Space Cowboys (B or 3/4 stars)
Director/co-producer Clint Eastwood joins James Garner, Tommy Lee Jones & Donald Sutherland as the stars of his 2000 sci-fi dramedy, 'Space Cowboys'. In 1958, Frank Corvin (Eastwood) & Hawk Hawkins (TL Jones) were 2 competing Air Force test pilots who, along with the rest of their Daedalus crew - Jerry O'Neil (Sutherland) & Tank Sullivan (Garner) - were prepped to be the 1st Americans in outer space. Unfortunately, NASA decided to send a chimpanzee in place of Frank & co. Now, 40 some-odd yrs. later, the Russian communications satellite Ikon is crippled due to a failure in its covert navigational system.
Since the satellite is too huge to recover & return to Earth and, its failure will potentially cause telecommunications chaos and/or civil war in that region of the world, belligerent NASA bureaucrat Bob Gerson (James Cromwell) & Mission Director Sara Holland (Marcia Gay Harden) determine that their best bet lies with Frank who had originally designed the 'dinosaur' system for Skylab. Frank wants to know just how his system got on a Russian satellite and so, he initially refuses to help; he also doesn't get along with Gerson. Nevertheless, he does decide to help, but under one condition: that he & his original crew take on the task themselves. Gerson resists the idea of sending untrained, 'seniors' into space, but knowing that he's running out of time before the satellite re-enters Earth's atmosphere, he grudgingly agrees.
Frank sets out to round-up the 'ole crew and quickly nabs Tank, who is now a Baptist minister, & Jerry, who is a structural engineer crafting roller coasters. Hawk, a biplane pilot, is another story. He & Frank haven't spoken since the 1980s, but the gravelly old guy eventually agrees. These 4 would-be astronauts then arrive at NASA and, despite objections of shuttle flight director, Eugene Davis (William Devane) & their younger counterparts, Ethan (Loren Dean) & Roger (Courtney B. Vance), who accompany them on the mission, they embark on their hastened month of training. With time running out quickly, Frank & his ragtag crew find themselves confronting a series of dangerous obstacles that threaten to imperil their mission. Drama ensues.
It's funny; in a year with big budget blockbuster titles like Mission to Mars & Battlefield Earth, leave it to Clint Eastwood to make the most satisfying sci-fi movie, by far. This movie isn't perfect & the initial 'getting to know you' setup goes on too long. But it is consistently engaging, with likeable characters doing legitimate space endeavors for a plot that we become fairly invested in -- call this the Armageddon/Contact of the year 2000. Eastwood has made a career of acting in & directing such varied films like the Dirty Harrys, westerns, crime procedurals {i.e., In the Line of Fire, True Crime}, romances {like The Bridges of Madison County}, & now he hits a solid triple {in baseball terms} with the more lavish, special-effected 'Space Cowboys'.
Not unlike Apollo 13 (1995), this low-key space adventure contains loads of tension & intrigue. Something can go wrong easily, and so, that notion fuels the film's climactic moments. But it is clear that the movie's biggest appeal is the 4 leads. We like these guys & hope for the very best for them in the mission. Garner & Sutherland get the best dialogue. TL Jones 'gets the girl'. And Eastwood is steady & solid as slightly standoffish Frank; who keeps calm under pressure during some fairly heroic acts. These 4 exhibit great chemistry & tangible camaraderie. The reason I watched this film in the 1st place is because my mom adores these 4 actors both now & from their heyday. Watching her enjoy them fueled my enjoyment of the film. Incorporating elements of cold war politics, cover-ups, media control, male bonding, & sci-fi adventure, 'Space Cowboys' proves to be a cinematic delight.
Since the satellite is too huge to recover & return to Earth and, its failure will potentially cause telecommunications chaos and/or civil war in that region of the world, belligerent NASA bureaucrat Bob Gerson (James Cromwell) & Mission Director Sara Holland (Marcia Gay Harden) determine that their best bet lies with Frank who had originally designed the 'dinosaur' system for Skylab. Frank wants to know just how his system got on a Russian satellite and so, he initially refuses to help; he also doesn't get along with Gerson. Nevertheless, he does decide to help, but under one condition: that he & his original crew take on the task themselves. Gerson resists the idea of sending untrained, 'seniors' into space, but knowing that he's running out of time before the satellite re-enters Earth's atmosphere, he grudgingly agrees.
Frank sets out to round-up the 'ole crew and quickly nabs Tank, who is now a Baptist minister, & Jerry, who is a structural engineer crafting roller coasters. Hawk, a biplane pilot, is another story. He & Frank haven't spoken since the 1980s, but the gravelly old guy eventually agrees. These 4 would-be astronauts then arrive at NASA and, despite objections of shuttle flight director, Eugene Davis (William Devane) & their younger counterparts, Ethan (Loren Dean) & Roger (Courtney B. Vance), who accompany them on the mission, they embark on their hastened month of training. With time running out quickly, Frank & his ragtag crew find themselves confronting a series of dangerous obstacles that threaten to imperil their mission. Drama ensues.
It's funny; in a year with big budget blockbuster titles like Mission to Mars & Battlefield Earth, leave it to Clint Eastwood to make the most satisfying sci-fi movie, by far. This movie isn't perfect & the initial 'getting to know you' setup goes on too long. But it is consistently engaging, with likeable characters doing legitimate space endeavors for a plot that we become fairly invested in -- call this the Armageddon/Contact of the year 2000. Eastwood has made a career of acting in & directing such varied films like the Dirty Harrys, westerns, crime procedurals {i.e., In the Line of Fire, True Crime}, romances {like The Bridges of Madison County}, & now he hits a solid triple {in baseball terms} with the more lavish, special-effected 'Space Cowboys'.
Not unlike Apollo 13 (1995), this low-key space adventure contains loads of tension & intrigue. Something can go wrong easily, and so, that notion fuels the film's climactic moments. But it is clear that the movie's biggest appeal is the 4 leads. We like these guys & hope for the very best for them in the mission. Garner & Sutherland get the best dialogue. TL Jones 'gets the girl'. And Eastwood is steady & solid as slightly standoffish Frank; who keeps calm under pressure during some fairly heroic acts. These 4 exhibit great chemistry & tangible camaraderie. The reason I watched this film in the 1st place is because my mom adores these 4 actors both now & from their heyday. Watching her enjoy them fueled my enjoyment of the film. Incorporating elements of cold war politics, cover-ups, media control, male bonding, & sci-fi adventure, 'Space Cowboys' proves to be a cinematic delight.