Houston, we don't have a problem. Apollo 13 was amazing.

Rating: 8/10 (29 June 2015)

Apollo 13 has that don't tell me, the sky's the limit, when there is footsteps on the moon, feel to it. Directed by Ron Howard, this out of this world movie was very successful on bringing the exciting and the entertainment value. One small step for a man, is indeed one giant leap for mankind. Adapted from the book, 'Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13', by astronaut Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger. The movie follows astronauts, Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) and Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) aboard Apollo 13 spacecraft, attempting for a Moon landing mission. En-route to the moon, they suffer from an on-board explosion that deprives their spacecraft of most of its oxygen supply and electric power. This force NASA's flight controllers to abort the Moon landing, and turn the mission into a rescue operation to get the three men home safely. Can they get the men back to Earth or will the astronauts, perish in space? Watch the movie to find out! Without spoiling the movie, too much; since the movie is based on true events, the movie does have a predictable outcome. Anybody, who readt the history books, or saw any NASA program, knows how the events ended. Still, there are some really dangerous moments that might surprise some viewers, and make you jump, out of their seat, wondering if the crew was going to live or die. Even if you were the biggest NASA fan; the movie showcase a lot of things that you might not, know about the mission. You don't know the gravity of the dangerous situation until you watch Apollo 13! Indeed, failure wasn't an option. This movie was intense! Honestly, in my opinion, the best way to watch this movie, is to go into it, having no clue, what's the story is about. It will leave you more of an impact. While, Apollo 13 shot for the moon and it kinda miss, at least, it's among the stars. Every actor in this movie shine. Tom Hanks was great as the leading man. The supporting cast was equality as good. My favorites had to be Ed Harris as Gene Kranz, Head of Mission Control and Gary Sinise as astronaut, Ken Mattingly. I even love the cameo from the real life, Jim Lovell as a captain of the recovery ship USS Iwo Jima. One thing, that I didn't like, about the film, is how negatively, the portrayal of Jack Swigert was. They portrayal him, as a weaker astronaut, compare to the others, because of his lack of training, and bachelor status. In real life, Swigert was a well-trained Command Module pilot and highly respected. He was no black sheep. No one was really too worried about whether he was up to the job, but the real-life, Lovell admitted, he were really worried about was the rendezvous with Swigert as they left the Moon, but that never got to happen. Another thing, when did being a bachelor; became a bad thing? Didn't every man in the life, start out, as a bachelor, at one time? I have to say, despite that. Kevin Bacon did surprising, pretty well. Bill Paxton as Fred Haise, was alright for the role, but he's by far, the weakest in the film. I love how accurate the film is. The dialogue between ground control and the astronauts was taken nearly verbatim from transcripts and recordings, with the exception of one of the taglines of the film, "Houston, we have a problem." This quote alone, was voted one of the best movie lists in movie history. Ron Howard went to great lengths to create a technically accurate movie, employing NASA's technical assistance in astronaut and flight controller training for his cast, and even obtaining permission to film scenes aboard a reduced gravity aircraft, KC-135 for realistic depiction of the "weightlessness" experienced by the astronauts in space. The actors went aboard multiple KC-135 flights so much, that they outdone, even real astronauts in the amount of training, they got. I have to say, all the training, pull off in a realistic portrayal. Not only that, the movie went the extra mile in special effects. In an era where CGI was primitive, this movie was able to make it look like a rocket was blasting off into space, while, using little CGI. All the space shots were original made, and not taken from previous NASA space stock footage. There was no moment in the film that I didn't believe, they weren't in space. Even, real life astronauts like Buzz Aldrin got fooled, in believing they were in space. While, the movie is pretty accurate to historical events, Apollo 13 did take some artistic licenses for dramatic effects. In real life, the three astronauts remained surprisingly cool under pressure in real life, but the movie ramped up emotional tensions between them to make it, more thrilling. One thing that I didn't like, about the film is how much, foreshadowing, they used in the film. We get it! Did we really need, the scene where Jim's car was having problems or Jim's wife, Marilyn (Kathleen Quinlan) losing her wedding ring? Come on! Another problem is the abundance of technical babble and bureaucratic jargon. Some scenes were really hard to understand, what was going on. Still, the movie does a good job, trying to explain, all the science. One thing that I love about the film; is composter James Horner's score. It really captures the wonder of flight. Overall: From lift-off to splashdown, Apollo 13 gives one hell of a ride. It was a very compelling, smart and suspenseful movie. A must-watch.