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I don't know how I could miss this film in March! I think it didn't come to my local cinema, but now it's out on DVD. This is a good candidate for the best film of the year 2001!

The above poster expresses very well what the movie is about:
- America's race to space in the 1950s/60s
- A boy's relationship to a chimpanzee

Let me first spend a few words on the first aspect. James Woods plays Dr. van Huber, a German scientist "imported" from Germany after WWII. The real person was Wernher von Braun. He developed the rocket "Vergeltungswaffe 2" (V2) in Peenemünde from 1937 on. The V2 (former A4 - "Aggregat 4" ) was supposed to be the answer to the allied bombing terror over German cities that caused the death of hundrets of thousands of civilians.
In June 1945 von Braun and 126 of his colleagues relocated to the United States where they continued their work in White Sands (New Mexico). The film begins in 1957 after the Soviets have shot their first satellite, the "Sputnik", into space. It was kind of a shock for the Americans and they pushed the rocket program even more now.
In 1969, the first spacecraft, "Apollo 11" (modell "Saturn 5" ), landed on the moon. This success hadn't been possible without the unremitting assiduity of von Braun.

Here is a picture of Wernher von Braun at Cape Canaveral (NASA, Florida):
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(© Deutsches Historisches Museum, Berlin)

Now for the second aspect of the film. The first efforts of shooting rockets into outer space weren't very successful: they had to be destroyed when they deviated from their suggested course. That's why it was way too risky to man such a rocket. So what do you do if you can't take a man? You use an animal! Van Huber's son Billy (Alex D. Linz) finds interest in animal trainer Dr. McGuinness' (Annabeth Gish) work. Totally against the will of his father, Billy starts working as an assistant to McGuinness and becomes more and more friends to a chimpanzee called "Max", who will be the passenger of the first "manned" American spacecraft.
The film also tells us about the father-son relationship that is not the best at first (mildly spoken), but becomes much better in the end. I wished the film had focused even more on that subject, that's the only thing I would criticize about it (plus some "Disney-like" moments that were unnecessary in my view).

Some comments about the DVD: don't get fooled by the specification of a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. That is not true, it features the correct ratio of 2.35:1! As extras there is, among other things, an audio commentary and a Making-of. I didn't have time to watch it though, but that's not too bad, because I will order the DVD rigth now!  

I have no idea why this excellent film has been so under-rated at this board. Has nobody watched it?
SJ, have you seen it meanwhile?

<i>SJ, have you seen it meanwhile?</i>

Hehe. Well, it's one of the 70 or so dvd's that I've ordered since this thread started, but it's also one of the ones that I haven't watched yet. Soon! I'm gonna watch it! I'm glad you reminded me by bringing this thread back up, anyway.

Love,
Sir J