Overview
A gripping tale of survival against all odds as astronauts fight to return home safely.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- tense
- claustrophobic
- nostalgic
- history night
- space movie marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Ron Howard's clear, technically detailed, suspenseful recreation of the Apollo 13 crisis and its strong ensemble performances.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The damaged spacecraft, failing oxygen supply, fuel limits, and improvised filtration system turn practical calculations into the central source of tension.
The astronauts, Mission Control, and support teams jointly devise ways to stabilize the spacecraft and bring the crew home.
The film reconstructs the 1970 mission with technical detail, controlled performances, and an emphasis on operational problem-solving.
The crew's survival unfolds inside cramped spacecraft modules, while cinematography repeatedly places that confinement against the vastness of lunar space.
Films like Apollo 13, and why
The Right Stuff
shared true-events drama, survival crisis, technical problem-solving, and collective ingenuity under extreme pressure
The Martian
shared space survival, escalating resource constraints, engineering improvisation, and suspenseful procedural storytelling
Sully
shared historical disaster drama, teamwork, institutional coordination, and emotionally accessible mainstream direction
Gravity
shared claustrophobic survival stakes, mission control teamwork, and technically detailed aerospace drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Ron Howard
- Release Date
- 1995-06-30
- Runtime
- 140 min
- Rating
- 7.5 / 10 (6137)
Cast
- Tom Hanks
- Bill Paxton
- Kevin Bacon
- Gary Sinise
- Ed Harris
- Kathleen Quinlan
- Mary Kate Schellhardt
- Emily Ann Lloyd
- Miko Hughes
- Max Elliott Slade
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, MGM Plus, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Apollo 13 about?
- A technically grounded true-story space drama turns a failed lunar mission into a tense test of teamwork, improvisation, and human endurance.
- What is Apollo 13 like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Apollo 13 as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Apollo 13 violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Apollo 13.
- What did critics think of Apollo 13?
- Critics broadly praised Ron Howard's clear, technically detailed, suspenseful recreation of the Apollo 13 crisis and its strong ensemble performances.
- Which films are like Apollo 13?
- Films with a similar feel include The Right Stuff, The Martian, Sully, and Gravity.
- How long is Apollo 13?
- Apollo 13 runs 140 minutes.
- Where can I watch Apollo 13?
- In United States, Apollo 13 streams on Netflix, MGM Plus, Netflix Standard with Ads.
