Movie Review: 'The Astronaut Farmer' (San Antonio Express-News)Did you ever want to be an astronaut?
Maybe.
Did you ever want to be an astronaut bad enough to build your own spacecraft out in the barn?
Probably not, but Billy Bob Thornton's character does in "The Astronaut Farmer."
Charles Farmer yearns to soar above Earth's atmosphere so much; he wears a spacesuit to round up lost calves. Neither his horse nor the calf seems to mind.
The townsfolk of sleepy fictional Story, Texas, sure do. Even though Farmer's devoted wife, Audie (Virginia Madsen, who also appears in "The Number 23"), and the kids are solidly behind him, almost everyone else thinks Charlie's a few chickens short of a full henhouse.
I hate to go all Frank Capra ("It's a Wonderful Life") on you, but we could use more feel-good family films like this down at the corner multiplex.
Especially one from twin-brother filmmakers Mark and Michael Polish, the tremendously creative minds behind quirky projects such as "Twin Falls Idaho" and "Northfork."
Thornton, an actor of tremendous range, brings a little quirk of his own. After all, the writer (an Oscar-winner for "Sling Blade" in '96), director ("All the Pretty Horses") and actor has been convincing as Davy Crockett ("The Alamo"), the president ("Love Actually") and, of course, the alcoholic, thieving shopping-mall Santa ("Bad Santa").
He has no problem walking his character's fine line between grim determination and lunacy. As combined forces, the Polish brothers and Thornton stir the creative pot with a lightning bolt of eclectic energy.
The co-writing Polish boys (Michael directs; Mark plays an FBI agent) didn't set out specifically to make a "stand-up-and-cheer" movie. The intent is to honor family, specifically their "you can do anything you set your mind to" father.
I don't preach much in this space. So, a humble suggestion: When that moment comes when you're moved to stand up and cheer, go ahead. It'll bind you to the most uplifting moment in any movie so far this young film year.
Of course the odds of getting your own spacecraft off the ground — much less looping around Mother Earth in orbit — are rather slim.
Charlie was in NASA's astronaut training program at one time, however. He dropped out for reasons I won't reveal here to return to a dusty patch of family Texas land (although the film was shot in New Mexico). His heart, however, remains set on a date with zero gravity.
This is not a movie without some minor flaws. The plot spends too much time in the first act, then too little when it gets down to the nitty-gritty. On the other hand, Bruce Willis is a real plus as an astronaut who drops by the Farmer farm.
The best way to let "The Astronaut Farmer" work its magic is just to settle in for a dramatic fable not to be taken too seriously, but not to be completely ruled out, either.
Thornton and Madsen are comfortable and convincing as a rural husband and wife bound by love and a common goal.
If you're looking for one new Madsen movie to see this weekend, it's this one. It's her finest performance since her Oscar-nominated turn as the lonely waitress in "Sideways."
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