where: EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when: Thursday, September 2nd, 2010
show: 11:35 a.m. I-Max 3-D
costs: $10.00
auditorium: 12, with the I-Max screen
seat: 5th row, 5th seat
synopsis: This movie, as narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, chronicles the final upgrade/service on the STS-1256 Hubble Space Telescope, with the astronauts doing the film documentary which will be a scientific legacy for generations to come.
noteworthy scenes: 1.) Astronaut pre-flight preparations; 2.) The Hubble telescope; 3.) 320 miles above Earth; 4.) Warped mirror; 5.) Contact lenses; 6.) Orion's Nebula; 7.) Tadpoles; 8.) Shuttle servicing mission; 9.) Underwater practice sessions; 10.) Suction toilet; 11.) "The last thing to do is scratch"; 12.) RSU and other astronaut acronyms; 13.) -200 degree temperature; 14.) "Larry, Moe & Curly"; 15.) Tethers; 16.) Vulnerable gloves; 17.) 32 screws; 18.) Floating tortilla; 19.) Utopia; 20.) Chewing gum; 21.) Stars; 22.) Galaxies; 23.) Billions of light years away; and 24.) Fragile Oasis.
audience reaction: There were only three other people in the audience with me. And I have no way of knowing how they liked it.
recommendation: I loved this movie. It is a great and invaluable supplementary learning aid that students of Astronomy ( as I once was years ago ) will come to fully appreciate.
spoiler alert! Some scenes involving the Earth and the Milky Way Galaxy, and its neighbors, were obviously done with computer graphics.
fyi: The Americans have Astronauts. The Russians have Cosmonauts. And the Filipinos have Coconauts, because the farthest up in space Filipinos have ever gotten is the top of coconut trees! ( If word of this old joke ever gets out, I'll never be able to visit the Philippines anymore. So let's let this be our little secret. Pinky-promise, 'kay ...? )
word of advice: Earth is the only humanly-habitable planet that we've got; let's take good care of it.
tidbits: I was gonna see the extended AVATAR movie at this theatre. But I'm only allowed to earn up to 17 points on my Regal movie watcher reward card per day. And I already earned 15 points for this movie. So I decided to go to Brenden Theatre in Vacaville, instead. Besides, I haven't been to Brenden Theatre in Vacaville in quite a long time.
