Fred Haines Movies

Discover how a social studies teacher from Concord, New Hampshire was selected to become NASA's first civilian astronaut as documentary filmmakers Renee Sotile and Jo Godges explore the remarkable life of Christie McAullife, the beloved educator who lost her life when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on January 12, 1986. Selected from thousands of applicants for the journey into the stars, McAullife's personal mission was to make space exploration exciting for school children everywhere. Intellectually curious and spirited from a young age, she displayed strong leadership skills early in life and strived to inspire the same in others. In addition to hearing McAullife describe her sense of inspiration in her own words, viewers also hear from her family and NASA officials, the latter of whom offer unique insight into the disaster and its lingering effects on the American space program. By working closely with McAullife's mother, Grace Corrigan, the filmmakers celebrate the life of the teacher who continues to inspire people everywhere even two decades after her untimely death. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Abstract images produced with an electronic video mix -- as well as the surrealist paintings of artist Mati Klarwein -- highlight this adaptation of the literary classic by Herman Hesse. Max von Sydow stars as Harry Haller, a self-absorbed, misanthropic writer contemplating the duality of his nature as both a social outsider disenchanted with the chaos and disorder of the everyday world and an inner "steppenwolf." Planning to commit suicide by the age of 50, Haller seeks a reconciliation of these different aspects of the self, while encountering a mysterious woman who leads him into a magical realm where his efforts to achieve redemption may be realized through a metaphysical transcendence. Whether it is mental illness, narcotics, or an authentically supernatural experience that overtakes Haller remains unclear. Essentially as plotless as Hesse's source novel, Steppenwolf (1974) was mostly memorable for its avant garde visuals, which made it a favorite of youthful audiences seeking hallucinogenic cinematic experiences such as those in the final half hour of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide