Apollo 13

Directed by Howard, Apollo 13 follows three astronauts (Tom Hanks’ Jim Lovell, Bill Paxton’s Fred Haise, and Kevin Bacon’s Jack Swigert) as they attempt to make their way home after a calamitous event aboard their spacecraft. Filmmaker Howard, armed with a screenplay by William Broyles Jr. and Al Reinert, does a terrific job of immediately luring the viewer into the deliberately-paced yet consistently engaging proceedings, as Apollo 13 boasts (and benefits from) an agreeably old-fashioned approach that’s perpetuated by its raft of attention-grabbing attributes and elements – including Dean Cundey’s compelling visuals and a series of predictably first-class performances. (The three leads’ top-notch efforts here go a long way towards enhancing the engrossing atmosphere, and it’s clear, as well, that Howard elicits stirring work from eclectic periphery players like Ed Harris, Gary Sinise, Loren Dean, and Kathleen Quinlan.) And while the procedural-like midsection is occasionally is sometimes just a little too technical for its own good, Apollo 13‘s emphasis on the various characters’ dogged, relentless attempts at landing the title ship safely paves the way for a midsection loaded with electrifying sequences (eg ground-control technicians jury-rig a device to keep the astronauts’ air breathable). By the time the completely satisfying (and surprisingly tense) finale rolls around, Apollo 13 has cemented its place as an often spellbinding endeavor that certainly lives up to the potential of its inherently enthralling true-life subject matter.

***1/2 out of ****