October Sky the movie is based on the book RocketBoys, by Homer Hickam.
Interestingly, the name October Sky is an anagram of the name Rocket Boys! A coincidence? -- TobyDonaldson?
My wife and I saw this movie this weekend. Wonderful. Uplifting and positive. It keeps you glued to the screen by its engaging plot and human interest alone. We need more movies like this. -- KyleBrownI saw OctoberSky on an airplane, was very impressed, and told my family about it when I returned. We rented the video soon after and everyone enjoyed it, even my wife, who isn't interested in science. But she is interested in growing up and in family relationships, and that is what the movie is really about. The science is just a backdrop. -- RalphJohnson
I saw October Sky a couple of months ago with my family. We all loved it. It is an intelligent movie that adults and kids (mine are 7 and 10) can enjoy. It also is inspiring for kids interested in science and engineering. It doesn't just show the work of genius, but the results of a lot of hard work and trial-and-error. -- PatrickLogan
I started my DVD collection with this film, and I don't even have a DVD player. My boys and I huddled on the sofa watching a laptop on the coffee table. -- WardCunningham
The original review thought to add that, "No sex, only one scene containing VERY little violence (and it is highly condemning of it), very little foul language." This observation prompted the following discussion ...
I'm a little concerned that a movie can be recommended purely on the grounds that it has little violence, no sex and little "foul language". -- AlanFrancis
I was pointing out that the movie was engaging and wonderful DESPITE the fact that it had none of the attributes. The story alone was enough to hold your interest for the entire length of the film without requiring any "eye candy" of any sort. -- KyleBrown
Some movies are about sex and violence, so it is reasonable that they should show a lot of it {ClockworkOrange, for example -- kb}, but what annoys me is that almost all movies show it, even those without any good reason. Directors obviously think that it sells. Perhaps it does. [We should] take note when we see a good movie that goes against the flow. -- RalphJohnson
All this is nice, but I'm still trying to figure out how anyone can consider a Laura Dern film non-sexual.
It's a constant source of amazement to me that sex and violence get lumped together as being equally distasteful. -- JohnFarrell
"Sex and violence" are codewords for a complicated set of ideas on which (in my opinion) Hollywood's teaching is almost invariably incorrect. -- RalphJohnson
My family & I watched the film a couple of months ago and thought it was...about OK but a bit tame after the book. The book was very attention-grabbing although it always sounded like a set up for a film!
In the book there is a bit more sex, mainly through the thread of a group of guys doing the teens growing up stuff 1950's style, which I thought a film would have had a bit more on board.
Still I agree it was pretty inspiring stuff. -- MartinNoutch