I Aim at the Stars

In the early 1920s, a teenage Wernher von Braun launches a rocket that disastrously wrecks a neighbour's greenhouse. A policeman files a complaint, and von Braun's father offers to pay for the damage, illustrating both his budding talent and the start of his complex moral arc. The incident prefigures the later tension between invention and its consequences.

In the early 1930s, von Braun appears as a rising engineer at the Space Rocket Society, where he conducts an experimental rocket engine static test. In the background, Captain Walter Dornberger and Hermann Oberth discuss the potential for military backing, hinting at the path the project will take. The scene establishes the fusion of scientific ambition with political aims.

As the project attracts attention, Dornberger and Oberth discuss Army support and facilities for rocket experiments, signaling the future integration of military budgets with rocket research. They also mention Anton Reger as a liaison to bring in resources. The dialogue frames the tension between curiosity and weaponization.

Despite nagging ethical doubts, von Braun participates in the Nazi V-2 rocket program, pursuing his scientific goals within a war-driven system. He struggles to reconcile his love of space exploration with the knowledge that his rockets weaponize death. The film emphasizes the moral complexity of his choices under a totalitarian regime.

With Germany defeated, von Braun and his team surrender to American forces and are transported to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip. The transfer marks a watershed moment, turning wartime rocket experts into contributors to the Space Race. The film underscores the uneasy transition from German wartime research to American civilian and military projects.

In New Mexico, the team tests rockets at the White Sands Proving Ground, adapting their designs to new national aims. The environment is both practical and hopeful as they lay groundwork for future space endeavors. This phase marks a shift from battlefield weaponry to space-oriented propulsion.

The team relocates to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, where they continue developing missiles for the U.S. Army. The work translates wartime expertise into technologies that will underpin early spaceflight programs. The film portrays the facility as a bridge between European rocket science and American space ambitions.

The Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik fuels von Braun's sense of painful disappointment at being outpaced in space exploration. He confronts the pressure to deliver American capabilities that match or surpass Soviet breakthroughs. The moment underscores the national stakes in the space race.

Four months after Sputnik, Explorer 1 finally lifts off, marking the first American orbital satellite. The achievement vindicates portions of von Braun's work and solidifies his role in the U.S. space program. The moment also reflects the timing of the earlier disappointments.

The film dwells on the paradox of pursuing starry dreams while weaponizing science, highlighting the ethical tensions in von Braun's career. It also delves into the strains of his personal life, offering a nuanced, human portrait. The narrative invites audiences to weigh ambition against its consequences.

The film explicitly acknowledges its own omission of the brutal use of concentration camp slave labor, which produced the weapons and rockets. This critical gap colors the viewer's understanding of the era and the scientist's legacy. The scene serves as an ethical critique within the film's framing.

The film concludes by juxtaposing von Braun's dream of space with the destructive consequences of his inventions on Earth. It leaves the audience with a lingering moral question about the cost of progress and who bears it. The final tone is reflective, underscoring the paradox at the heart of his legacy.