One of the things that really caught my attention was what Billy Bob said about this particular movie. He said that this was the kind of movie he used to watch when he was kid. These types of films contain unbelievable and unrealistic subject matters, but are still entertaining and enjoyable. The Astronaut Farmer is that exact type of film. At least for me, hearing what Billy Bob had to say, set the mood while I watched the movie. The fact that I knew the director's were not intending this to be completely realistic, kept me from having that mindset of, "Oh that is completely impossible." The Astronaut Farmer stars Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen and we get a special appearance from my boy Bruce Willis. There was a movie that came out a few years ago called Bandits, where Thornton and Willis worked together.

The Story: The plot to the film is very simple. Charles Farmer, played by Billy Bob Thornton, lives on a farm with his wife, played by Virginia Madsen, and three children. Since Farmer was a kid, he had always dreamed of going into space and orbiting the earth. He does what any normal person would do, and builds an extremely large rocket on his farm. As you can tell, that last sentence had a hint of sarcasm to it.

After taking out hundreds of thousands of loans from the local bank in his town, he has finally completed his rocket and all that is left is the fuel to launch it. This is where Farmer gets into trouble. You really cannot request 10,000 pounds of fuel and keep the FBI off of your ass. Right after he requests this massive amount of fuel, the FBI are basically at his door step questioning him and keeping an eye on Farmer and his family 24/7. The FAA gets involved to tries and stop him from launching his rocket. They claim that it could be a weapon of mass destruction.

This leads us to the main question of the entire movie. Will Farmer actually launch this huge rocket (space shuttle) into outer space and orbit the earth. Did I mention that he is going to have his 13 year-old son as his mission control on earth? Yes, I know this movie sounds completely unbelievable and you are probably wondering why I gave it a 3 BDK rating. Well, read below.

The Review: Overall, I totally agree with Billy Bob Thornton on the fact that this is the type of movie you would see when you were a kid and totally enjoy it. It is not believable in the least bit and the science in the film is completely false. Is the movie fantastic? Not really. Is it entertaining? I thought so.

Billy Bob Thornton is definitely a great actor and I thought he played a damn good part. I just loved watching him walk around in that space suit. I also loved his tension with Bruce Willis's character. As always, Virginia Madsen did a great job. I have liked her since I first saw her in Sideways. Speaking of acting, if you have not seen Sling Blade with Billy Bob, you need to get off your ass right now and see that movie. That is definitely a movie worth 5 BDKs.

The Verdict: The Astronaut Farmer is a light movie which is entertaining throughout, but I do not feel it is worth going to the theatres to see. I feel that it is

a perfect rental.

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