¶ … Sky -- a Great Movie with Profound Values Back in the late Fifties, more than ten years after the end of World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union were in a struggle called the "Cold War." The Soviets were trying hard to extend their influence to third world countries (and other nations around the world) and the U.S. was doing the same. And then in October, 1957, the Soviets shocked Americans -- and made U.S. technology seem far behind what the Soviet communists were doing -- by launching the first man-made satellite. It was called "Sputnik," and it caused the U.S. government to gear up its space (and rocket) program. But the movie goes much deeper than that, as it tells the story of a young boy (Homer Hickam) who was fascinated with the idea becoming part of America's space exploration and yet his father wanted him to work in the coal mines of West Virginia. This paper reviews and critiques the film and points to the reasons that it made a strong impact on me when I saw it a few years ago.

The characters and the tension of October Sky

This movie actually tells the true story of Homer Hickam, who was a young man in high school growing up in West Virginia and eventually became an engineer at NASA. The main tension in the film is how Homer had to turn away from what his coal miner father wanted him to do as a career. His father was adamant about Homer doing what he (the father) had done all his life -- work in the coal mines. The family clashes in this film are very realistic and the audience can clearly see all sides...

John Hickam (played very believably by Chris Cooper) is a hard-working man whose whole career has been underground. One of his two sons is a good football player and is likely to get a scholarship to play football in college.
But Homer is not an athlete, and he is not very good at math and science; still, after he becomes inspired by Sputnik, he becomes determined to learn to build rockets and become involved in the exploration of space. Any high school boy in American who has had fights with his dad can relate to this ongoing schism. John Hickam is just as determined that Homer will follow in his father's footsteps; it is John's dream that a son of his will take over as mine superintendent, a position of authority that John conducts with a powerful presence and skill.

Though John Hickam is dead set against Homer's interest in rocketry, and though John issues threats to his son and is very belligerently opposed to Homer's dreams, Homer is passionate about space and rockets and he gets together with several other boys to start working on their own rocket. Going against one's parents is always risky, and the emotions from Homer's rebellion against his father's wishes are powerfully conveyed in this film.

One of the most dramatic moments is when the boys -- including Homer's friend, Quentin Wilson, a geeky kid who is unpopular but brilliant in science and math -- build their first rocket. When the rocket goes off course and allegedly starts a forest fire (and the boys are arrested by the local sheriff) John Hickam is really mad.…