best space movie?

"Apollo 13" gets my vote. The Saturn V launch sequence is still a
incredible piece of work.

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James Anatidae wrote:
"Apollo 13" gets my vote. The Saturn V launch sequence is still a
incredible piece of work.

Yep. It looks good, but unfortunately is somewhat wrong. I like the Earth to
the Moon series myself, but for a single movie Apollo 13 would have to be
it.

David

On Wed, 1 Oct 2003 09:10:53 +0200, "Frank Scrooby" wrote:

How so? What was wrong? I'm real curious. It was breath-taking. Especially
the view from the top as the Saturn V rushes straight AT YOU for like 1/3 of
a second as a carpet of steam engulfs the pad.

....Three major flaws that most people around here bitch and moan about
when they refer to this scene:

1) The gantry arms do not retract simultaneously. This was an artistic
license change made so the shot where the camera moves down from top
to bottom is more "aesthetically pleasing". It is also fatally wrong,
and had it happened it real life we'd have seen what happens when a
Saturn V blows up on the pad.

2) The paint scheme is totally wrong, and is based on the 500 test
fitting model paint job, which is what Revell used for their 1/96 S-V
kit, and what everyone seems to use for reference on how to get the
paint job right.

3) Had Ken Mattingly been sitting that close to the launch pad during
an actual launch, he'd have been hit with a nice concussion wave that
would have done more than just bump him a bit. Also, he'd have *never*
been allowed that close during a launch to begin with, even if
historically he wasn't there to begin with.

....There may be a few others, but I'll leave the moaners to fill in
the gaps.


OM

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Considering when it was made, I think that "Destination Moon" should be
pretty high up on the list. Also, "When Worlds Collide," was pretty good as
well, though I cannot remember how technically accurate it was. However,
Apollo 13 was a masterpiece indeed and the technical issues with that film
don't bother me. They got so many things right that I don't know why people
even worry about it.

C. Newport

In article ,
OM om@our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_researc h_facility.org wrote:
...Three major flaws that most people around here bitch and moan about
when they refer to this scene...

I think you missed #4: the ascent is too fast. The movie-makers watched
too many shuttle launches and not enough Saturn V launches. :-)
--
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"Henry Spencer" wrote in message
...
In article ,
OM om@our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_researc h_facility.org
wrote:
...Three major flaws that most people around here bitch and moan about
when they refer to this scene...

I think you missed #4: the ascent is too fast. The movie-makers watched
too many shuttle launches and not enough Saturn V launches. :-)

And the exhaust plume is too short and too puny. It should stretch
way farther out.

Likewise the shot of the F-1s firing up (which appears to be of a
CO2 fire extinguisher squirting) is not massive enough. *Each*
F-1 burned 3,500 gallons of Kerosene *per second*! And there
were FIVE of them lighting up.

RT

In message , Rocky Top
writes

"Henry Spencer" wrote in message
...
In article ,
OM om@our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_researc h_facility.org
wrote:
...Three major flaws that most people around here bitch and moan about
when they refer to this scene...

I think you missed #4: the ascent is too fast. The movie-makers watched
too many shuttle launches and not enough Saturn V launches. :-)

And the exhaust plume is too short and too puny. It should stretch
way farther out.

Likewise the shot of the F-1s firing up (which appears to be of a
CO2 fire extinguisher squirting) is not massive enough. *Each*
F-1 burned 3,500 gallons of Kerosene *per second*! And there
were FIVE of them lighting up.

I must admit I was impressed by just how much that picture resembled the
real sequences I've seen.
--
"Forty millions of miles it was from us, more than forty millions of miles of
void"
Remove spam and invalid from address to reply.

What is the best space movie?

"James Anatidae" wrote in message
...
"Apollo 13" gets my vote. The Saturn V launch sequence is still a
incredible piece of work.


I prefer Episode 1 "From the Earth to the Moon" .... great Mercury & Gemini
effects
(okay I like the Titan II launch)

The Gemini 4, 8 and 12 sequences are some of the best made ....

G. Beat

On Wed, 01 Oct 2003 04:42:39 -0600, OM
om@our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_researc h_facility.org
wrote:

2) The paint scheme is totally wrong, and is based on the 500 test
fitting model paint job, which is what Revell used for their 1/96 S-V
kit, and what everyone seems to use for reference on how to get the
paint job right.

I've got two of those models. One I put together in 68 or 69. About
2 years ago I was in a store and they had two of them, for $100 each.
I thought that was too much, but wished I had one since my first one
got dropped. Later I was still wishing I had one, so I thought: "If
they still have 2 of them, then they're probably still commonly
available. If they have one left, I'll buy it because it may be my
last chance. If they have none left, I'll be kicking myself for
missing the chance to get one." I went back to the store 2-3 weeks
later, and they had exactly one, so I bought it. I went back some
time later, and they had 3 of them.

In article ,
lid wrote:

In message , Rocky Top
writes

"Henry Spencer" wrote in message
...
In article ,
OM om@our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_researc h_facility.org
wrote:
...Three major flaws that most people around here bitch and moan about
when they refer to this scene...

I think you missed #4: the ascent is too fast. The movie-makers watched
too many shuttle launches and not enough Saturn V launches. :-)

And the exhaust plume is too short and too puny. It should stretch
way farther out.

Likewise the shot of the F-1s firing up (which appears to be of a
CO2 fire extinguisher squirting) is not massive enough. *Each*
F-1 burned 3,500 gallons of Kerosene *per second*! And there
were FIVE of them lighting up.

I must admit I was impressed by just how much that picture resembled the
real sequences I've seen...

Are we talking best _space_ movie, right? Not just best sci-fi in general...?

At any rate, sad how short this thread is compared to the _worst_ space
movie thread. (;^

Anyway, my own picks:
1. Kubrick's "2001": but I'm sure this one's like a rash on everybody's
"best" list. Changed my life at the age of 11.
2. "Apollo 13": my favorite cliffhanger, even if I know how it turns out.
3. "For All Mankind": Documentaries count, right?
4. The _first_ "Star Wars": All the others are just Happy Meal promotions.
5. Little bits of "Silent Running": actually, I haven't seen this since
I saw it right after it was out, so I only remember little bits of a
really nice job on a space station-kind of craft with preserved forests,
and Bruce Dern doing a really fine job of illustrating the possible
effects of long-term space travel.

Oh, yeah, and "Man Conquers Space" will probably come in just ahead of
"For All Mankind" as soon as it comes out, and I'm able to see it. I'm
still drooling over the trailer.

....and I guess that's about it. Sucks that we're able to remember so many
_crummy_ ones.

..

--
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along with their overcoats;
if Adolf Hitler flew in today,
they'd send a limousine anyway!" --the clash.
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