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Rating: 4 out of 5
Have you ever looked up at the sky during a bright sunny day and go, “Damn! That is a beautiful blue sky right there.” Behind every beautiful blue sky, there are dark rain clouds on the horizon. Even though the storm can be intense and scary, the blue sky will always return when the sun shines again.
The reason I brought this up is because I watched Blue Sky, a film directed by Tony Richardson and written by Rama Laurie Stagner, Arlene Sarner, and Jerry Leichtling. The film stars the beautiful queen Jessica Lange and Tommy Lee Jones (You cool Tommy) with a supporting cast of Powers Boothe, Carrie Snodgress, Amy Locane, Chris O’Donnell, and Mitchell Ryan.
In 1962, Major Hank Marshall (Jones) is a U.S. Army engineer and leading nuclear scientist stationed in Hawaii. Hank is under pressure as the world is in the Cold War, and nuclear weapons are at the height of discussions. Hank is in favor of doing underground nuclear testing, which is code-named “Blue Sky,” rather than the standard above-ground, open-air detonations that cause the mutations of Godzilla. Sorry. Hank is a calm, straight-faced man, but his personal life is more of a season in the soap opera, Days of Our Lives. Straight up drama. His loving and beautiful wife, Carly (Lange), is wild and the life of the party. Her opening scene was being topless while Hank and his team flew overhead. She loves to dance, have a good time, and flirt, but has some serious mental issues. These differences cause marital stress within the family as they try to raise their two teenage daughters, Alex (Locane) and Becky (Klemp).
The Marshalls’ lives change when Hank gets orders and is transferred to Alabama. As the family arrives at their new home, Carly’s erratic behavior becomes full-blown when she has a meltdown and drives away. Moving from beautiful Hawaii to Alabama will do that. Hank meets the base commander, Colonel Vince Johnson (Boothe), who is more in favor of the above-ground testing. Carly meets Colonel Johnson, and the dude thinks she is foine and wants to tap that ass. They have a sexual dance in front of everyone. Hank throws Carly in the pool to cool off.
Johnson sets off a plan to tap Carly’s ass. First, he assigns Hank to fly out to Nevada to supervise some underground testing. Hank ain’t no fool knows that Johnson is after his wife. While in Nevada, Hank becomes at odds with his supervisors because of safety issues, and when Hank tries to call off a detonation as he spots two cowboys who are too close, things go wrong, and a cover-up begins. While Hank is away, Johnson makes his move to play with Carly. Johnson’s wife sees what is going on, as she knows that he can’t keep his little thing in his pants. Shit really hits the fan when Johnson’s son, Glenn (O’Donnell), who is dating Alex, spots the affair. Alex makes Carly call and tells Hank. Oh, Johnson isn’t done with his plan. Johnson has Hank committed to a mental hospital to keep him quiet.
Let me tell you that Carly takes matters into her own hands. She knew she fucked up, but you see that she really, really loves Hank. When she saw her man in the state he was in at the mental hospital, Carly went on a warpath. Homegirl throws her kids in the car and drives all the way to Nevada after reading Hank’s notes. She confronts everyone and manages to get her man released and Johnson thrown into prison.
Blue Sky definitely shows and proves that opposites attract. Hank and Carly are an interesting couple because what you think should happen doesn’t happen. Carly is a highly sexual woman that you might have to keep an eye on, but she is also loyal as fuck. Hank is a calm and calculated man who might seem like a bore. Dude was cheated on, and he stays with his woman because he gets her, but knows that it is wearing him down. The scene in the hospital tells how far Carly has pushed him, and even he doesn’t know how much he has left in him. These two have raised strong and proud girls, despite their challenges. No matter what they are going through, they both raise each other up when times are hard. Also, I don’t really like the whole woman calling a man “daddy.” That shit is weird to me.
The film is propelled by both the story and the performances of Tommy Lee Jones and Jessica Lange. This film was before Jones exploded into stardom with roles like The Fugitive, where he wanted you to search every house, and Men in Black. Jones does a great job as Hank. A proud man who is loyal to his work but also loves his family equally. Jones shows Hank as a man who will turn a blind eye to Carly’s ways because they mesh well together somehow. What can I say about Jessica Lange? Damn, I love Jessica Lange. She was outstanding in this film. She showed Carly as a woman with hot pants who loves to party. She also showed a woman who is troubled and has significant issues, but will do anything for her boo thang. Lange won the Oscar for this role.
Blue Sky is one of those films that might surprise you. It definitely surprised me. It is one of those films that shows love and commitment in a relationship, but also highlights the hardships that come with it. Lange and Jones are great in this film, along with the supporting cast. The blue sky will always follow rainy days.
