Μύ Ron Howard's Apollo 13 is proof that reality can be more remarkable than fiction. Starring Tom Hanks as legendary astronaut Jim Lovell, who headed the crew of an ill-fated mission to the moon, the film is marked by an "urgency and realism" that compensates for the usual Howard brand of flag-waving sentimentalism. Indeed few critics argued against this thoroughly compelling story, which ten years on, maintains its place in the stratosphere of great Hollywood movies.
Houston, We Have A Problem
Forming the centrepiece of the bonus package (on the second of two discs) is an engrossing hour-long documentary Lost Moon. Combining cast and crew interviews with testimony from the real-life heroes, it compares events portrayed in the film with what really occurred during those fateful days back in April 1970. It turns out that Ron Howard's version is really very faithful to Lovell's account. To illustrate, the director points out a scene where Lovell's wife (played by Kathleen Quinlan) loses her wedding ring down a shower drain. A critic for the LA Times used this to demonstrate Howard's tendency for "hokey" storytelling when in fact this incident actually happened.
Indeed Howard was so committed to realism that much of the dialogue was lifted from NASA's air-to-ground transcripts and space scenes were shot in a freefalling KC-135 aircraft (famously dubbed "the vomit comet") to replicate zero gravity. "I shudder to think what the film would've looked like if we'd used wires," he says. Perhaps Bill Paxton would've preferred it since he was the one to christen the plane with his half-digested lunch. Meanwhile Kevin Bacon recalls fits of claustrophobia while wearing a pressure suit, admitting, "I just flipped out!" He probably wanted to punch Hanks who's full of boyish glee when he says, "I always wanted to wear a pressure suit!" Nonetheless, the double Oscar winner has to take it on the chin when Jim Lovell reveals that he really wanted Kevin Costner to play him. "He looks like me," he explains, "in my younger years."
Also on Disc Two is Lucky 13, a 12-minute behind-the-scenes featurette giving a potted history of the Apollo 13 mission. Although this skirts over issues already discussed in Lost Moon, this is a well-made and well-rounded piece that efficiently recreates the drama with word from Lovell and Flight Director Gene Kranz (played by Ed Harris). Putting the mission into context is Conquering Space, another neatly crafted documentary that recaps NASA's exploration of space in just over three quarters of an hour.
Burning Oxygen
On Disc One there are two feature commentaries, one by Ron Howard and the other by Jim Lovell and wife Marilyn. Separately, they're instructive and absorbing, but even more so when cross-referenced during pivotal scenes. For example, the scene where Haise (Bill Paxton) and Swigert (Kevin Bacon) finally snap and begin arguing was "something we concocted", admits Howard. However, he adds that the scene was based on months of conversation with the real-life astronauts where Howard was able to tease out underlying sources of conflict. In his own track, Lovell insists "this really never occurred", but concedes that the stress was difficult to bear by this point on the mission.
Elsewhere in his commentary Howard also gives rare glimpses into the development process. He acknowledges indie filmmaker John Sayles who did some uncredited work on the script that involved fleshing out characters like Lovell's mother (played by Howard's own "mom"). He even gives a nod to daughter Bryce Dallas who gave him the idea for a sweeping shot through the window of the service module and backwards out into space. It's a visual that nicely sums up this Special Edition release - paying close attention to detail while never losing sight of the bigger picture. A cast commentary and a little more behind-the-scenes footage would've been a welcome addition, but this DVD should still be rocketing to the top of your shopping list.
EXTRA FEATURES
