

For example, the work-obsessed dad who dresses in suit and tie demonstrates his interest in his son by wearing a casual shirt and showing up in a cool convertible sports car, as if these superficial changes could repair their relationship. There are some minor issues with Race to Space. It's possible, though, that the oversimplification of complicated matters may be exactly what makes it a good choice for kids interested in space exploration.

#Race into space guide movie
This movie has a lot to like, including its focus on the ingenuity, brilliance, and creativity of the team that started America's space program, but sometimes the plot turns hokey. Billy and his dad save the day, with the help of a fictionalized astronaut Alan Shepard (Mark Moses) and other German scientists.

Hoping to take over the rocket-building contract from NASA, evil aerospace corporation head Thornhill (William Devane) pays a NASA supervisor to sabotage the mission, with the intent of blowing up the rocket and chimp. She sees Billy's gift with animals and enlists him to help, which Wilhelm indignantly nixes immediately. Billy, being bullied at school and getting little or no attention from his work-obsessed, harsh father, wanders into the lab where chimps are being trained by Air Force scientist Donni McGuinness ( Annabeth Gish). In the effort to put a man on the moon, the next goal is to send up a working rocket with a trained chimp inside and bring the chimp back alive. Like other scientists who worked for the German war effort during World War II, Von Huber has come to the United States to work on space projects for the government on behalf of his newly adopted country. Linz) is around 8 and the son of famed German rocket scientist Wilhelm Von Huber ( James Woods). RACE TO SPACE fictionalizes that story to offer a behind-the-scenes peek at America's first successful launch and recovery of a living being into space. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.Īs part of the American space program, a chimp named Ham went up in a Redstone rocket and came back in one piece back in 1961. A bullied boy punches a bully and gets a bloody nose. A chimp climbs high near a warehouse roof and Billy climbs up after him to get him down. At some points his life seems to be in peril. A chimp is subjected to G-force, shocks, dizziness, and other stress tests to prepare him for going to space in a rocket ship. Language includes "damn." Kids call another student a "Nazi." Adults smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol. The lengths he goes to may frighten younger viewers. Sabotage and greed also play roles as the head of a private company hopes the German rocket will fail, even if it means the death of the chimp. Family dynamics play a role in the drama as well (the boy's mom died a few years back and the neglectful dad is obsessed with work). The movie is tailored to interest kids in space and science, as the young boy is so bright, curious, and compassionate that he's hired to help train a chimp to be the first live occupant of an American spacecraft. The focus is on the point of view of an 8-year-old boy whose dad is the chief German rocket scientist working on the mission. Parents need to know that Race to Space is a 2002 feature dramatizing the 1960s American race against the Soviets to launch a rocket into space.
