Countdown

Directed by an unknown Robert Altman, this sci-fi suspenser top-lined James Caan in his seventh movie. A good script by Loring Mandel depicts Caan as a civilian scientist chosen to replace Duvall in a space capsule that will land on the moon. Moore, Caan's wife, suffers from being in the fishbowl of publicity and has difficulty with her newfound celebrity status. Duvall's wife, Baxley, reaches for the booze when Duvall's dedication to his work takes him away from home for long stretches of time. The idea is to get a man on the moon before the Russians, but project manager Ihnat and flight medico Aidman carry on a running battle over safety precautions versus the ne...