Pontiac Moon

I really liked that movie for the originality of the plot. From the beginning, on the one hand, you have Apollo XI taking off to the Moon in the boldest and riskiest adventure in all the history of humanity, and on the other hand, you have Katherine Bellamy, who can't even step out of her house because she is too afraid of the world out there. And between those two extremes, you have Washington Bellamy, his husband, who has a drive to explore and discover but hasn't made a single trip with his 11-year old son because Katherine doesn't even want her son to step into a car.

Now Washington is too inspired by the Apollo odyssey and decides it is time for his son to discover something more than what you can find in books. They will drive from their home in California to a natural crater in Idaho, in exactly the same time as Apollo XI gets from Earth to Moon.

The parallelism between the father-and-son trip and the space journey is maintained from the beginning to the end. Of course, the father and the son will strengthen their ties during the trip, the son will learn why his mother is so timorous and... maybe there's a happy ending over there!

I loved the accuracy of the movie - the cars, the clothes...but at the end, when the men land on the Moon, it was July 20th, 1969 - but they show the moon as full - I remember looking at the moon that night, and have check the lunar phases calender - it was waxing crescent, and did not phase to full until July 29th. I really liked the acting, and think Ted really had fun playing this part. Lots of odd surprises and interesting characters. The photography was really well done too, beautiful shots of the amazing scenery. If you want to sit down with a bag of pop corn with the entire family, there is something there for everyone. Educational quotations, write from wrong, bad guys get whooped, and a small history lesson - it has it all.

As a movie collector for decades who considers himself very critical & picky about films, I can't help myself, I love this movie. Yeah, it's maybe a little far-fetched or corny sometimes but there isn't a second of it that's not enjoyable – it's just too charming and well directed with exactly that effect in mind, and with a beautiful musical score, superb cinematography and a tight script. I think Ted Danson possibly gives his best performance ever as Washington Bellamy, an enraptured-with-knowledge elementary school teacher who also collects beautifully oddball classic cars. The story line described above about trying to match the distance the Apollo crew travels by simultaneously driving over a large part of the country to the Spires of the Moon National Park is already a remarkably charming idea. This will be his "one perfect act" as he brings his very cute young boy with him, leaving behind an quirky paranoid wife who is always afraid to leave the house. Mary Steenburgen plays this part with superb humor as she sets off after her husband and son. Of course, interesting adventures and troubles occur during the journeys but it's Washington's never failing enthusiasm for life and its wonders that really make the film's ideas all work. I've watched this film a number of times and will watch it again into old age and when I'm no longer able to enjoy it I'll be ready to die.

This is a good film for anyone who was a kid at the time of the Apollo Moon Landings and can remember how it felt to be alive at a momentous time in World History.

The film oozes period nostalgia and the scenery on the roadtrip to The Peaks of the Moon in Idaho is quite breathtaking, and the relationship between the Ted Danson character and his young son is quite touching.

You cant expect anyone who wasn't alive at the time this movie was set to appreciate the feelings that the story creates, this is one for those who still retain those feelings of innocense and the feelings of hope that you had; being young in 1969.

It's more than just a movie, it unlocks feelings and emotions you thought you had long forgotten. Not a movie for the cynical, or for the Nintendo generation whom have no historical perspective and no idea what it was like to alive when the World was a place of hope.

After seeing this movie I felt that the creators did a good job paralleling the expedition to the moon and the traveling of the father and son. The Indian, Eric Schweig, held the characters together through their trip and allowed them to patch up their relationship by leaving them alone. He continuously gives Andy good advice concerning life and his father. But what I couldn't figure out was why they had to drive through Montana to get to Idaho from California, it is completely out of the way. The plot evolves as the mother finally leaves the home after 7 years of being boarded up inside. Ted Danson plays the father who is a genius professor with a strange behavioral side to him. But not to give the story away I will stop now and leave the rest to those that are interested in it.