Beyond the Stars (1989)
Teenager Eric, the son of a computer scientist who worked for the Apollo mission which sent the first human to the moon, is determined to become an astronaut himself one day, and befriends Paul Andrews, the first man on the moon. Paul is avoided by other astronauts nowadays, because he was very rude and rebuffing when he returned from space. Only slowly Eric learns, that he discovered something during his excursion on the moon, that he keeps as a secret.
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Simply A Masterpiece
It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.
There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
Whereas the background story about an ageing astronaut who has found something or someone on the Moon proved sufficiently effective despite not being resolved satisfyingly, the plot around teenage love stories and trite father-son relationships did the film no real favour. On the other hand did the film avoid entering into the domain of hard sci-fi, making it accessible and even enjoyable for a wider audience. Unfortunately, the photography, score and direction were mediocre at best. The acting wasn't really bad but the performances aren't memorable, either. The film is hard to recommend because there's too little science fiction for fans of this genre and unnecessarily much for audiences interested in personal relationships. As a cinematic product, the film is quite negligible.
I have seen this movie for the first time when i was 15 in SPAIN/Madrid and i never forgot the movie.now at 29 years old i finally managed to purchased a DVD copy once and for all, i had tears when watching this one, it is an excellent movie and i will never understand why people bashed it.this is possibly one of the best and most emotional movies from Martin Sheen acting here is top notch, Christian Slater and all the others are very good too. sure there are bit of cliché' here and there but no movie is ever perfect is it?i assure you by the end of the movie you will be so impressed as long as you keep an open mind.this for me scores 9/10and please, if you ever get the chance, rent it or buy it.WORTH IT! 100%
The first reviewer wants every movie to be an academy award winner. This movie is way better and more meaningful. I saw it years ago and would like to find it on my rental stores shelves someday, I would rent it in an instant. Good message and great performances. Well worth the time to watch. Sometimes these little TV movies are just what you're looking for on a Friday night. Even if the ending leaves a bit of thought, sometimes this grey type of ending is what is called for. Makes you kind of think of the message you read into the movie. Not all good movies have perfect endings, perfect performances or perfect editing. If you can overlook some minor flaws you will enjoy this movie.
Unlike the other commenter, I found this movie very enjoyable. It is the type of movie you might find in the "Under $5" bin and after watching think "Wow, how did this movie get overlooked?"I found the relationships handled very well. Father/son Future stepmother/stepson NASA engineer vs. NASA pilot conflict Boyfriend/girlfriendI found Slater very believable and thought he and D'Abo played very well together as bf/gf. I thought Foxsworth and Sheen's confrontation was the highlight of the movie.F.Murray Abraham shines in his small role also.The only weak part of this movie, for me, is the scifi thrown in near the end. I bought the movie looking for scifi. I feel in love with the drama, then found myself wishing they left the scifi out at the end and stuck to the well done drama.Don't miss this one if you can find it. Very emotional movie, IMHO.