Synopsis:

The US Space program, NASA is stocked with the best of the best of the best. Of the young that is. When an old style, Soviet Communications satellite threatens to fall from orbit and crash into the Earth, NASA experts are dumbfounded at the code of computer logic, it's operating under. So old is the code in fact that, none of NASA's brilliant team of Engineers and Computer whizzes has a clue as to how to tell the satellite to climb to a higher orbit and avert the crash. It would appear that the only people who know how to deal with the situation are a rusty bunch of crackerjack test pilots from Team Daedalus of forty years prior. Not only dealing with ageism, the crew has to combat all of the physical and mental stressors a trip into space will cause them. Determined to show that they are still as good as they ever were, Team Daedalus prepares for the rigors of space and the task at hand in rescuing the aberrant Russian Satellite. Now, if you assemble a cast with Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, James Garner and Donald Sutherland, do you think the resultant efforts will be anything less than stellar? In the way of new information or a different spin on an old idea, you'll be looking in the wrong place. This film covers that same ground that many films before have seen and it offers no real surprises. It does however supply a great amount of entertainment and visually/aurally, it's quite impressive indeed.

Audio/Video:

the audio is presented in a DD5.1 that is very nicely produced. It packs just the right amount of punch that gets you into the mix of the action. The scenes involving the revolutions of the satellite are particularly impressive. The dialogue is clean and easily understood and the aural effects employed throughout are rich with LFE and utilize some really great directional effects. The video is crystalline. The Widescreen presentation of the film really sparkles with clarity and a keenness that we've come to largely expect from WB. The colors were rich and inviting and the images were striking. In all a first rate visual presentation. I did not notice any artifacting or other transfer errors.

Extras:

the extras are four behind-the-scenes documentaries that vary in length from 5-15 minutes. The best entry is entitled "Back at the Ranch". It's a 27-minute look into the making of the film through the eyes of the Director-Eastwood and through the impressions of the actors about the film and all that it says about utilizing the older members of the community at-large. A trailer for the film is also included.

Overall:

Space Cowboys looked good in the trailer and it was even better than I thought it would be. This collection of some of the greatest character actors of a generation was a joy to watch and certainly tremendously entertaining. You'll be hard pressed to find anything wrong with this film. It has action, drama, humor and even more humor, not to mention a great storyline executed by some truly great actors! Space Cowboys is a great film that truly delivered. The disc could have been stronger in the way of supplements but other than that I thoroughly enjoyed the film. Recommended