Whereas the background story about an ageing astronaut who has found something or someone on the Moon proved sufficiently effective despite not being resolved satisfyingly, the plot around teenage love stories and trite father-son relationships did the film no real favour. On the other hand did the film avoid entering into the domain of hard sci-fi, making it accessible and even enjoyable for a wider audience. Unfortunately, the photography, score and direction were mediocre at best. The acting wasn't really bad but the performances aren't memorable, either. The film is hard to recommend because there's too little science fiction for fans of this genre and unnecessarily much for audiences interested in personal relationships. As a cinematic product, the film is quite negligible.

When I read the description, and the film's title, I was expecting some pretty cheesy 80's TV treacle. However, as a sucker for movies that involve NASA in some regard, particularly those that deal with the Apollo Program, I had to give it a try.I was very surprised, then, to find myself being drawn into it and caring about the characters. It was much better than I had expected, and the performances were quite solid. Sheen and Foxworth were very good, Slater was reasonably believable, and Abraham stole his scenes. The female characters were sympathetic and believable. I was also surprised how front and center Apollo was - it didn't just serve as a disposable backdrop for the drama. All in all Beyond the Stars was well worth the viewing, but I agree that the sci-fi ending did cheapen the drama slightly. And the title - whew - they could have done better than that! I have to chuckle, however, at a description I read of Slater's character being a "troubled" teenager. Ha! Most people should be so lucky to have a kid that respects his parents, wants to follow in his dad's footsteps and study science and math, and plans to go to MIT. Yeah - that kid's a real disaster.Anyway, a few of the technical space details were off (particularly during the Huntsville trip), and the music was pretty dated, but those are mostly nits. Overall this was a reasonably intelligent and mature drama with a strong Apollo background - and an unexpected pleasure.

Martin Sheen was the highlight of this film without a doubt. His portrayal of ex-astronaut Paul Andrews was very believable and also very emotionally charged, one could really feel for this man and all that he had been through. The scene when he drunkenly revealed some of his innermost feelings was exceptional, as was the confrontation between him and the ex-NASA engineer. Christian Slater as the 18-year old who wants to become an astronaut had some good moments, particularly in the conflicts with his father, but his romance with Mara was unconvincing. The other characters were more like cardboard cutouts, apart from the Whale Man (F Murray Abraham) in a cameo role. My only real criticism however was the ending - yes, we knew right from the opening sequence that there was something that Sheen had discovered on the moon, but the ending took the film into improbable sci-fi, which did not fit well with the believable realism of the rest of the story.

Beyond the Stars is one of those surprising movies. It has a great cast that give very good performances despite the low-budget feel of the film. While the underlying subjects of the movie may not apeal to many people, the time-honored coming of age story that involves all of the main characters should be appreciated by the most basic of movie viewers.The surprising "twist," which is not much of a twist at all, is a nice addition for those that are the "dreamers" for whom the film was obviously written. Beyond the Stars is a much under-appreciated film that deserves a look. I'm sure you'll be surprised as well.