Review: Sputnik Mania

by Jeff Foust
Monday, January 26, 2009

Sputnik Mania
Directed by David Hoffman
2007 (DVD release January 20, 2009)
92 minutes
US$29.95

Many space advocates desire—openly or secretly—for another “Sputnik moment” for America: a shock that will wake Americans from their slumber when it comes to space and reinvigorate interest—and funding—for spaceflight. Given the vast geopolitical and technological changes in the last 50 years, it seems difficult to imagine that another space event will take place with the same surprise, shock, and dismay that accompanied the launch of the first satellite by the Soviet Union in 1957. Even if it was possible, though, it’s not clear it would be desirable. Sputnik Mania—a film that got a very limited release in 2007 and became available on DVD last week—provides a reminder of how Sputnik sparked interest in space but also created concern and fear.

Sputnik Mania doesn’t focus on the actual development and launch of Sputnik itself, but rather the effect it had on people, primarily in America. Prior to Sputnik Americans widely believed that they were technologically superior to the Russians, a belief shattered when they saw Sputnik streak across the night sky and heard the beeps of its radio transmissions. This created an unease—chronicled in the film through a mix of archival newsreel and television footage and recent interviews with a variety of people—that was exacerbated first by the launch of the second Sputnik in November, carrying the dog Laika, and then by the failure of the first American launch attempt in December.

About two-thirds of the way into the movie, after Americans breathe a sigh of relief with the successful launch of Explorer 1, the emphasis of the movie shifts from the space race to the nuclear arms race. The rationale behind this change is that the same rockets that put the first satellites into space could also be used to launch nuclear weapons or, eventually, wage war in space. It’s here that President Eisenhower gets some image rehabilitation: shown in the first part of the movie as someone who didn’t really recognize the effect Sputnik had on the nation, in the final portion of the book he’s portrayed as the person who made sure, through the creation of NASA and other efforts, that space was used for peaceful purposes and not turned into another battleground.

For those who are even just somewhat familiar with the events of the late 1950s in space, Sputnik Mania won’t provide any new revelations. The interviews included in the documentary provide some general background on events, but little in the way of novel insights. The collection of people interviewed is also rather eclectic: it’s understandable to interview people like Sergei Khrushchev (son of Nikita), space journalist Jay Barbee, and Paul Dickson, whose book Sputnik: The Shock of the Century served as the basis for the book, but why also include comedian Robert Klein? (His contribution: describing being issued dog tags in school so his body could be identified after a nuclear attack if it was otherwise burned beyond recognition.) The movie, though, does serve as a reminder for those seeking another “Sputnik moment”—especially those who didn’t live through the original—that it may not be desirable to repeat history.

Jeff Foust (jeff@thespacereview.com) is the editor and publisher of The Space Review. He also operates the Spacetoday.net web site and the Space Politics and Personal Spaceflight weblogs. Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author alone, and do not represent the official positions of any organization or company, including the Futron Corporation, the author’s employer.

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