Marooned (1969)

Director:

John Sturges

Writers:

Martin Caidin (novel)
Mayo Simon (writer)

Release Date:

11 December 1969 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Three marooned astronauts. Only 55 minutes left to rescue them. While the whole world watches and waits...

Plot:

Three American astronauts are stranded in space when their retros won't fire. Can they be rescued before their oxygen runs out?

Plot Keywords:

Astronaut | Oxygen | Space | NASA | Orbit

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 3 nominations

Cast

Gregory Peck	...	Charles Keith
Richard Crenna	...	Jim Pruett
David Janssen	...	Ted Dougherty
James Franciscus	...	Clayton Stone
Gene Hackman	...	Buzz Lloyd
Lee Grant	...	Celia Pruett
Nancy Kovack	...	Teresa Stone
Mariette Hartley	...	Betty Lloyd
Scott Brady	...	Public Affairs Officer
Craig Huebing	...	Flight Director
Frank Marth	...	Air Force System Director
John Carter	...	Flight Surgeon
Vincent Van Lynn	...	Aerospace journalist
George Gaynes	...	Mission Director
Tom Stewart	...	Houston Cap Com

Also Known As:

Space Travelers (USA) (reissue title)

Runtime:

134 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Iceland:12 | USA:TV-PG | West Germany:12 (f) | Australia:G | Finland:K-8 | Norway:12 (original rating) | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:G

Filming Locations:

Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

There is no musical score for this film. Instead, each spacecraft has its own ambient soundtrack when it is shown in space. The Apollo shots feature a low hum; the XRV, a hollow ringing; the Nimbus Weather Satellite, a rapid series of beeps ascending in pitch; and the Russian Voshkhod, a constant pitch series of beeps. The only exceptions to this is are a very slight, muted bit of music played under the Apollo ambient soundtrack during Pruett's final EVA, and a single tone (with some ambient effects that could be called music) during the opening credits.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Russian Soyuz spacecraft depicted only shows the orbital module. The launch/re-entry and service modules are missing.

Quotes:

Clayton Stone: Jesus, fifty-five minutes... We'll be pretty cold by then.
Buzz Lloyd: Well, one of us's gonna have to go. I mean uh... that's what we're talkin' about, isnt it? One of us goes and the... other two stay. What... what are we gonna do?
Clayton Stone: Alright look. Let's do this scientifically: two big guys throw the little guy out, okay?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Rocketship X-M (#3.1)" (1990)

Flawed ... and yet it really draws you in

I'm giving _Maroooned_ a generous 8/10 because of its artificially low total score.

Aside from being a finely-tuned and detailed look into the American space program in its 60s and early-70s era, _Marooned_ is one of my favourite types of film: it's seemingly banal, washed-out, and emotionless upon first viewing. Once you get past that, it's a subtly-acted character study.

After watching it several times, however, the characters' traits become more apparent as the story develops. We see Gene Hackman's character, astronaut Buzz Lloyd, on a slippery slope right from the start. He daydreams on the job, tries pathetically to win favour from Mission Control ("I, uh, fixed the razor"), and then slides into blatant panic as the emergency unfolds.

When we first see her, Celia Pruett presents an exterior persona toughened by fifteen years' experience of being an astronaut's wife. When Celia, in Mission Control, realizes she may be talking to her husband for the last time, her facade slips from forced, banal confidence to seeing her husband anew after fifteen years of marriage. Actress Lee Grant brings out Celia's desperate emotion with simple, innocent gestures: a suggestive laugh, tracing her fingers on the TV image of her husband, and a whispered, forlorn promise to him.

Even the rescue launch director (actor uncredited) is all business during the countdown, quietly reading off checklists and acknowledging reports from his colleagues. Yet, at the very last second--and still businesslike--he looks at Manned Space Director Keith (Gregory Peck) with sorrow and frustration as both realize their rescue attempt is going to fail.

But, again--it's all subtlety. In reality, people often are, so the viewer has to LOOK for it. Even IMDb reviewers who favour this film seem to want flashier character traits, claiming the film to be excessively dry.

There's a common complaint from IMDb reviewers about a lot of films: "boring--entertain ME!" Sorry, that kind of complaint doesn't cut it. Gratuitous gun violence, sexuality, constant profanity, and guts/blood/guts--THAT gets boring. A film like _Marooned_ (or its nearest contemporary, _2001_), is paced deliberately for a reason. You must watch the characters closely, listen to the dialogue, and place both in the context of the story and setting. To dismiss _Marooned_ as 'boring' means you won't (or can't) see the point, and more's the pity.

I will say the film deserved MUCH better treatment, particularly the inexcusably shoddy ending, some robotic performances from bit players, and clumsy use of props. Yet, _Marooned_ is TRUE science fiction, not that Star Wars fantasy stuff. Did Luke Skywalker ever show any character development over the course of one film?