# Apollo 13 (1995)



## OzScaper (Mar 5, 2001)

URL: http://us.imdb.com/Title?0112384

Plot Outline: True story of the moon-bound mission that developed severe trouble and the men that rescued it with skill and dedication.

Stars: Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton and the list goes on...


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## markpud (Mar 5, 2001)

I thought this was a really good film, well acted and very gripping. Probably more so because it is "real".

The scenes at the control centre are as intense as those aboard the craft itself, which is not often the case with this type of story...I liked the scenes where they have to build the new filter from components that are avail on the spaceship...

Also the personal/emotional lives of the astronauts and their families was very intersting, as was the fact that the Apollo 13 mission wasn't considered "news" until it started going wrong....


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## Annette (Mar 5, 2001)

Apollo 13 is to me one of the best sci-fi films released. My husband and I both saw this film at the cinema first. Needless to say as soon as it came out on video, we bought it. 

Tom Hanks, Gary Sinise, Kevin Bacon to name a few portrayed this film tremendously. It makes the hair on the back of your neck stand on end every time you watch it, even though you know the outcome. Its a pleasure to watch whenever possible. Annette.


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## Dave (Mar 7, 2001)

Originally published in the New York Times on Monday, July 24, 1995 


13 Technical Mistakes in Apollo 13 

From the introduction of the article: "Christopher K. Land, a space-stations engineer at the Johnson Space Center, has circulated on the Internet a list of the technical errors that he, his co-workers and other have spotted, including the fact that James Lovell actually drove a blue Corvette, no a red one." 

"The producer of 'Apollo 13,' Brian Gazer, said people who nit-pick movies are a familiar type. 'These are the kinds of people who sit in the front of the class and have their hands up all the time,' he said.  As for the list, 'I'm not sure they're right about most of this stuff,' Mr. Grazer said, though he stopped short of saying that Johnson Space people were wrong." 

1. Watch the Paint 

The paint pattern for the Saturn V in the film is not accurate. On the lower half of the first stage, the original test model (which never flew) had black-and-white vertical stripes topped with a ring of black paint. All the launched Saturn V's had the vertical stripes topped with a wider ring of white paint. The movie version omits the ring of paint, and continues to use the stripes. 

2. Early Worm 

The distinctive NASA "worm" letter logo is seen on a glass window when the astronauts are climbing into their spacesuits. The logo was not developed until 1976. The men of Apollo 13 would have dressed to the old emblem. 

3. False Start 

The engines of the Saturn V were started at "T minus nine" seconds, not at "T minus zero" as the movie had it. (The hold-down bolts are released at "T minus zero.") This change was made in the film, apparently, to add drama. 

4. Synchronized Swing 

The gantry arms for the Saturn V--the support arms that fall away just before liftoff--are released in unison, not one at a time as shown in the film. 

5. No Air Bags 

The sudden jolt at the separation of the first-stage rocket was completely unexpected, not a routine occurrence as portrayed in the movie. During the actual mission, small retro-rockets on the top of the first stage fired one second too early. This is what threw the astronauts forward as shown in the movie. Truth be told, the real Jim Lovell had several marks on his helmet from banging into the switch guards. 

6. Phase Out 

The film shows the moon changing phases several times during Apollo 13's four day journey. There was only one phase, and it was a waning half moon. How come? Apollo 13 was scheduled to land on the left side of the moon and landing was always planned for sunrise, so that long shadows could aid navigation. (Sunrise on the moon, of course, occurs only every 28 days. 

7. Night Shift 

Upon passing behind the moon, the movie astronauts lose communication with the earth and enter darkness simultaneously. But the far side of the moon and the dark side of the moon are the same only every 28 days. This wasn't that day. 

8. Try An Abacus 

If you study what's written on Tom Hanks's worksheet, he is doing addition and subtraction to calculate the spacecraft's orientation angles. The engineers are asked to check his arithmetic, and one uses a slide rule. Anyone handy with a slide rule will tell you it is not used for addition and subtraction. 

9. Theory of Relativity 

As the film astronauts near the moon, there is a shot (done with models) that shows the sun, the moon and the Apollo spacecraft. Proportionally, the spacecraft appears to be the size of Australia, and traveling at roughly 25 million miles an hour--about a thousand times faster than an actual Apollo craft. 

10. Stars Gazing 

The astronauts point out the Sea of Tranquillity as they pass over it. The image in the movie is actually Hadley's Rille (it looks like a river), the landing site of Apollo 15. 

11. Fully Impossible 

A full moon appears out one window of the lunar module on the way back to earth. Out of a window on the other side, there is a view of the full earth. Full moon, full earth--that would be possible only if the sun were between the moon and the earth (it's not), or if the module were somewhere near Venus (it wasn't). 

12. Protractors Ready? 

At one point, the ship is said to be rotating at 2.5 degrees per second. The view out the window shows the earth moving past at about five times that rate. For comparison, the second hand on a clock rotates at 6 degrees per second. 

13. A Silent Vacuum 

Outside the capsule, the propulsion jets are roaring. In the vacuum of space, however, propulsion jets do not make any noise whatsoever--unless you are very, very close to them, in which case you would be a cinder.


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## Dave (Mar 7, 2001)

Excellent film.

I agree with Annette, any film where you know the ending already, yet you still get excited, has to be good.


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## padders (Mar 13, 2001)

hehe i love nit picks, like the slide rule one hehe.


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## little star (Mar 23, 2001)

Interesting...

Often, even "true" sci-fi movies contain many bits that are technically incorrect.  Sometimes scientific fact is overlooked to add drama, or facilitate the story-telling in some other way.  Other times, the writers, etc. just screw up!

It's sometimes good to point out these errors because so many people seem to get their basic understanding of science from movies and other forms of entertainment. 

Scifi _is_ a particularly thought-provoking genre (in my opinion, anyway).  It's a great way to get interested in science and be entertained at the same time.  Of course, it's good when that leads to further investigation...

little star :star:


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## little star (Mar 23, 2001)

> _Originally posted by david676 _
> *Excellent film.
> 
> I agree with Annette, any film where you know the ending already, yet you still get excited, has to be good. *



This is true!!

little star :star:


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## Prowler-Pilot (Apr 12, 2001)

I couldn't agree more...I love this film. It's one of the most original (come on...what's more original than true life?) film I've ever seen, granted I've got a lot more films to see but still. :laugh2: 

It's mind blowing (at my age hehe) to think they sent men to the moon with computers with less power than my pocket organizer!  

With a cast including Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon and Bill Paxton it's not hard to see that this is an impressive film...the script writer(s) definitely did something right!

TaTa


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## Ice (Jun 22, 2001)

> _Originally posted by Prowler-Pilot _
> *I couldn't agree more...It's mind blowing!
> *


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## wikiberry (Jul 4, 2001)

i watched it yet again yesterday.

what amazes me everytime i watch it
is how the scientists make the filter from
'junk' (at least to me)...


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## OzScaper (Jul 5, 2001)

> _Originally posted by wikiberry _
> *i watched it yet again yesterday.
> 
> what amazes me everytime i watch it
> ...



yeah I thought that was pretty good too, They must have been pretty darn smart if you ask me


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## wikiberry (Jul 5, 2001)

and good thing they were smart!!!


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## imported_space monkey (Oct 31, 2001)

I like this film alot even though it has sad parts which make you realise just how tough it was for everyone.  Alot of real life stories dont get to the screen so well but this really did.  Thanks to everyone involved with making the film.


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## Chilly (Jan 15, 2002)

*lol*

sorry to butt in but i have to ay wat a great movie!
it was kinda slow to begin with but wicked! 
i taped it........im going to watch it over and over......and over......and over.......and over......i think  u get the jist.....l


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## Jay Jay (Jan 15, 2002)

I love this movie.  It is one of the few that I can watch again and again.  I taped it off the tv, and have watched it countless times since.

Great film.

J


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## Chilly (Jan 26, 2002)

*hey*

yeh it is a gud movie.........u can watch it over and over......learn  a few things......
akso u can watch it regardless of whos the.e........normally i feel weird watching movies with my parents coz of the icky business in them!


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## tokyogirl (Feb 7, 2002)

i was really impressed by Gary Sinise. that guy is amazing!  if you don't know who he is, he played the guy they had to leave behind on the mission.  i think he's an outstanding actor, and his performance here was great!


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## Chilly (Feb 7, 2002)

*oh*

oh yeh
he was briliant
hes been in wuite a few movies but never quite made it big


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## tokyogirl (Feb 7, 2002)

i know and i don't understand.  he's absolutely amazing!  i have yet to see a movie of his that i didn't like.  well, i have yet to see one of  his that i didn't like him in it, there's been a few where the movie wasn't that good but he was good in it.  i think what he really needs is just that one role you know?  that one role that will get him really noticed and make him really famous forever after.


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## Chilly (Feb 8, 2002)

*hey*

i totally undertsnad wat u mean
i mean with keanu he made a gzillion movies eb4 bill and ted but never got famous until that "one"role
thats all this guy needs too
its like that for most actors
i mean do u know who tim robbins is? he was andy in shawshank redemption. he is such  a talened guy but he hasnt mde it big yet.


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## tokyogirl (Feb 8, 2002)

i know!  i love that movie!  and tim robbins is in so many movies i love too.  like the hudsucker proxy, the sure thing, I.Q., high fidelity, and i know there are others i can't think of right now, but i love him.  but he still hasn't found that one role that will put him on top.


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## Chilly (Feb 19, 2002)

*hey*

i really thoight shawshank woulda made him big.............

wat about tom hanks? it seemed he was big from the start!


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## Annette (Feb 19, 2002)

Apollo 13 is an excellent film. It may have helped him with his career.


annette


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## tokyogirl (Feb 19, 2002)

ok, not to stay too off topic here but i just saw an interview with tim robbins and basically the reason he hasn't really made it big is because he keeps directing.  he said that when you agree to direct a film you are basically giving up 2 years of your life, and what ever momentum your career had before is pretty much gone after.  so he has to end up taking parts that wouldn't neccessarily be his first pick, he used his role in austin powers as an example, until  you get the role of your choice.

back to tom hanks, i think for a long time he wasn't really taken very seriously.  i mean, most of his roles are in movies like joe vs. the volcano, the money pit, and the burbs (which i LUV by the way).  those aren't exactly the kind of movies that put you up for academy awards.


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## Chilly (Feb 25, 2002)

*hey*

the 1st movie i saw of hanks was big
irt was so funny!
i laughed all the way thru it!


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## tokyogirl (Feb 25, 2002)

gotta luv the giant piano scene!


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## Chilly (Feb 26, 2002)

*lol*

i totally agree!!!!!!!!


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## tokyogirl (Mar 1, 2002)

when i get rich and famous i'm gonna buy me one of those!


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## Annette (Mar 4, 2002)

And the topic is nudged back to Apollo 13. 

Excellent film, amazing special effects, great actors. I know tis true to life so enjoy how it has been portrayed on the big screen.


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 4, 2002)

*hey*

i was actually happy that the ken guy coulnt go.......coz kev got to go.......lol


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## Annette (Mar 5, 2002)

I do like Gary Sinise so was slightly disappointed he didn't go on the mission but Kevin Bacon played a good part too.


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 6, 2002)

*hey*

yeh but if hed gone then i seriously doubt they wuda got bak to earth 
wat do uthink?


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## Annette (Mar 6, 2002)

Maybe, maybe not. It was him that helped the guys at N.A.S.A who could tell the crew what to do so they could get back. (if u catch my drift). He still played a good part tho. 


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 7, 2002)

*lol*

yeh he helped them!!!!!!!!!!

everyone liekd kevs charactro coz he was a bachalor!!!! lol


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## Annette (Mar 7, 2002)

He was certainly a ladies man. 


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 7, 2002)

*lol*

i wodner if the REAL  guy was cute........lol


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## Annette (Mar 8, 2002)

Quite possibly. If going on the fact its true to life they obviously used actors with similarities.


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 11, 2002)

*lol*

hey how long were they in space for?


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## Annette (Mar 12, 2002)

I'm not sure really. Did it say on the film? I'm sure it did. Been a while since I've watched it.


annette


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## Chilly (Mar 13, 2002)

*hey*

it hink it was a weekl......pretty sure!


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## tokyogirl (Mar 13, 2002)

i thought it was shorter, like 3 days or something.  hang on, let me check real quick.....


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## tokyogirl (Mar 13, 2002)

ok, nevermind.  you were closer than i was.  it took 6 days.  i checked.  they left on april 11 and the splashdown was on april 17.  you win!


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## Chilly (Mar 13, 2002)

*hey*

woohoo!!!!!!!
i wiiiiiiiin! lol
 

hey shall we s tart a question thing? on apollo 13? wat d'ya think?


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## Annette (Mar 14, 2002)

Thats a good idea Chilly, start another thread for it.


annette


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## HeyLynny (Jul 6, 2002)

I love this movie!  I can still watch it and get goosebumps and I always feel like I don't know the ending so I'm on the edge of my seat.  The acting was great.  I love Tom Hanks!  He's one of my favorite actors.  I've seen every movie he's ever done.


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## tokyogirl (Jul 10, 2002)

did you see the AFI award thingy?  it was awesome!


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## HeyLynny (Jul 13, 2002)

Yeah!  It was AWESOME!  I loved seeing clips from his movies and seeing him with his family in the audience was great.  He really has had a great impact on movies.  And he's like the energizer bunny....he keeps going and going.....   I can't wait to see his newest movie.  I keep seeing previews on TV.:rolly2:


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## HeyLynny (Jul 13, 2002)

Did you notice that they didn't mention EVERY movie that he did?  They didn't mention THe Burbs ot Money Pit or Bachelor PArty.  Those were, in  my opinion, hysterical movies!!!!  I know they're not high profile, but they are still a riot to watch.  I think they should have touched a little bit on everything he did (and maybe they did, but they just didn't show us, the audience, all of it).  I guess that's a possibility.  

Anyway, back to the actual thread....I bought Apollo 13 a few years ago and I make sure that I watch it at least once a year (along with Independence Day and Twister and The Star Wars Trilory, Phantom Menace also).  These are just my "staple" movies.  A "must watch at least once a year" movie!


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## tokyogirl (Jul 13, 2002)

the part that makes me cry every time is when the whole world is praying for the safe return of 3 guys.  very touching.


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## Diamond9697 (Jul 18, 2002)

This movie is one of the ones I never get tired of watching.  No matter how many times I see it, even though I know how it's going to end, I still get this feeling of anxiety for the guys on the shuttle.  That and I love Tom Hanks and Gary Sinise


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## tokyogirl (Jul 19, 2002)

me2


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## ray gower (Apr 4, 2005)

Considering the enormity of the problems faced on Apollo Thirteen and the scope the film makers had to add drama by revising history a little for additional drama, the nits are extremely small.

Especially when compared to other 'true story' films like U571, or Memphis Belle


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## Brian G Turner (Apr 14, 2020)

Watched this at the weekend, having never seen it before - in my cynical youth I presumed it would be dominated by a weak family-centered plot like most disaster movies.

Thought I'd give it a try after the 50th anniversary celebrations of the original event. After a slow 30 minutes, it became an incredibly gripping film. Superbly filmed - probably a SF classic.

Was also impressed how - by all accounts - they tried to remain as faithful to actual events as possible.


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## Vince W (Apr 15, 2020)

I watch Apollo 13 at least once a year, if not twice. I get choked up at the launch and even though I know how it all turns out I hold my breath every time they reach insertion. There were so many little details that have to go just right or else it would have all ended very differently.


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## tegeus-Cromis (Apr 15, 2020)

Why is (was) everyone calling it an SF movie?


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## Elckerlyc (Apr 15, 2020)

Yeah. It's History!


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## Foxbat (Apr 15, 2020)

tegeus-Cromis said:


> Why is (was) everyone calling it an SF movie?


Maybe because it’s Science Fact....= SF  
Seriously though, whatever way you categorise it, it’s a damn fine movie


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## biodroid (Apr 15, 2020)

I loved the movie despite a teacher spoiling the plot for our whole class, I did not know about the real problem of Apollo 13 just that the famous line "Houston, we have a problem" came from it.


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## BigBadBob141 (May 7, 2020)

Am sorry to tell you this but the Titanic sinks!!!!!!!!!



Seriously though it is a very good film, after watching it again a few weeks ago I ended up ordering four books about the space program from Amazon, including "Lost Moon" the book the film is based on.
Curses, the Phantom Bookworm strikes again!!!!!!!!!


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## Rodders (May 7, 2020)

There’s a nice book called Apollo: The Panoramas that I’m thinking of getting, if I can track it down.


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