I had to think about a film that reminds me of Autumn, and I had a film in mind, but could not remember the name of it...fortunately my Bonnie Bride did remember the name: October Sky (1999).
Movie poster from October Sky - IMDB
October Sky is the story of four teenagers growing up in a West Virginia coal mining town, one of whom, upon seeing Sputnik streak across the night sky, became determined to learn about, and build rockets. This is the story of Homer Hickam, who grew up to be a NASA engineer, and is based on his memoir Rocket Boys.
Although the production of the film took its source material to heart, there were a number of liberties taken in order to add more drama and conflict to the story of the original Rocket Boys, but these changes did not detract from the overall story, or deviate much from what these teenagers were trying to do. The film makes a point that for the boys growing up in a coal mining own, the only escape from growing up and becoming a miner was to get a football scholarship to pay for college. Homer and his pals were encouraged by their teacher Miss Riley to enter the science fair, and if they did well enough, go to the nationals and have a shot at scholarships for science. Every kid should have at least one Miss Riley providing inspiration to use their mind to achieve their maximum potential.
The cast of October Sky had a mix of young performers, including Jake Gyllenhall as Homer Hickam, as well as more established performers that included Laura Dern as Miss Riley, with Joe Johnston directing. Cast and crew came together and produced a film that is top notch, and the cast had good chemistry, which showed in their performance. When the Rocket Boys fire off their last rocket before heading off to college, I swear, my eyes got bigger with the excitement of watching this rocket soar high into the sky. That’s how good this film is.
I remember seeing October Sky when it was first released back in 1999, and found it to be a film that I wished had been made when I was a kid. Had it been around back then, I definitely would have changed course and gone into aerospace engineering, instead of into computer science (which was very popular at the time, and yeah, I have done well in it). It is a film that can inspire kids to seriously look at going into the sciences, and, more importantly reach for the stars.
This weekend, I’ll be watching it with my family and teenage daughter who is planning on majoring in Astrophysics, and wants to be a NASA scientist (just like a long time friend of mine from my San Diego days). The only reason Little Miss didn’t watch it with me last night is she had homework to do, and then head to bed. I seriously do hope that she enjoys this film when we watch it this weekend, and draws inspiration to continue her pursuit of science.
And yes, I think October Sky is a film that all teenagers should see, and, hopefully, draw inspiration to pursue science and engineering as a career.
Please be sure to check out the CineTV blog for contest information at @cinetv/cine-tv-contest-32-movie-that-represents-autumn
and checkout other entries there as well.
Thanks for stopping by.
Notes:
October Sky on IMDB