I Want To Fly. Review on October Sky Movie

Dare to dream, Whether they are in color or in black and white,

Whether they are big or small, easily attainable or almost impossible,

Look to your dreams, and make them become reality.

Wishes and hopes are nothing, until you take the first step towards making them something!

Poetry is my hobby from childhood but somehow it was never promoted in my school and in my family.  I still remember when for the first time I went to recite poetry on a big stage during my School Annual Fest with lights and hundreds of eyes watching me. There was no lectern to hold on and my legs were shaking frenziedly but with my sweaty hands clutched behind my back, I moved on, recited my poem and somehow moved into a different zone cos of happiness I felt. When my poem completed, the ovation sound brought me back to the reality, to the world where it was seen disdainfully. Today I am pursuing my hobby but still I use to think what if I had forgotten a few lines on stage? Would that have been my last recitation? Failures may come in your way but all you need is to stand again and fight cos girte hain sheh-sawar hee maidan-e-jang mein (Only those who try, fail.) Same was the theme of movieOctober Sky.

Movie: October sky was released in 1999 and was based on true life story of Homer Hickam, a coal miner's son who takes up rocketry against his father's wishes, and eventually became a NASA scientist.

Plot: The plot of the move was set up in 1950’s and was developed around Homer Hickam growing up in a coal town Coalwood in West Virginia where a boys usually have only one destiny  and that was to "end up in the coalmines" like there fathers. He's bright student however and his teacher Miss Riley always encouraged him hoping to have a better life for him. And this cause conflict between his father and him who believes that mining is an honorable profession. In October 1957, when Sputnik was launched, Homer started thinking of launching a rocket of his own into space and started learning how to build rockets. He and his three local recluse friends started building small rockets from whatever materials they can get which they use to launch from a patch of barren land out of town. Their first rocket blows a h0le in the picket fence in front of Homer's house. The second one narrowly misses some miners at the coal mine. Initially most of the town and Homer’s father ridiculed them and said that they are wasting their time but later people become intrigued of their act and start coming out in flocks to watch the 'Rocket boys' of their town sending off their own homemade missiles. With help of Miss Riley and encouragement from Wernher von Braun **(a famous Rocket Scientist) they participated in State Science Fair which has college scholarships as price.Will Homer and his friends make it? Will they get a better life? Will Homer and his father reconcile their differences? For this watch the movie.

Acting: Jake Gyllenhaal as Homer Hickam has given a terrific performance showing a vicious willpower concealed behind an affable face. His childish fortitude and vigor, his enthusiasm and determination beautifully cultivates through the screen and into hearts. His determination can easily be seen when he talks to his father "Dad, I may not be the best, but I come to believe that I got it in me to be somebody in this world. And it's not because I'm so different from you either, it's because I'm the same. I mean, I can be just as hard-headed, and just as tough. I only hope I can be as good a man as you. Sure, Wernher von Braun is a great scientist? but he isn't my hero."

Chris Hopper as John *(Homer’s Father) elegantly portrayed a responsible typical middle class fellow, who has seen his own dream getting shattered so want to prevent his son from same. This conflict between them reflects the dynamics of a father-son relationship and their clashes. Laura Dern was fabulous as helping and caring *Miss Riley who took courage to stand against Principal Turner and ask “Do you want me to sit quiet, let 'em breathe in coal dust the rest of their life?”Chris owen (known for Van Wilder and American Pie Series) as *Quentin was simply brilliant and in my views this was his best role till date. Lindberg and Scott give stridently comprehensive performances as Homer's fellow rocket boys.

Direction: After directing animation movies like The Rocketeer, The Pagemaster and children fantasyJumanji, ** Joe Johnston came up with the movie showing a true human emotion. In his previous movies, he was always successful in bringing out gracious performances from children and teenagers and here he showed a beautiful relationship between a father and a son, a relationship which is not like a simple one-dimensional son-father relationship but is characterized by  antagonism, covetousness, antipathy, acrimony, reverence, conceit, and love from both the sides. Initially it appears that this movie is all about hopes and dreams but gradually one will realize that the connection between Homer and father is the motivating factor.

Others: The movie is quite rich in technical facet also, be it use of period costumes and accessories to give it look of late 50’s, use of Pop hits of 1950’s (Speedo by The Cadillacs, Why Do Fools Fall in Love by Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers or It's All in the Game by Tommy Edwards) or all-pervading encrusted atmosphere of a coal town. Fred Murphy beautifully captured not only the claustrophobic conditions of the coalmines  from where residents of Coalwood make their earnings and Homer's exciting rockets but also the minute details of human emotions (Emotions between Husband-wife, father-son and friends). And the background scores by Mark Isham played very important role in conveying gloom and optimism at the same time.

My take: *October Sky is the movie about passion, emotion and sentiment and it shows a way that how to steer one's fervor with conscious, accountable judgments. It shows the story of a man who is follow his dream and in the process, becomes a man leaving behind old and heartless feelings. This movie also shows the conflicts between the generations (father and son), thoughts (between boys and those who think that miners' sons belong down in the mines and not up in the sky) and the attitude but still it doesn’t simplify the father into an oppressor (homer break-free but still he respects his father). Be it harmonizing the childhood with budding scientific enthusiasm along with struggling father/son relationship, the story effectively unfurls on numerous levels. A must watch.

Dare to dream, Because only by dreaming, will you ever discover who you are, what you want, and what you can do. Do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true. Always believe in miracles,

and always believe in you!” ~ Julie Anne Ford ~

Time to Dream, what are you waiting for?