Apollo 13 [HD] DVD

Apollo 13
"Houston, we have a problem." Those words were immortalized during the tense days of the Apollo 13 lunar mission crisis, and the suspense, fear, and excitement of those days are captured in Ron Howard's epic recreation of the 1970 crisis. When the commander of the original mission Ken Mattingly (Gary Sinise), bows out due to possible exposure to measles, astronaut Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) leads command module pilot Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) and lunar module driver Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) on what is slated as NASA's third lunar landing mission. All goes smoothly until the craft is halfway through its mission, when an exploding oxygen tank threatens the crew's oxygen and power supplies. As the courageous astronauts face the dilemma of either suffocating or freezing to death, Mattingly and Mission Control leader Gene Kranz (Ed Harris) struggle to find a way to bring the crew back home, all the while knowing that the spacemen face probable death once the battered ship reenters the Earth's atmosphere. Even though the outcome, in which all three astronauts miraculously survived, is historical fact, the film derives suspense from the situation itself and from the actions of the heroic astronauts and the men on the ground. Howard's taut direction, a solid ensemble of players, and eye-opening special effects all add to the overall impact of the film, which has been hailed as one of Hollywood's best historical dramas. In 2002, the movie was released in IMAX theaters as Apollo 13: The IMAX Experience, with a pared-down running time of 116 minutes in order to meet the technical requirements of the large-screen format. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide

Cast Tom Hanks as Jim Lovell Bill Paxton as Fred Haise Kevin Bacon as Jack Swigert Gary Sinise as Ken Mattingly Ed Harris as Gene Kranz Kathleen Quinlan as Marilyn Lovell

Crew David James Bomba - Art Director Bruce A. Miller - Art Director Michael Bostick - Associate Producer Louisa Velis - Associate Producer Aldric La'Auli Porter - Associate Producer Jane Jenkins - Casting Janet Hirshenson - Casting Rita Ryack - Costume Designer Aldric La'Auli Porter - First Assistant Director Ron Howard - Director Daniel Hanley - Editor Mike Hill - Editor Todd Hallowell - Executive Producer James Horner - Composer (Music Score) James Horner - Songwriter Hallie D'Amore - Makeup Dan Striepeke - Makeup Raymond Stella - Camera Operator Michael Corenblith - Production Designer Dean Cundey - Cinematographer Brian Grazer - Producer Annie Lennox - Singer Lori Rowbotham - Set Designer Joseph Hodges - Set Designer Merideth Boswell - Set Designer William Broyles - Screenwriter Al Reinert - Screenwriter Richard L. Anderson - Sound Effects Editor Scott Millan - Re-Recording Mixer Michael D. Kanfer - Visual Effects Leslie Ekker - Visual Effects Jeffrey Kluger - Book Author Capt. James Lovell - Book Author Robert "Bobby Z" Zajonc - Pilot

Apollo 13
You can look up the result in any encyclopedia: all three astronauts made it home alive. But from the moment Jim Lovell (played by Tom Hanks) utters those fateful words -- "Houston, we have a problem" -- until the astronauts are safe on the deck of the USS Iwo Jima, you'll be on the edge of your seat in genuine suspense, hoping that somehow the seemingly inevitable catastrophe will be averted. Though a certain license has been taken with the truth (Ken Mattingly, for example, was not the one who devised the "power-up" procedure), Apollo 13 is largely faithful to actual events and sets a new high-water mark for putting real-life drama on the big screen. Director Ron Howard mixes the action in orbit with scenes back at NASA, detailing the frenzy and triumph that occurred on the ground as well as far above it. The acting is solid, the special effects spectacular, and the period and technical details recreated with single-minded accuracy. In fact, no documentary footage was used at all; every shot, effect, and model was new. Howard went to astounding lengths in his quest for realism. To achieve actual zero-gravity, for example, the cast and crew flew more than 500 parabolic flights in NASA's KC-135 airplane; each flight earned them only 23 seconds of weightlessness. The beauty of Apollo 13 is that it actually fulfills the cliché of "bringing history alive." For the millions of Americans who will never experience the national obsession of the Space Race, who will never understand how the country's pride could hinge on a few scared men in a jury-rigged tin can, or who will never list astronauts among their childhood heroes, Apollo 13 offers the unique opportunity to understand that glint in their parents' eyes. ~ Matthew Doberman, All Movie Guide
 

Al Reinert: Academy, Best Adapted Screenplay (nominated) Daniel Hanley: Academy, Best Editing (winner) David MacMillan: Academy, Best Sound (winner) Dean Cundey: American Society of Cinematographers, Best Cinematography (nominated) Ed Harris: Academy, Best Supporting Actor (nominated) Ed Harris: Golden Globe, Best Supporting Actor (nominated) Ed Harris: Screen Actors Guild, Best Supporting Actor (winner) James Horner: Academy, Best Original Dramatic Score (nominated) Kathleen Quinlan: Academy, Best Supporting Actress (nominated) Kathleen Quinlan: Golden Globe, Best Supporting Actress (nominated) Leslie Ekker: Academy, Best Visual Effects (nominated) Matt Sweeney: Academy, Best Visual Effects (nominated) Merideth Boswell: Academy, Best Art Direction (nominated) Michael Corenblith: Academy, Best Art Direction (nominated) Michael D. Kanfer: Academy, Best Visual Effects (nominated) Mike Hill: Academy, Best Editing (winner) Rick Dior: Academy, Best Sound (winner) Rob Legato: Academy, Best Visual Effects (nominated) Ron Howard: Directors Guild of America, Best Director (winner) Ron Howard: Golden Globe, Best Director (nominated) Scott Millan: Academy, Best Sound (winner) Steve Pederson: Academy, Best Sound (winner) William Broyles: Academy, Best Adapted Screenplay (nominated)

Academy, Best Picture (nominated) Chicago Film Critics Association, Best Picture (winner) Golden Globe, Best Film (Drama) (nominated) National Board of Review, Best Picture (nominated) Screen Actors Guild, Best Ensemble Acting (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French, Spanish Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: DD2: Dolby Digital Stereo Additional Features: Lost Moon: the triumph of Apollo 13- the making of Apollo 13 Feature commentary with director Ron Howard Feature commentary with Jim and Marilyn Lovell Conquering Space: the moon and beyond- a recap of the last 45 years in space Lucky 13: the astronauts' story- recounting the events of the mission DVD Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1: Cinemascope MPAA Rating: PG DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 140 min