Apollo 13

“Houston, we have a problem” is one of the great understatements (and oft quoted lines) in movie dialogue. Those words set the stage for the amazing drama of the Apollo 13 moon exploration mission, which took place exactly 40 years ago this month. The great 1995 movie is based on the book, “Lost Moon,” which was co-authored by one of the Apollo 13 astronauts, Jim Lovell, who is played by the ever talented (and understated) Tom Hanks.

No early space mission was ever routine, certainly not in 1970. The astronauts learned their jobs through extensive and thorough training, including hours upon hours of practice in space simulators, reliance on checklists, and their previous experience as (primarily) test pilots. Even so, problems were not unusual.

But the Apollo 13 mission suffered not an ordinary problem but a catastrophic explosion in space, resulting in loss of oxygen, power and a fully functioning guidance system. The 3-man crew faced the possibility of freezing to death, suffocating and being poisoned by their own carbon dioxide exhalation. And that was before they had to manually calculate (on a slide rule, no less) and maneuver their craft into position so that they could get back to earth and land safely, without being incinerated as they passed through the earth’s atmosphere in a module that was damaged to an unknown extent.

At one point, the NASA Flight Director, Gene Kranz, as played by Ed Harris, grandly states that, ”failure is not an option.”  In truth, success was highly improbable.

The movie simultaneously covers NASA’s Mission Control’s race to save the astronauts, what was going on inside Apollo 13, and how the families of the astronauts coped, as the rest of the world watched the events unfold on live television. It is an exhilarating story of calm courage, professionalism, teamwork, perseverance, and ingenuity.

I highly recommend Apollo 13, because it is so realistic, wonderfully acted and tells a gripping story so well. For me, it also doesn’t hurt that it yields a strong dose of optimism about American know-how. Available in DVD, Apollo 13 is skillfully directed by Ron Howard, and has an excellent ensemble cast including Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise and Kathleen Quinlan.

Political Movie – “The Best Man”

I recently watched “The Best Man,” a 1964 political film starring Henry Fonda and Cliff Robertson, with Lee Tracy, Edie Adams and Ann Southern. (I guess I haven’t yet had my fill of politics on MSNBC, CNN or PBS, and with the stock market having been so calm recently, there was absolutely no reason at all to watch CNBC.)

But, I digress… the movie plot revolves around a deadlocked Democratic convention, with Fonda and Robertson playing the role of the front runners vying to secure the nomination for President.

Fonda plays a thoughtful, ethical man, with a wry sense of humor and a strong sense of what he will, and will not, do to win the nomination. His flaw is that he seems indecisive.  Robertson, on the other hand, is a decisive, almost impulsive man, who is ruthless and who will do whatever it takes to win the nomination. Think of him as a cross between Richard Nixon and Joe McCarthy. (In the movie, Robertson became famous for his hearings on whether the Mafia was controlled by the Communists.)

So, we have one candidate with a conscience and another without; one, who was so convinced that he was in the right, that he was willing to smear his opponent. They are both seeking the endorsement of the ex-president, played convincingly by Lee Tracy, who won an Oscar for his portrayal. We see the machinations of the convention, the threats and deals.

Looking back to 1964, it’s amazing (given the era) that Tracy says that we’ve had a Catholic president, and some day we will have a Jewish President, a Negro President, and (to laughter) even a Lady President. Sounds funny now, but remember, this movie is 44 years old.

Originally, The Best Man was written as a Broadway play which opened in 1960. Both the Broadway play and screen play for the movie were written by Gore Vidal, who had the right balance of insider knowledge, cynicism and optimism.

As an aside, the story goes that Ronald Reagan was considered for a role, but studio executives decided Reagan “didn’t look presidential.”

The movie is well acted, engaging and entertaining. The entire cast was very good, but Fonda and Robertson were standouts. The Best Man is worth watching if you can catch it on TV, as it’s not yet available on DVD.