RocketMan (1997)

Director:

Stuart Gillard

Writers (WGA):

Oren Aviv (story) &
Craig Mazin (story) ...

Release Date:

10 October 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

He's just taking up space!

Plot:

Fred Z. Randall is geeky and obnoxious spacecraft designer, who gets the chance to make his dream come...

Plot Keywords:

Flatulence | Title Based On Song

Cast

Harland Williams	...	Fred Z. Randall
Jessica Lundy	...	Julie Ford
William Sadler	...	'Wild Bill' Overbeck
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	Paul Wick
James Pickens Jr.	...	Ben Stevens
Don Lake	...	Flight Surgeon
Peter Onorati	...	Gary Hackman
Beau Bridges	...	Bud Nesbitt
William Arthur Jenkins	...	Mission Controller
Ken Farmer	...	Mission Controller
Blake Boyd	...	Gordon A. Peacock
Brandon Kaplan	...	Young Fred
Paxton Whitehead	...	British Reporter
Don Armstrong	...	Anchorman
Pamela West	...	Nun

Also Known As:

Rocket Man (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG for language, crude humor and thematic elements.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Germany:6 | Portugal:M/6 (video premiere) | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Houston, Texas, USA

Company:

Caravan Pictures

Trivia:

For the surface of Mars, the filmmakers shot in Moab, Utah, where they found giant cliffs, red rocks, a lack of vegetation, and the overall scale of what could be a distant planet.

Goofs:

Factual errors: It takes radio signals almost 20 minutes to reach Mars, yet instantaneous communication happens throughout the film.

Quotes:

Fred Randall: Who am I?
William Overbeck: Mommy.
Fred Randall: Say it like you love me.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Soundtrack:

Tossin' & Turnin'

Icht schlicken dokken, lug dee lug......

I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard during a movie. Harland Williams is a genius. "C'mon all you Chinese....." Who comes up with this stuff??? I got the feeling that the directors and writers just told Williams to work around the script and improvise whatever he wanted? Some of this stuff is so off the wall, you wonder just how much was scripted. And this is not your typical Jerry Lewis slapstick. Williams has a great deal of pure talent. Anyway watch it and just enjoy the wonderful absurdity that is Rocket Man.