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"Failure is not an option!". So says mission-control director Gene Kranz, played by Ed Harris, as mission control devises a way to get the astronauts safely home. Although initially viewed as a disaster (explosion in spacecraft which forces cancellation the the moon-landing mission), in reality it is a story of success due to resourcefulness. The astronauts must return to earth and splash down safely with only enough electrical power to run a coffee pot.

Probably the best of director Ron Howard's movies, it is well acted by stars Tom Hanks (as Jim Lovell), Kevin Bacon (Jack Swigert), and Bill Paxton (Fred Haise) as the three space-bound astronauts, Gary Sinise (mission-bumped astronaut Ken Mattingly), Ed Harris (mission control Gene Kranz), and Kathleen Quinlan (Marilyn Lovell). The movie was nominated for 9 Oscars including best picture, writing, supporting actor (Harris), supporting actress (Quinlan), music, and visual effects, and won for editing and for sound.

There are a lot of special effects thoughout the movie, including the entirely-recreated lift-off sequence from a bird's-eye viewpoint. The weightlessness scenes were achieved by filming in a KC-135 airplane that did a series of parabolic climbs and dives, allowing about 25 seconds of filming at a time.

An exciting 220 minute movie about one of the most-watched successful rescues in history, the DVD contains a good "making of" documentary, a commentary by director Ron Howard, and another by Jim and Marilyn Lovell. "Bill Paxton's home movies" were never located, and the "comparison with NASA footage" and the "extensive exploration of special effects" were brief parts of the "making of", not separate items. Text-based production notes and cast/crew blurbs, and a trailer. Undocumented feature is the isolated score which plays in its entirety at the main menu (can skip forward, but not backward, however). The 2.35:1 wide-screen movie has 56 (!) chapters. Highly recommend for fans of any of the actors listed above, the space program, or adventures in general.

"With all due respect, sir, I believe this will be our finest hour" - Gene Kranz

When I was just five years old, I remember my parents taking me to watch the launch of one of the Apollo rockets. It was one of the most amazing things I had ever seen, yet I never thought much about that event until I saw "Apollo 13." That's when I was reminded by my father that it was that particular moon-shot that I had seen so many years ago. This movie recounts the toils and tragedy of the ill-fated mission to the moon, but it also recalls the apathy with which the American people had begun to treat their space program.

Tom Hanks is terrific as Jim Lovell, the heroic leader of the mission whose resolve helped his crew survive. Bill Paxton and Kevin Bacon are very good as his fellow astronauts, and Gary Sinise and Ed Harris are excellent as the ground crew struggling to bring their men home. Director Ron Howard has turned out a number of good movies during the last 25 years, but this has to rank as his best to date. This is definitely worth adding to your home viewing collection.

Kind of silly in its awesome patriotic seriousness but genuinely heartfelt. Give them a few points for meaning well. Goshdarnit! We Americans are so honest and hardworking and ingenious. Just one big country of stand up folks. We can overcome any crisis no matter how dire just through our sheer AmeriCANism. All American men are apparently boy scouts at heart. Not entirely surprising this was directed by Opie/Richie Cunningham. Mr Hollywoodized American Family Values himself. Hanks and Sinese manage the difficult tasks of portraying humorless stiffs who are also sympathetic characters. The actual crisis is quite suspenseful and very well plotted and FX are very cool.