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The Astronaut Farmer
Click to listen to my one-on-one interview
with actor Billy Bob Thornton.
Matt's Review below
Dreams are what make our world work. Dreams allow
us to travel across continents in record time. Dreams
allow us to see and go and do things that centuries
ago no one would have thought possible; no one
except those with a dream. To paraphrase a
worthwhile saying, ìWithout dreams humanity will
perish.î Dreams rally people around a cause. Dreams
build bridges and unite ideas. Dreams turn ìwhat ifísî
into ìhow farísî. Dreams are contagious and with the
right passion ignite a flame. My hope is that the new
film The Astronaut Farmer will inspire a nation of
dreamers to just simply go for it.
Charles Farmer (Billy Bob Thornton) is a dreamer. A
man who had his dreams of space travel delayed by
personal situations but did not allow those situations
to stop what his inner being longed to do. He is a
quiet fellow. A man who loves his family. A guy who
will not allow small town gossip and negativity to
thwart his mission. His mission to launch himself into
space and his wife (Virginia Madsen) and family are
behind him 100%. The problem is that he isnít
fulfilling his dream through NASA but rather a rocket
ship he has built in his own barn.
I know what you are thinking. And on the surface this
sounds like a total, ìhold my beer and watch thisî
moment. I mean only in Texas could you have
someone building a rocket in their barn and it be
believable. But this movie does a wonderful job of
getting you beyond the concept and pulling you into
Farmerís vision. The story stirs up the dreamer in you.
You want to see him succeed because his rocket
represents all of our dreams. Those we never could
get launched and so we stored them away in the back
of our lives somewhere. This is our chance to see
them released. Granted this film is fiction and there
will always be those who try to find the holes and
impossibilities in the story line. But that is what all
dreamers face. Those who always look for reasons to
fail. You can allow that negativity to ruin the film. Or you
can be inspired by it regardless.
This movie also shows the backbone of family unity in
a unique circumstance. Even though Farmerís family
may not share his dream to go into space, they
believe in him above everything else. Itís as if their
dream is to see his dream fulfilled. Thatís the nature
of true family. As one comedian once put it, ìThe
wonderful thing about the game show Family Feud is
that while the rest of the world is calling you an idiot,
your family is yelling, Good answer! Good answer!î It
is that foundation that resonates in the Farmer family.
And maybe it will cause other families to rethink how
they support each other.
The Astronaut Farmer is rated PG for thematic
material, peril and language. This is a perfect family
movie for all generations. If there is one movie that you
could truly take the entire family to this would be it. It
will stir your conversation about each otherís dreams
and what it means to support unconditionally. Odds
are no one in your home is building a rocket ship but if
they are you need to be willing to help light the fuse. I
give this flick 4 out of 5 ëatta boys. With a look at The
Astronaut Farmer, Iím Matt Mungle
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Matt and Cindy are members of the North Texas Film
Critics Association (NTFCA). For additional reviews
and interview clips visit the website.
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Mungleshow Productions
Matt Mungle
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