I am watching a lot of old movies that I taped on VHS more than 20 years ago. Some I have seen, some I haven’t.
Today I watched a movie that I hadn’t seen before: “Pontiac Moon” starring Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it turned out to be wonderful.
A lot of symbolism in the movie that I analyzed afterwards.
Dad (Ted Danson) is a teacher itching for adventure. Mom (Steenburgen) hasn’t been out of the house in 7 years after losing her unborn daughter in a car accident. Son Andy has never been in a car because of Mom’s fears and agoraphobia, while Dad collects and works on old cars, including a 1949 Pontiac convertible. In 1969, when Apollo 11 is set to land on the moon, Dad decides to take Andy on an adventure to mirror the amount of miles Apollo 11 makes to the moon by driving from California to Idaho. Mom finally deals with her fears and follows them in another one of the cars that Dad owns.
I related to this so much… the moonlanding, the pink suit that Mom wears which reminded me of the suit that Jacqueline Onassis wore when Kennedy was shot in Dallas, the voice of Kennedy saying we would someday go to the moon. Mom’s agoraphobia and fears of cars… I had the those same problem after my car accident. Watching this movie felt as much like a memory as it was a discovery.
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