It’s 1969, and the residents of Parkes, a small New South Wales town, are thrust into the global spotlight when their huge, football-field sized radio telescope (planted amidst fields of grazing sheep) is called upon by NASA to assist in monitoring the moon walk. The town prepares itself for visits by the prime minister and the U.S. ambassador, and plays host to a Clark Kent-ish NASA representative, as the townspeople (and the world) await the fate of Neil Armstrong and his crew. Co-written and directed by Rob Sitch (The Castle), this Australian film is one of those gently humorous flicks where ordinary people are suddenly placed in extraordinary circumstances, as the cultural backwater’s humble folk are suddenly called upon to play a key role in a history-making event. Sam Neill stars as Cliff Buxton, the unflappable scientist in charge of the telescope. See “Opening Friday” for theaters.
