Apollo 13 (1995) Critic Reviews

Ron Howard's film of this mission is directed with a single-mindedness and attention to detail that makes it riveting.Read the full review

Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon try to get inside the skins of these space-age pilot jocks, but the roles, as written, don't give them enough to work with.Read the full review

Self-conscious about its heroism with portrayals that lean toward the glib and the professionally uplifting, the film milks our sympathies too readily to be emotionally convincing.Read the full review

Perhaps the most impressive feat of this film is sustaining white-knuckle tension even though the chain of events is well-known.Read the full review

Howard lays off the manipulation to tell the true story of the near-fatal 1970 Apollo 13 mission in painstaking and lively detail. It's easily Howard's best film.Read the full review

I just wish that "Apollo 13" worked better as a movie, and that Howard's threshold for corn, mush and twinkly sentiment weren't so darn wide.Read the full review

You can know every glitch that made this such a dangerous mission, and Apollo 13 will still have you by the throat. [30 June 1995]Read the full review

"The Right Stuff" will endure as the more ambitious movie, but this book-faithful, 2-hour team effort shrewdly keeps its eye on the ball.Read the full review

It's exceedingly linear structure, while unavoidable, renders it rather methodical and shallow in characterization.Read the full review