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The Challenger Disaster

The Challenger Disaster

Thriller · Drama · History · 2013

When the space shuttle Challenger blew up in 1986, it was the most shocking event in the history of American spaceflight. The deaths of seven astronauts, including the first teacher in space Christa McAuliffe, were watched live on television by millions of viewers. But what was more shocking was that the cause of the disaster might never be uncovered. The Challenger is the story of how Richard Feynman, one of America's most famous scientists, helped to discover the cause of a tragedy that stunned America.

Movie details

The Challenger Disaster

2013 Thriller · Drama · History 1h 30m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

7.2 / 10

4.6K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

92 %

Tomatometer

TMDB

7.3 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

When the space shuttle Challenger blew up in 1986, it was the most shocking event in the history of American spaceflight. The deaths of seven astronauts, including the first teacher in space Christa McAuliffe, were watched live on television by millions of viewers. But what was more shocking was that the cause of the disaster might never be uncovered. The Challenger is the story of how Richard Feynman, one of America's most famous scientists, helped to discover the cause of a tragedy that stunned America.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Challenger Disaster?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

James Hawes

Written by

Kate Gartside

William Hurt

William Hurt

Richard Feynman

Bruce Greenwood

Bruce Greenwood

General Kutyna

Joanne Whalley

Joanne Whalley

Gweneth Feynman

Brian Dennehy

Brian Dennehy

Rogers

Eve Best

Eve Best

Sally Ride

Kevin McNally

Kevin McNally

Lawrence Mulloy

Henry Goodman

Henry Goodman

Dr. Weiss

Court is in session

Put The Challenger Disaster on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.