Don Juan and his lady caught a test screening of October Sky and found it to be gem worthy of her finger. (No not the middle one) So he slashed off the following thoughts on the film and the process. Nice of him to fit us in, he usually is up to more romantic things this time of night.
I'm a long time lurker and admirer of AICN. Decided to throw myself into the fray with a test, not my first, but the best. (The worse was MOTHER'S BOYS with Jamie Lee Curtis. That one sucked the big one, and I marked my card as such.)
I must apologize that the screening was a couple of weeks ago, but I was in the course of moving...
This test came about because one of those clipboard-welding guys cornered my girlfriend before I realized what had happened. We'd gone to see SAVING PRIVATE RYAN a couple of Saturdays ago at the Cinemapolis in Anaheim Hills, California. The screening of the movie testing, OCTOBER SKY, would be just a few days away. (We were informed before the screening that the original title had been ROCKET BOYS and that OCTOBER SKY was the current title.)
The research guy that signed us up described the movie as being about a group of young boys who build rockets as "an escape" from the harsh mining town realities that surround them (in the '50s.) He mentioned something about one of the kid's struggles with his miner father. That description didn't prepare me for the experience that came.
When we got home after the screening, my girlfriend still weepy (but not sobbing like she was during the movie), and me with an unmanly lump in my throat, I immediately found my Video Hound to look up the director, Joe Johnston, to see if he'd done any other movies. Shock of shocks, he'd done several. (Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, Jumanji.) Shock of shocks, because I'd seen these three and actually liked them, but hadn't remembered the director's name. But OCTOBER SKY was so unlike any of these that I was plain surprised. This isn't an effects movie, but a strong character-driven piece. Not a big movie by any means (although every aspect of the production looked great). It's a little movie that just creeps up on you-like it did me, leaving me that big lump in the throat at the middle of the flick. (I might add that I hate hate schmaltz, and this was not schmaltz in the least.) This movie is a real gem.
Without spoiling the plot, I'll just say that it's the story (titles said "true story") of a boy (Homer something or other) who feels trapped in his mining town (looks like Virginia or thereabouts) and who is inspired by the launch of Sputnik, fearing the Russians will beat the Americans in space. Homer and his buddies build little rockets because they believe they too can be a part of the space race. His dad (Chris Cooper) is a miner and thinks his son should be one too. But the kid dreams, dreams big in a little way, and his dreams collide with his father's wishes. (At the end of the movie you learn that Homer went on to become a NASA space engineer.)
Chris Cooper was a stand out. One of those performances with a supporting Oscar nomination written all over it. Homer, the kid, is played by Jake Gallenhall or something like that. I saw myself in this kid. His performance was simply magnificent. Don't know if he'll be a big star, but he could disappear from the planet and be forever remembered for this performance. Laura Dern has a small part as a supportive teacher and is good as usual.
The movie had the feel of the parts of STAND BY ME that I liked (that movie wasn't successful to me because, what little kids talk like that??) OCTOBER SKY is so far superior it's in its own league. It's the best "feel good" movie I've seen in a long, long time. They don't get better than this. And I'll tell you, we weren't alone, I haven't heard an audience cheer like this, maybe never.
Don't hop or skip to your multiplex to see this one. Better yet, catch a jet or a rocket when it comes. I know we'll be back.
(And, by the way, it's a terrific date movie. When it leaves women the way it did my girlfriend, you're gonna score, big time... hence my name, DON JUAN.)
P.S. Keep up the great work, Harry-AICN's my home page.
