A biopic about Jose Hernandez and his path from a farm worker to becoming an engineer and an astronaut. A tale of perseverance, community and sacrifice to accomplish a seemingly impossible d... Read allA biopic about Jose Hernandez and his path from a farm worker to becoming an engineer and an astronaut. A tale of perseverance, community and sacrifice to accomplish a seemingly impossible dream.A biopic about Jose Hernandez and his path from a farm worker to becoming an engineer and an astronaut. A tale of perseverance, community and sacrifice to accomplish a seemingly impossible dream.
- Awards
- 6 wins & 7 nominations total
- José (Age 7)
- (as Juanpi Monterrubio)
- Julio (Age 11)
- (as Carlos Santiago Sánchez)
Summary
Featured reviews
Although my mother's parents were from Mexico, I knew nothing of the culture or hardships until about 10 years ago when I took a job in South Texas and an older man shared a few stories with me. It was eye-opening, almost unbelievable to hear how hard some people had it. But he didn't only share the hard times, they had happy times, as a family.
So thankful to the writers, directors & producers for keeping us focused on the dream and not making the movie all about pain.
Because I watch movies to be entertained, to take me away from everyday life and I love a happy ending. This is a light-hearted story of not getting sidetracked while following your instincts. Great acting, music was very nice, altogether a great movie.
What I've learned from Jose Hernandez is that hard work and the ability to forgo indulgence are key.
In the case of Jose Hernandez portrayed by Michael Pena, he went from being a migrant farmworker to aspiring to be an astronaut. If it were me today, I might think that fulfilling such dreams requires a hefty sum of money. But this is an inspirational movie, a tale of perseverance, community, and sacrifice. It's not necessarily about being a passenger who enjoys the ride but rather becoming a valuable member that the government needs. It's like wanting to go to the United States; you can pay for a vacation or it could be a business trip or assignment required by a company, viewed from different perspectives.
Another thing to me it doesn't mater where you coming from because it's all about soul and tenacity and persistance and character, and I could go on and on, they are not enough movies like this one these days, it reminds us today, when we certainly do need it, what America is all about. Actors are wonderful, their acting is so transparent they have created a movie so real it seems we are living every second of their lives.
And of course I wasn't crying watching the movie, I got something in my eye.
Did you know
- TriviaIn the film, Jose Hernandez worked on anti-ICBM missile defense (once called "star wars") while at LLL. He found and solved a problem that saved the project's funding.
Jose Hernandez was also a LLL co-inventor of the digital mammogram. In a 15 September 2023 SF Chronicle interview, Jose considers it to be one of his greatest achievements for the many lives saved.
This didn't make it into the film, but is worth celebrating.
- GoofsHernandez was not accepted into NASA until 2004.
In the movie he is already in training when the shuttle crashes, which occurred in 2003.
Furthermore he is then notified by the mission director that the Govt has approved new flights and he will be on the next shuttle flight, whereas there were 15 flights after the crash before he flew in 28 August 2009.
A massive ad lib by the script writers for dramatic effect.
- Quotes
Kalpana Chawla: Everything looks so pretty from up there. It's as though the whole place is sacred. The atmosphere looks like ribbons of different colors hugging the Earth. And it looks so fragile. Such a small planet with so much going on. We think we control everything. Our lives, our dreams. We get exhausted. We make sacrifices. We think it's about wanting it hard enough. But life is mysterious, you know? Here's the thing, though. Once that ignition sequence starts, we only have each other. That matters. What you learned today matters.
- Crazy creditsImmediately before the main end credits there are clips summarizing Jose's life as an astronaut and after. The credits are then interspersed with stills from the real Jose Hernandez's life, achievements and family.
- How long is A Million Miles Away?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- A millones de kilómetros
- Filming locations
- San Luis Potosí, México(location)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime2 hours 1 minute
- Color
- Sound mix