Space Cowboys
Directed by Clint Eastwood
- action
- adventure
- thriller
The story
Frank Corvin, ‘Hawk’ Hawkins, Jerry O'Neill and ‘Tank’ Sullivan were hotdog members of Project Daedalus, the US Air Force's test program for space travel, but their hopes were dashed in 1958 with the formation of NASA and the use of trained chimps. They blackmail their way into orbit when Russia's mysterious ‘Ikon’ communications satellite's orbit begins to degrade and threatens to crash to Earth.
What it’s like
Warm, unhurried and wry, with a gently nostalgic glow: Clint Eastwood's direction favours calm, steady compositions and naturalistic daylight, so the Florida launch pads, mission control rooms and cramped capsule interiors look lived-in rather than glossy, with sunlit hangars, fluorescent-lit offices and the cold blue-black of orbit as the main visual contrasts. The score is a soft, brassy orchestral sweep that leans into the 1960s-era flavour of the story, and the sound design gives the rockets real weight without going overboard. Pacing is leisurely and conversational, built on banter between old friends who are still funny, stubborn and competent in the face of being written off. The register is comic and affectionate, with moments of genuine tenderness and a quiet melancholy about aging and missed chances. Intensity is low: there is peril in the mission and a little brief tension in the space sequences, but no gore, very little violence and no sexual content. It suits a relaxed weekend afternoon, a comfort watch or a gentle evening with someone older, and it is for people who enjoy character-driven adventure, grown-up humour and underdogs who refuse to retire quietly.
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