OCTOBER SKY
US, 1998, 102 minutes, Colour.
Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Laura Dern.
Directed by Joe Johnston.
October Sky is a piece of Americana, intended to inspire middle America. It does for science and space exploration and engineering what films like Stand and Deliver did for calculus and mathematics.
The setting is October 1957 with the launch of the Sputnik. However, the setting is also West Virginia and the end of the life of the coalmines - with their industrial troubles, strikes, accidents, union clashes. The contrast is made between the old ways and world view with mining (under ground) and the new ways with space (and the limitless expansion).
Chris Cooper is strong as the mine manager who cannot support his son in his enterprise and wants his son to go down the mine. Jake Gyllenhaal is the young student. Laura Dern has a cameo role as a teacher who inspires her students (and who has a terminal illness). Joe Johnston is better known for special effects work on the Star Wars movies and fantasises like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, Jumanji and Jurassic Park III. A film of positive values and inspiration.
1. A piece of Americana, the US in the '50s? The contrast between the coalmining towns and the opening up of space exploration? The study of science, maths - and the future?
2. The film based on a true story - the end photographs and film clips with the real people and their achievement?
3. West Virginia, the period, cars, homes? Costumes and the look of the times? The musical score?
4. The title, 1957, the first Sputnik? The inspiration of the sky and looking upwards towards the future?
5. West Virginia, the town of Coalwood, the high school, homes, the mines, the closures, the unions, the bosses? The death of the mine in the '60s?
6. The father and his work in the mine, the tradition, interactions with the workers, the attack on him, the explosion and his injuries, hospital? The strike, his attitude, attitude towards the unionists? His expectations of his son?
7. Education in Coalwood - for what? The sons going to the mines? Miss Riley and her enthusiasm, information about the Science Fair, her encouragement of the students, giving Homer the book of maths? The principal and his pragmatic approach? Sports scholarships as a way of getting out of the town? Homer's older brother and aiming for the sports scholarship?
8. The picture of families in the town, Homer's family, his brother, his quiet mother, the domination of the father? Quentin and his poverty? The role of mothers in the town - and the stances that they sometimes took?
9. The Sputnik, the students watching it, Miss Riley and her class? Homer and his dreams?
10. Homer, daydreaming, asking Quentin to help him and going against the pressures from his peers? The friendship with Quentin? Forming the group to work on the rocket? The reaction of the sports jocks, the interest of the girls and their admiration? Working on the rockets, studying the books, learning the ingredients and the chemical formulas, building the rockets, the experiments? The reaction of Homer's father? The need for iron, the railway tracks? The European migrant and his war experience and working on the rocket shells for them? The black worker and his memories of the war, helping? People interested, coming to watch the experiments, a community experience?
11. The competition, working for the achievement, the range of experiments and their continued improvement? The arrest for causing a fire, handcuffed, Miss Riley's protests, Homer's father getting them out? The accident in the mine, the father being injured, hospital? Homer and his decision to go down the mine? Discussions with Quentin? His decision against the mine, taking out the maths book, learning his maths, going to school, encountering the principal, his working out the formulas for finding the rocket - and its being in place, not causing the fire?
12. Learning, enrolling in the school, the support of the principal? Building the final rockets, only one able to go to Indianapolis? The fair, science in 1958? Everything stolen, including his photo of Werner von Braun? The fair, talking with Werner von Braun and not knowing? The past with von Braun's letters? Winning the competition? An achievement for the town?
13. The final confrontation with his father, going to leave home, his mother confronting the father? The final rocket, the town there as a community, his father coming and his son dedicating it to him and the setting off of the rocket?
14. The aftermath, the '60s to the '90s and the achievement of all the people? The future of American space exploration? The pathos of the death of Miss Riley? A film intended as being inspirational?
