RocketMan (1997)

Fred Z. Randall is a geeky spacecraft designer who gets the chance to make his dream come true and travel to Mars.

Director:

Stuart Gillard

Writers:

Oren Aviv (story), Craig Mazin (story)

Stars:

Harland Williams, Jessica Lundy, William Sadler

Cast

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

Storyline

Fred Z. Randall is a geeky and obnoxious spacecraft designer who gets the chance to make his dream come true and travel to Mars as a member of the first manned flight there.

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Plot Keywords:

hare krishna | slapstick comedy | mars the planet | psychotronic film | male protagonist | 

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Taglines:

One Man's Dream... Is NASA's Nightmare!

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language, crude humor and thematic elements

Did You Know?

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.

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Goofs

When Fred is talking to Bud on the radio the night before the wind storm, he says "I'd be proud to end up like you", but his lips do not match the words being spoken.

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Quotes

[about Fred]
Bud Nesbitt: Only a complete genius or a total fool could ever pull this off. Lucky for us he's both.

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Crazy Credits

Thanks is given to the "McDonald Douglas" aerospace corporation. The actual name of the company is "McDonnell Douglas".

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Alternate Versions

To get the PG rating in the UK 42 seconds were cut to remove a scene in which a child climbs into a washing machine and goes for a spin within it.

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Connections

Referenced in Midnight Screenings: Spy Kids 4D: All the Time in the World (2011)

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Soundtracks

He's Got the Whole World in His Hands
(uncredited)
Traditional
Performed by Harland Williams

User Reviews

A great Disney movie, ranks up there with "What About Bob"

This movie is incredibly funny. I base a good comedy on how many times it makes you laugh - this movie made me laugh so hard I cried at least 3 times. It throws tons of jokes at you - Harland Williams is great as the computer specialist who gets his dream job of becoming an astronaut -- "what I'll do now is use what we like to call 'The right way" to show you how it's done." There was only one moment where one joke goes on a few seconds too long ("whole world in his hands" bit) - but other than that it a very inventive comedy that will make adults laugh just as much as the kids, maybe more. A surprise gem - one of the funniest flicks I've seen - give it a shot. 9 out of 10.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 October 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rocket Man

Filming Locations:

Sugar Land, Texas, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$4,472,937, 12 October 1997

Gross USA:

$15,448,043

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$15,448,043

Company Credits

Production Co:

Caravan Pictures, Gold/Miller Productions, Roger Birnbaum Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1