HOT: Apollo 13

Space has always been very interesting to me. I would have loved to be an astronaut and fly through outer space. But, it has also been pretty scary as well - and this film really didn't help that fear.

In Apollo 13 Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) is astronaut with the American space program, or NASA. He, his family and friends are about to watch the Apollo 11 moon landing with Neil Armstrong on television at his house.

Lovell is scheduled, along with Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) and Ken Mattingly (Gary Sinise), to fly in the Apollo 14 moon mission and land on the moon himself.

Around a month before the Apollo 13 launch, Lovell is called into his bosses office and is informed that he and his crew would be bumped up to Apollo 13 due to illnesses throughout the original crew. With just a little time to train, Lovell, Haise and Mattingly throw themselves into the simulators and train for their mission.

During the final week before the mission, Lovell is informed that one of the NASA crew members has developed measles and could have infected all those around him. Lovell and Haise had both had measles so are in the clear, but Mattingly is forced to stay behind having never had them - he is replaced at the last minute by Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon).

On the day the astronauts broadcast from space, Marilyn Lovell (Kathleen Quinlan) and the rest of the astronaut's loved ones head to NASA to watch. She notices that none of the television stations are covering the show and is told that none of the networks thought it was interesting enough to broadcast.

After the show, those in Houston helping the astronauts on their mission ask Swigert to stir the oxygen tanks. During the process, something horrible goes wrong and the shuttle explodes and begins leaking oxygen into space.

Forced to use their lunar module as a life boat, the astronauts soon realize that going to the moon is now out of the question and even returning home could be difficult. Flight Director Gene Kranz (Ed Harris) and the rest of the guys in Houston must now figure out a way to keep the three astronauts alive and get them home safely - including bringing Mattingly into the simulator to find the best possible way to save electricity and still use everything that they need.

Though it may have scarred me for life from wanting to head into outer space - I think I will wait until we have the U.S.S. Enterprise or the Millennium Falcon to make that trip - the movie itself was amazing and told the story of Apollo 13 very well.

Most of the acting in the film was top-notch. I still am up-and-down on Paxton. Compared to the other actors like Hanks, Sinise and Harris, he really stood out as below par. But, that didn't affect my thoughts on the film. One of my favorites.

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HOT: Forrest Gump

Here we reach the second of Tom Hanks' Academy Award wins in the lead actor category. Unlike Philadelphia this one I have seen a ton of times - including in the theater.

The story of Forrest Gump is an incredible story of a man named Forrest (Hanks), who has an IQ of less than average, but leads the most fascinating life.

While he was young he was picked on a ton by the other children in school due to his lack of intelligence and because he had to wear leg braces to straighten out his spine. He was rescued on a number of occasions by a girl in school named Jenny (Robin Wright) and the two of them become very good friends - Forrest quickly falls in love with her and she becomes the only girl for him.

As they grow up Forrest and Jenny's lives go in completely different directions. As Forrest is running away from bullies one day he is discovered by a football coach and he uses his ability to return kicks and gains a scholarship to Alabama.

He uses the scholarship to gain a degree and after college is given a pamphlet to join the Army, and he does.

Jenny meanwhile starts at an all-girls college near Forrest at Alabama, but eventually she gets mixed up in some odd situations - most likely due to the trauma she received from her father when she was a child. Forrest does all he can to protect her when he is around, but she pushes him away each time he does.

In the Army, Forrest heads to Vietnam and becomes best friends with Bubba (Mykelti Williamson), a man from Louisiana who wants to be a shrimp boat captain. He is led in the Army by Lt. Dan (Gary Sinise), whose entire family (at least the men) have been killed during wars - and he is looking to take his place among them. Unfortunately, Forrest saves his life and takes that away from him - and he loses his legs in the process.

Basically to sum up, Forrest Gump, despite his limitations, made the most out of his life and was never held back. He used his speed to go to college, he received a purple heart in the Army, he met numerous presidents, started a great business and helped many people out along the way with his strong heart.

The entire film is told through a flashback as Forrest sits on a bench waiting for a bus. He tells his story to the people that come and sit next to him - all because a nurse has a new pair of shoes. The only part of the film not in flashback is the glimpses of Forrest telling the story - and the end as he is on his way to see Jenny and make a remarkable discovery.

Though the film is rather long, it is an incredible story and very fun to watch. Great to see the many different things that happen to Forrest, most of which happen by chance, including him having a hand in many different historical events.

Hanks was top-notch as always. I also really enjoyed Williamson as Bubba and Sinise as Lt. Dan. I am still on the fence about Wright's performance. There were some parts of the film where I really enjoyed her and others where she really didn't seem up to par with Hanks' performance.

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