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Astronaut Farmer, The
Warner Independent Pictures


5.4

based on 28 reviews
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based on 28 votes
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FILM:

MPAA RATING: PG for thematic material, peril and language

Starring Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen, Bruce Dern, Jon Gries, Tim Blake Nelson, Sal Lopez, J.K. Simmons, and Kiersten Warren

From the time he was a child, Charles Farmer (Thornton) had only one goal: to be an astronaut. Even when he is forced to drop out of NASA's astronaut training program to deal with a family situation, he refuses to let anything stand in the way of his dream. When, on the eve of the long-anticipated launch of his barn-built rocket, Farmer faces a new set of obstacles, he is determined o reach his goal no matter the odds. (Warner Bros.)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Mark Polish Michael Polish
DIRECTED BY:	Michael Polish
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: July 10, 2007 Theatrical: February 23, 2007
RUNNING TIME:	104 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

After teeny indies, this studio release retains the trademark love of warped American gothic that the Polishes share with David Lynch and the brothers Ethan and Joel Coen. But the unexpected streak of yearning sunniness -- the Spielbergian touch of boyhood dreams propelling a grown man -- gives The Astronaut Farmer a warmth that's new for them.

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

This is gloriously self-aware hokum, a fantasy movie that is, above all, about our need for fantasy and escapism -- and even our need for movies like The Astronaut Farmer -- to help us combat the depression and disappointments of the everyday.

Los Angeles Times Kevin Crust

Much of the credit for the movie succeeding goes to Thornton. In his able hands, Farmer is not so much someone who simply has faith in what he is doing but a man who believes with incontrovertible knowledge of what can be accomplished.

Premiere Stephen Saito

Still, the film actually earns the description of being inspirational, not only to those of us with a dream, but to those who thought the quality family film had died long ago.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

The Astronaut Farmer is one of those movies that makes an audience want to cheer and clap.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

It's hard not to like a movie so determined to make you feel the love of a family, to make you feel that every dream can become a reality and that every mortgage - no matter how close to foreclosure - can be rescued by the sudden death of a family member and his inheritance.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

The Astronaut Farmer stalls narratively in the third act, but rest assured it finally achieves liftoff. See it before it disappears into the ether.

San Francisco Chronicle Ruthe Stein

The Astronaut Farmer's goofy quality makes it totally endearing. It's also super entertaining. Critics are fond of referring to movies as a "great ride." With this one, the words couldn't be more apt.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

Sure, it's the corniest of conceits, but "Astronaut" taps delightfully into one of our deepest cultural values: the one about the pursuit of happiness. And the movie's unpretentious lightheartedness, which echoes the old-fashioned, corn-fed lore of Frank Capra, or even "The Andy Griffith Show," makes it blissfully easy to sign on for this good-natured voyage.

The Hollywood Reporter Sura Wood

The Astronaut Farmer, is goofy, wholesome and, well, sweet. Despite some droll humor and on-target political jabs delivered deadpan by a uniformly strong cast, "Astronaut" often is too corny for its own good; it could have used more of those zingy lines.

Variety Dennis Harvey

Thornton carries the film with relaxed authority, though the earnest tone doesn't let him explore the nuttier aspects of a character who, from any reasoned distance ought look more screwy than heroic. Madsen is radiant.

Village Voice Robert Wilonsky

This movie works precisely because it's bereft of modern cinema's cynicism.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

The opening shots, of Farmer on horseback in his space suit, hint at a strangeness that the rest of the movie never quite lives up to, but it does have a visual freshness that makes the bromides and clichés palatable.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

Too odd for a studio movie, too cornpone for the independent scene, The Astronaut Farmer finds its creators stuck awkwardly between worlds, making what amounts to a deep curiosity.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Bill White

If the Polish brothers haven't quite mastered the mechanics of mainstream filmmaking, they have succeeded in bringing an independent spirit to the studio film.

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Fans of the Polish brothers and fans of inspirational movies may all depart the theatre scratching their heads: The Astronaut Farmer is not exactly the movie any of these viewers expected to see. This is almost always a good thing – even if the movie is a deserved head-scratcher.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

The result is a modestly accomplished, modestly agreeable, altogether forgettable film.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

As stories go, The Astronaut Farmer is engaging, even if it serves up a kind of Plains State brand of Rocky-esque hooey.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Wobbles between its comic and dramatic concerns; even those who buy the film more wholeheartedly than I might consider the overall tone uncertain.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Before The Astronaut Farmer, I'd have said such dumbed-down filmmaking was beneath the Polish brothers. But if their dream is to ride Hollywood's gravy train once, I suppose I'll have to respect it.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey

Rarely have I seen a movie which made me feel more skeptically Canadian. Please -- it's not true that you can do anything. Stop trying. You might make things worse.

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

Painfully earnest, The Astronaut Farmer is, sad to say, a bunch of hooey. It's Frank Capra without the genuine heart, certainly without any sense of perspective.

Boston Globe Janice Page

The real problem with The Astronaut Farmer is that it has no spark.

TV Guide Ken Fox

A dreary, downbeat "Field of Dreams."

USA Today Claudia Puig

In most cases, doggedly pursuing a dream is laudable. But if it does nothing else, The Astronaut Farmer demonstrates that not every dream is worth pursuing. At least not the belabored one of a narcissistic crackpot masquerading as an admirable dreamer.

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

Some movies are so flagrantly awful that they achieve classic status. To this rarefied company we must now add The Astronaut Farmer.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

The oddest thing about this very odd movie is that it doesn't seem to know what to make of itself.

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

A piece of mythmaking stupidity.

The average user rating for this movie is 5.4 (out of 10) based on 28 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Ryan gave it a3:
Oh so boring..I could barely sit through this movie. I don't like the comparison of this to field of dreams.

Bobby r. gave it a1:
Disjointed attempt at following dreams. The result is living through a nightmare. Self centered man takes advantage of every one in his life.

PnArdy PnArdy gave it a6:
It would have been great movie if they kept it real. The idea of the private space travel is brilliant, but no single farmer could possibly accomplish such a huge and challenging task, launch himself into space and then return to Earth successfully.

Brendan gave it a2:
With a terrible tittle and a boring storyline The Astronaut Farmer has everything to make a terrible drama. The only thing that gets this films a 2/10 is a pretty well off performance from Billy Bob Thornton. He actually makes you smile a little bit when he finally succeeds. But personally a found myself looking around waiting for something exciting or dramatic to happen and when it does you've been dozing off too long to notice it. I don't think this would appeal to almost any audience it's not good for families, teens, adults or any moviegoers. If I were you I'd rather sit at home.

Chad S. gave it a4:
Comparing "Field of Dreams" to Michael Polish's "The Astronaut Farmer" makes sense only if Kevin Costner's character built the ballpark and the children of the corn showed up to kill his family. As filmmakers of two well-received indies on their resumes ("Twin Falls Idaho" & "Northfork"), The Polish Brothers might very well be pulling a fast one on audiences, and the unsuspecting studio who financed this bizarre movie about a family under siege by their daft patriarch, masquerading as a feel good-film about following your dreams. If you're a sane and rational human being, you're rooting against Charles Farmer (Billy Bob Thornton) from blasting off into outer space. He's endangering his family's lives (a line drive-foul ball is nothing compared to a wayward rocket), and compromising the quality of his children's future(should they escape the path of that wayward rocket). Audrey (Virginia Madsen) appears so nonchalant about her husband's potential for instantaneous incineration, you wonder if there's a million-dollar payoff(in case of accidental death) on some unseen life insurance policy. When she tells Charles that people think his subordinates belong to a cult, that she and the children have been brainwashed; you think(and this is why the film is subversive and perhaps, self-aware), yes, I do agree with the townsfolk's assessment that Audrey's been drinking the farmer's kool-aid for far too long. If the filmmakers' intent were to make an inspirational film about a congenial sociopath, "The Astronaut Farmer" is an unqualified success. What occurs as the end credits roll has the unmistakable appearance of having been tacked on(the extra scene runs contrary to the information we're given), you suspect, after test audiences registered what I registered as "The Astronaut Farmer" faded to black; that Charles Farmer is a manipulative, narcissistic jerk.

Billy B. gave it a0:
When watching this movie, you get no sense of imagination that this could really happen. Along with bad acting, this movie has fake mushy moments and doesnt deliver that wow feeling you want to receive when you watch it. And not only does no one (especially his wife) see that this is the stupidest idea ever, but [***SPOILER***] after he crashes the first one, he builds another! What a disgrace of a movie

Donald T. gave it an8:
This film is a great Saturday or Sunday cinema film. The acting and direction is great......overall the film does exactly what it says. Worth seeing just for the scenary alone.

Astronaut Farmer, The Warner Independent Pictures

Astronaut Farmer, The
Warner Independent Pictures