It's a shame this film scores so low- don't be put off by its 'TV-ness'. Yes it is slow-burning, the screenplay is at times amateurish and stilted, and the film is plagued by low production values (particularly the cheaply thrown in, laughable SFX at... (read more) It's a shame this film scores so low- don't be put off by its 'TV-ness'. Yes it is slow-burning, the screenplay is at times amateurish and stilted, and the film is plagued by low production values (particularly the cheaply thrown in, laughable SFX at the end!), but there is a smaller film inside the big, slightly dumb NASA-based project and it hinges, as so many other films do, on Martin Sheen's jaded former astronaut, Col. Paul Andrews.

Thank god Sheen drives this at times rudderless, stodgy film with a performance straight out of his top drawer. His jaded, drunk ex-officer seems an older, wiser, and sadder version of his Captain Willard (from Apocalypse Now). With Sheen's performance, ably supported by a star-studded cast including a very fresh-faced Christian Slater, and shorn of its dodgy sci fi packaging, Beyond the Stars shows a very humanistic story about worldy disenchantment and failure palliated by a liberal hope for youth and the future.

It isn't surprising that Sheen is at his best here since the film's message is so consistent with his own personal beliefs and lifetime commitments. But it shouldn't be forgotten that David 'Cocoon' Saperstein deserves credit as he wrote the story, which is so off-beat and original- it's just a shame he couldn't seem more able to turn it into a screenplay or direct it.

A slow pace on the movie and it is more a drama exploration of the human soul than stars. Great supporting cast though but mostly forgettable.