I knew exactly how it was going to end even before seeing it for the first time, I was on the edge of my seat with nervous anticipation.  And even though I've seen it N times (for some large but single-digit value of N), I'm still always on the edge of my seat with anticipation.

And yet it's leavened with a bit of appropriate humor.

No idea how far it deviates from reality.  It just works.

[squidsdc]

But once you watch it, the scenes are so memorable, that when you come across it surfing channels, you are compelled to keep watching.

Short answer: because even though I knew exactly how it was going to end even before seeing it for the first time, I was on the edge of my seat with nervous anticipation.  And even though I've seen it N times (for some large but single-digit value of N), I'm still always on the edge of my seat with anticipation.

And yet it's leavened with a bit of appropriate humor.

No idea how far it deviates from reality.  It just works.

My sentiments exactly! Always catch it when surfing channels, and Porcupine, you nailed it. Love.this.movie.

[DanielK]

...because even though I knew exactly how it was going to end even before seeing it for the first time, I was on the edge of my seat with nervous anticipation....

THE MARTIAN also gives me this reaction.

[DonRocks]

because even though I knew exactly how it was going to end even before seeing it for the first time, I was on the edge of my seat with nervous anticipation.  

THE MARTIAN also gives me this reaction.

My biggest problem with The Martian is that it completely glossed over Mark Watney being depressed, which he *surely* would have been - it would not be humanly possible to be in that situation and not be. But, I guess this is Hollywood, and a portrait of depression wouldn't have been in-line with the upbeat tone of the movie and the ever-optimistic and perky Watney.

Daniel, what about Gravity? I assume you "knew" she'd make it back somehow?

Not as much as I hate the word "sci-fi".

Sor-ry! Sci-Fi and Rom-Com are both here to stay!

[DanielK]

My biggest problem with The Martian is that it completely glossed over Mark Watney being depressed, which he *surely* would have been - it would not be humanly possible to be in that situation and not be. But, I guess this is Hollywood, and a portrait of depression wouldn't have been in-line with the upbeat tone of the movie and the ever-optimistic and perky Watney.

Daniel, what about Gravity? I assume you "knew" she'd make it back somehow?

I don't remember him being depressed in the book either, so can't blame that one on Hollywood.

Gravity certainly has the setup, but I just didn't react the same way. Can't explain why. But I did for ARGO.

[DonRocks]

I watched "Apollo 13" again, and it's very close to being capital-G Great. Reading Wikipedia (about the incident, not the film), the movie is a pretty good representation (albeit also a dramatization) of what actually happened. That said, the Wikipedia entry is too long for me to really study, so I largely skimmed it - there are a lot of things about the accident and recovery that I still don't understand.

Note that by "dramatization," I don't mean "false" or "more intense"; I mean things like the mom kissing her son at night, Gary Sinese out in his Corvette pulling for the launch - things that make what would largely be a boring event (save for life-threatening stress and numerous near-death experiences ) a thoroughly enjoyable film.

Observation: porcupine dislikes "Forrest Gump" (1994, Robert Zemeckis), but likes Apollo 13 (1995, Ron Howard) - two very different reactions to the Tom Hanks - Gary Sinese tandem. There's no real point to this statement; it's just something I noticed.

Worth remembering: "Houston, we have a problem" came from this movie, and not the actual event - I did not know this. 

And I'm waffling back-and-forth about whether Neil Armstrong should have left out the "a" - to heck with grammar, it has better cadence and it's more poetic without it; yet, it's too BIG of a statement not to get right.

Jun 5, 2015 - "Did Neil Armstrong Really Say, 'That's One Small Step for a Man?" by Karen Kaplan on latimes.com

In terms of whether or not he *did* say it, if he says he did, he did - I'm certain he had this rehearsed well in advance, so why not believe him? I personally hear an ever-so-slight change in pitch towards the end of "for" - his voice goes down almost a half tone from E to something close to E-flat at the end of the word, which lends credence to his having said it.

So there!

Seriously, say it out loud a few times (using just "for man") - let your voice drop ever-so-slightly towards the end of the word "for" - that makes it sound like "for a"; if you keep the same pitch, and then raise it when you say "man," that makes it sound like there's no "a" - doggone it, this is a limitation of the written word: It would be so much easier if I could just say it for you and let you hear, rather than fumble around trying to describe it. Does anyone understand what I'm saying? Listen to the slight drop in pitch (keep repeating the first 10 seconds until you hear it):

 

[Deac]

You mixed up your movies -- Howard did Apollo 13 and Zemeckis Forrest Gump.

[DonRocks]

6 hours ago, Deac said:

You mixed up your movies -- Howard did Apollo 13 and Zemeckis Forrest Gump.

Right, sorry - that was a typo I made while editing (thanks!)