Capricorn One (1977) Reviews

• A Mission To Mars That Wasn't

  virek2132013-03-20

  The notion of conspiracy within the bowels of the U.S. government was very much on people's minds following the triple traumas of the JFK assassination, Vietnam, and Watergate. Even something as noble as manned space flight couldn't escape the grasp of the conspiracy theorists out there, as many of them didn't believe that the Apollo 11 moon landing of July 20, 1969 ever took place, and that it was all done on a Hollywood soundstage. In 1978, one film took this conspiracy all the way to Mars and back. That film was CAPRICORN ONE, a fairly taut combination of science fiction and conspiracy thriller elements that, in some ways, presaged later TV shows like "The X Files", and, perhaps inadvertently, also accelerated the conspiracy theorists' attacks on America's manned space program. James Brolin, Sam Waterston, and O.J. Simpson portray the three men who are about to embark on a ten-month space voyage whose ultimate goal is a manned walk on Mars. But just minutes before their ship, Capricorn One, is to lift off from the Kennedy Space Center, they are immediately ordered off; and the spacecraft launches to Mars without them. Bewildered and upset, they are then told by NASA's director (Hal Holbrook) that the life support system built into the spacecraft was faulty and that it is likely that it would have failed before the ship could ever get into Mars' orbit. They are instead ordered to "fake" the landing and the Mars walk on a soundstage in a hangar somewhere in the Mojave Desert, much against their principles though under the threat of their families being killed. But when the spacecraft they are supposedly coming home in loses its heat shield upon re-entry, everyone presumes that the three men have been incinerated. The trouble is, of course, that all three men are actually alive and well, and Holbrook knows that the space program's continued success is incumbent upon them never appearing anywhere in public again. In steps an enterprising news reporter (Elliott Gould) who, against all odds and some very sardonic colleagues, investigates the Capricorn One incident and uncovers the truth, only to be pursued by military personnel in Blackhawk choppers. In the meantime, Brolin, Waterston, and Simpson break out of the hangar and escape into the Mojave Desert. Only Brolin is able to evade capture or death, however; and it is only through the quick thinking of Gould and an eccentric crop-dusting pilot (Telly Savalas) that he is able to sort everything out for the world. Writer/director Peter Hyams, whose later sci-fi forays included the HIGH NOON-inspired 1981 opus OUTLAND, and the much-underrated 1984 film "2010" (the sequel to the 1968 Stanley Kubrick classic 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY) directs with a good flair for suspense sequences, especially Brolin's struggle for survival in the desert as he is chased by government agents, including loose homages to both Kubrick's DOCTOR STRANGELOVE and Hitchcock's NORTH BY NORTHWEST. He also gets good performances from his cast, however, not only from Brolin, Simpson, and Waterston as the beleaguered would-be heroes, but also from Holbrook, who does a typically solid turn as the NASA bureaucrat with a mess on his hands. The Mars landing sequences, though done on a soundstage for obvious reasons, have a crazy kind of realism to them, thanks to the special effects work of Bruce Mattox, Henry Millar, and Robert Spurlock, and the solid cinematography of Butler, who worked on Steven Spielberg's 1975 suspense masterpiece JAWS. Goldsmith, who had won an Oscar for THE OMEN in 1976, and whose sci-fi credits include PLANET OF THE APES, also provides a tense and dramatic score, with almost Stravinsky-like menace. CAPRICORN ONE is not necessarily the perfect science fiction film; one can spot a number of implausible situations right off. That said, however, it was definitely one of those films that was right for its time, in that it managed to attach something as honorable as manned space travel to a Watergate-type of cover-up scenario. Even if the plot doesn't hold up to 21st century standards (and it may have bee hard to imagine even back in 1978), it still (rightly) made a big deal about how our government too often attempts to dissemble the truth.

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• Thrilling Conspiracy Film.

  AaronCapenBanner2013-08-29

  What if a televised Mars landing was an elaborate hoax? And what if, because of an accident, the "astronauts" are believed killed when their capsule burns up in the atmosphere? Why, they would become expendable if the government was ruthless enough to kill them, which for the three "astronauts" of this film(James Brolin, Sam Waterston, and O.J. Simpson(!) is exactly what happens, though they manage to escape by plane into the desert, being pursued not only by the corrupt head of the project(played by Hal Holbrook) but also investigative newspaper reporter Elliot Gould, who risks his career and life to track them down, and get his story. Despite the fanciful premise, this a smart, taut, and breathless film from Peter Hyams,that involves the viewer both emotionally and intellectually, leading to a most satisfying ending.

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• "We're dead." "What?" "We're dead."

  stevenlshoup2006-04-01

  WHY CAPRICORN ONE? Capricorn: "Capricorn is one of the most stable and (mostly) serious of the zodiacal types. These independent, rock-like characters have many sterling qualities. They are normally confident, strong willed and calm. These hardworking, unemotional, shrewd, practical, responsible, persevering, and cautious to the extreme persons, are capable of persisting for as long as is necessary to accomplish a goal they have set for themselves." It ain't just about the mission's name. The space program is in trouble. Their next mission MUST succeed or the funding is axed and the entire agency vanishes. That next mission is the first manned landing on Mars and it is going very smoothly indeed, to the awe and excitement of the U.S.A. and the entire world. What the world outside of the space agency doesn't know is that the whole mission is fake. It's been set up and broadcast from a deserted military base 300 miles west of Houston. It seems a critical piece of equipment proved faulty too late to abort the project and so the space agency (it is never directly called N.A.S.A.)-- in cahoots with shadowy, high government powers -- had pulled the three astronauts from the capsule moments before launch, whisked them to the deserted base, explained the situation, pleaded for their (reluctant)cooperation through some not-so-subtle intimidation, and all has been peaches and cream and now it looks like their "re-entry and landing" will be near perfect albeit 200 miles off-course so that they can get the spacemen back into the capsule. Nothing is going to ruin this mission. So what if one of the console technicians has noticed that the TV broadcasts are earthbound, not from space? He simply disappears. Nothing is going to ruin this mission. ALmost nothing: a bad circuit in one of the other consoles claims that the heat shield has separated from the capsule upon re-entry and all three astronauts burned alive in the capsule. But they are alive and well in a deserted base in Texas . . . and they know that they are expendable. Nothing is going to ruin this mission. The chase is on between 3 frightened pilots, a far-flung, well organized cover-up machine, two relentless black-ops helicopters, and a lazy, cynical reporter (friend of the missing console jockey) who smells a rat. Writer/Director Hyams has build himself one slick, fast-paced thriller from a script conceived during his CBS reporter days covering Vietnam. It was there that he envisioned how easy it could be for a huge government to cover up anything it wished. In the post-Moonwalk years, when some wing-nut conspiracy groupies insisted NASA had faked the moon landing, Hyams found his base plot and it works like a charm! The casting is near perfect. Dependable old Hal Holbrook is the head of the space agency, in over his head and resigned to having to kill his crew, including the team leader (Brolin); his friend of 16 years. Nothing is going to ruin this mission. Brolin, O.J. Simpson, and Sam Waterston never really get any chance for character development, save for Waterston's likable wise-cracking. Brenda Vacarro and Karen Black give equally strong performances; David Huddleston is dead on as the Florida senator in support of the space program. In tow with James Karen as the Vice President, they have some enjoyable moments satirizing Washington Double-Speak; Robert Walden, as the doomed console technician, gives an intense, sad, dark sense of puzzlement in his performance of a man who is trying to help but feels like he's to blame. Elliot Gould just normally comes across to me as someone sleeping his way through a role, but for this picture it is perfect for the character of reporter Caulfield. This sleepy, cynical, unenergetic man who is slowly putting the pieces together and too frightened to say his surmises out loud, is deftly handled through Gould's stock-in-trade persona. I really felt that David Doyle and Telly Savalas should've switched roles. Neither man was truly convincing in his performance and their characters might have been better served being traded between them. However, the real star of the film is Bill Butler, the Director of Photography. What he releases on your screen is an artful array of cinema: The pull back, and cross pan shots of the in-studio Mars terrain; the terrifying out-of-control car Gould is trying to avoid being pulverized in; the quiet terror of Hal Holbrook's office as he makes and takes his telephone calls; Those evil insect-like helicopters in landing or in flight; the dark dread in the cave as Brolin, hiding from the pursuers, confronts a nasty viper; the stark, dry brittleness of the desert that Brolin, Waterston, and Simpson must challenge; The strain and exhaustion of Waterston as he scales the dry mountain side to escape his fate, but in vain. But most of all it is the exciting, jolting aerial ballet of the copter and bi-plane chase. It draws you in visually to the point of giving you a queasy stomach! (Yes, I know. There are no mountains in central Texas. There are no 50 feet tall gorillas in New York City either, but you enjoyed King Kong didn't you?) The icing on the cake of Butler's images and Hyams well done script is the pounding, driving score by Jerry Goldsmith. It is all beats of percussion, plucks of strings and short orchestral punches. It gives a sense of impending doom, fear, conspiracy, and paranoia. While it is safe to say that N.A.S.A is the most non-political, benign department of the government, an agency whose efforts have given the public such fruits of success as the microwave oven, superior fibers for insulation, freeze-dried foods, and Tang, just to name a scant few, if you can put your common sense on hold and believe that the space agency could be cold, crisp, self-serving, and ruthless enough to kill to stay alive, then you've come to the right movie.

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• Different From How I Remembered But Very Impressive

  Theo Robertson2004-07-10

  !!!! SLIGHT SPOILERS !!!! NASA send a manned space mission to Mars but at the very last minute change their minds and ask the astronauts to take part in an elaborate hoax . They agree but a computer error at mission control states their capsule burnt up on re-entry which means they are now dead I first saw CAPRICORN ONE in 1982 and was slightly disappointed by it . I was under the impression it was going to have science fiction elements to it but there were none . I saw it again for a second time tonight and was very impressed by it mainly because I knew what it isn't . It isn't a sci-fi movie and it's also important to point out that it isn't a conspiracy theory thriller either . Can you imagine how the movie would have played out if it was produced today ? It would have shot itself in the foot by bludgeoning the audience to death with a " trust no one " message . Gawd I hate conspiracy theories , but not as much as I hate conspiracy theorists , many of whom point to this film saying that if someone can make a movie about a hoax mission to Mars then that proves that the moon landings were faked ! It is true that CAPRICORN ONE will always be remembered as " That movie about the Mars landing that's faked in a film studio " but this is to do it a slight disservice . The one thing I liked about this movie is that it succeeds in doing what must be the hardest thing for a screenwriter to do and that is to create pithy dialogue that sounds natural . Take the scene where the NASA boss catches the Vice President drooling over some spectators butt : " It's over there mister vice president . It's the big long thing on the launching pad . You can't miss it " or the later telephone conversation between the same two characters , or take the highly amusing scene where Elliot Gould's journalist character is given a lecture by his editor . Perhaps the most memorable conversation is the monologue scene where Hal Holbrook's character laments the lack of endeavor of the present day Americans some of whom phoned up to complain about the I LOVE LUCY re-runs being cancelled because of the moon landings . The clever dialogue is a joy to behold . Ironically the bit that I remembered the most - The desert escape scenes - from first viewing are the bits I was least impressed with after seeing it again tonight . This down to one simple reason and that's the lack of dialogue . Unfortunately there are one or two plot holes that also stopped me from praising the movie as a classic thriller . One is that you are never totally convinced that this type of hoax would ever work in reality . On screen it just seems a couple of NASA people , a couple of feds and two helicopter pilots know what's going on . Surely the hoax would have comprised of hundreds of people ? Would they all be trusted to keep their mouth shut ? What about all the radar stations and observatories across the world ? Wouldn't they have noticed something was wrong when the capsule didn't re-appear on their radar screens during re-entry . Wouldn't these spooks destroy all the evidence in case a nosy journalist chanced upon the studio where the fake mission was filmed ? You see it all falls apart when you study the scenario a little too hard , but no doubt there's a lot of middle aged virgins wearing anoraks jumping up and down pointing out that because the Apollo missions were faked no one making this movie wanted to give away any secrets as to you can fake a space mission So if you get the chance to see CAPRICORN ONE just sit back and don't let your mind work too hard but listen out for the memorable dialogue . Also watch out for the desert scene where the three astronauts find a survival kit and Brubaker decides to give the knife to the astronaut who isn't played by OJ Simpson

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• Capricorn One: a real Gem-ini of a movie. I'm Apollo-ed that it's not rated higher.

  rooprect2014-08-17

  "Capricorn One" is one of the last great 70s thrillers, alongside "The China Syndrome", "The Andromeda Strain", "Coma", heck maybe even "The Exorcist". Perhaps taking their cues from Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey, Clockwork Orange, etc), all of these classics are presented with an artistic, slightly off-kilter, brightly creepy vibe that encapsulated the end of 60s flower-power optimism and the beginning of 70s cold cynicism. Stylistic examples include wide angle shots and slow, mechanical camera movements that give the viewer a disturbing feeling of voyeurism or disconnection from humanity (à la "Open the pod bay doors, Hal." "I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid can't do that."). This quiet yet bone-chilling style is the opposite of MTV-type filmmaking which made heavy use of flashy, closeup, disorienting camera shots cut together so quickly that you feel like someone slipped some magic pixie dust in your Kool-Aid. No, the 70s classics, in particular "Capricorn One" and other films by Peter Hyams, instead give you long, deliberate shots from a distance, allowing you to absorb every bizarre detail that was meticulously laid out for you. If you get bored easily, then this isn't for you. But if you're looking for a film that slowly reels you in without any gimmicks, carefully building momentum for the 1st hour leading to an explosive, roller-coaster finale, then look no further. It's best if you know nothing about the story, so I won't say anything about the plot except that it centers around a mission to Mars. But this is not a sci-fi flick, it's closer to a political thriller. "Capricorn One" won't necessarily scare the pants off you like some of the other films, but the story will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what's going to happen. The director never telegraphs the ending, so you're never quite sure if things will turn out good or if it'll be a miserable tragedy. You have to ride it out to the very last scene. Two things won me over immediately. First is the careful, artistic approach to cinematography which is evident in the opening scene: a slow rusty sunrise behind the colossal silhouette of the Capricorn spacecraft. Many other shots are as powerful, whether they're outdoors or indoors. Hyams frequently does a neat little trick where he establishes a shot and leaves the camera where it is but slowly, over the course of 2 minutes or more, moves the camera in or out of the action, creating a thick suspense. The 2nd thing that won me over was something many thrillers overlook: HUMOR. There are some priceless scenes that had me rolling, and it's all due to the great script and lines delivered by great actors. Telly Savalas makes an appearance as a grumpy old airplane pilot, and his rapid fire volley of dialogue with Elliot Gould is like something straight out of a Cary Grant-Catherine Hepburn comedy. Another hilarious rapid-fire comedic scene is Elliot Gould arguing with his boss, played by David Doyle ("Bosley" on the original Charlie's Angels). Big laughs without disrupting the tension of the story. It takes a bold filmmaker to put such comedy in a serious film, and Hyams & his acting troupe succeeded brilliantly. A final note that's worth mentioning: there's a scene where a snake meets with an unfortunate fate. While the snake is real (hats off to James Brolin for having the guts do the scene), the snake's stunt double was a dead carcass they had found. No snakes were harmed. So animal lovers as well as 70s thriller lovers, have no fear. Once you start watching "Capricorn One", nothing will make you Sat-turn the channel! (wow that was lame)

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