The Astronaut Farmer (2006)

A NASA astronaut (Thornton), forced to retire years earlier so he could save his family farm, has never give up his dream of space travel and looks to build his own rocket, despite the government's threats to stop him.

Director:

Michael Polish

Writers:

Mark Polish, Michael Polish

Stars:

Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen, Max Thieriot

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Bob Thornton	...	Charles Farmer
Virginia Madsen	...	Audrey 'Audie' Farmer
Max Thieriot	...	Shepard Farmer
Jasper Polish	...	Stanley Farmer
Logan Polish	...	Sunshine Farmer
Bruce Dern	...	Hal
Mark Polish	...	FBI Agent Mathis
Jon Gries	...	FBI Agent Killbourne
Tim Blake Nelson	...	Kevin Munchak
Sal Lopez	...	Pepe Garcia
J.K. Simmons	...	Jacobson
Kiersten Warren	...	Phyllis
Rick Overton	...	Arnold 'Arnie' Millard
Richard Edson	...	Chopper Miller
Elise Eberle	...	Madison Roberts

Storyline

Texan Charles Farmer left the Air Force as a young man to save the family ranch when his dad died. Like most American ranchers, he owes his bank. Unlike most, he's an astrophysicist with a rocket in his barn - one he's built and wants to take into space. It's his dream. The FBI puts him under surveillance when he tries to buy rocket fuel; the FAA stalls him when he files a flight plan - it's post-9/11, after all. His wife is angry when she finds out their bank is initiating foreclosure. Charlie fears failure and decides, precipitously, to launch. Are twenty-first century American dreams just a sign of insanity? Are those who believe in dreamers only fools?

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Plot Keywords:

rocket | bank | foreclosure | fuel | ranch | 

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Taglines:

If we don't have our dreams, we have nothing.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic material, peril and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Warner Bros. Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

23 February 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Astronaut Farmer

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$4,454,319 (USA) (23 February 2007)

Gross:

$10,996,440 (USA) (20 April 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Spring Creek Pictures, Polish Brothers Construction

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

FBI Agent Mathis is played by Mark Polish, who wrote the screenplay.

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Goofs

Upon re-entry, rockets are fired for the purpose of slowing down the capsule to sub-orbital speed, but the capsule is still traveling many thousands of miles per hour relative to the ground below. However, when Farmer fires his retrograde rockets, his capsule seemed to simply come to a stop, and drop vertically to Earth. In addition, he fired his rockets after appearing to fly over Baja California, for a landing in Texas, while in reality, descending manned spacecraft fire their rockets thousands of miles in advance of their desired landing spot.

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Quotes

Charles Farmer: You see, when I was a kid, they used to tell me that I could be anything I wanted to be. No matter what. And maybe I am insane, I don't know, but I still believe that.

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Crazy Credits

During the credits, an interview on The Tonight Show is shown between Farmer and Jay Leno. Pictures play during the credits as well.

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Connections

References Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

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Soundtracks

"Rescue My Heart"
Written by Stuart Matthewman (as S. Matthewman) and L.J. Hickey
Performed by Lysa Jayne Hickey

User Reviews

Feel Good Movie

Saw this last night at an advanced screening. This was a really nice feel good movie for the entire family. I brought my 6 year old daughter and she thoroughly enjoyed it. The thematic content I believe was appropriate for someone as young as her, but I might not bring a younger child to this movie. There were about 5-6 swear words, but she didn't even pick up on them. Billy Bob Thornton did a great job in this movie. Bruce Willis' cameo really was nice. The movie was slow in a few parts. The grandfather's role wasn't totally clear to me, and some of the comedic parts seemed a bit forced. Overall, I enjoyed this movie quite a bit.