Watch Kids' Reviews of
GOODNIGHT OPPY

Goodnight Oppy, by Ryan White, is a documentary that brings both excitement and curiosity. I love learning about how the scientists related to Opportunity, nicknamed Oppy, almost as if she/it was their child. I also love that, no matter what went wrong, they never gave up and always thought she would go on. And she did! She outlived her life expectancy by 150 months!

The inspirational true story follows Opportunity, the veteran interplanetary Mars Exploration Rover, affectionately dubbed Oppy by her creators and scientists at NASA. Oppy was originally expected to live for only 90 days but ultimately explored Mars for nearly 15 years. The film follows Oppy's groundbreaking journey on Mars and the remarkable bond forged between a robot and her humans millions of miles away.

Exploring the last 15 years of interplanetary exploration with Opportunity and her twin sister is so interesting. Opportunity and Spirit were identical twins, both 5'2" tall, with human like eyes. I love how the humans associated with them thought of them almost as their children. It takes a long 6 months to get to Mars from Earth. Spirit was launched on July 7, 2003 and Opportunity followed three weeks after that date. I found I it fascinating how, no matter what happened to the rovers, the scientists kept believing that they would work again. My favorite part of their day was the wake up song! It is amazing how Opportunity and Spirit could respond and think for themselves. I enjoyed watching their journey exploring Mars and all the photos they sent back. What stands out most in this documentary is how everyone believes in the two rovers; they never give up.

This inspiring documentary reveals the discoveries that these two rovers gave us about Mars. The film helps audiences understand the incredible amount of work that the scientists and the robots' creators put in to achieve the accomplishments of these two robots. They gave us so much information we never had previously.

I give Goodnight Oppy 5 out of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. It releases in theaters November 4 on Amazon Prime Video November 23, 2022.

By Sariah R., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 12

Goodnight Oppy is a fascinating inside look at the stories of Opportunity and Spirit, with beautiful visuals and a cool soundtrack. This film appealed to me as I love learning about the importance of human resilience.

Goodnight Oppy is a documentary that tells the story behind the team in charge of the two Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, which were launched in 2003. It starts at the beginning of the project with Steve Squyres, the principal scientist of the project, up until the project closed in 2018. The film shows the difficulties and challenges of the nearly 15-year-long mission, whilst showing the collaboration and teamwork of those involved.

It is clear that the director, writers and the whole production group had a lot of respect for the team behind Opportunity and Spirit. The film excels at showcasing the talent and determination of the all the scientists and engineers involved in the project and how hard they worked. The visuals of Mars are incredible and eye opening; it really helped me understand what the scientists saw and how their observations gave us new information about Mars. The juxtaposition between the scenes of the rovers and the scenes of the team show the interaction between the robots and the scientists. The difficulties that the rovers experienced are reflective of those of the team, which helps further connect the team with the rovers. I love all of the interviews with the team members as it gives us a more personal side to the story and is really entertaining. My favorite part is definitely the scenes involving the morning music; it brought a smile to my face every single time. It perfectly represents the unity and the family-like environment in the workroom and helps break up the serious moments.

The documentary showcases the work ethic and intelligence of the team at NASA, showing the audience the importance of resilience, collaboration and determination.

I give Goodnight Oppy 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. It releases in theaters November 4, 2022 and on Amazon Prime November 23, 2022.

By Emma D., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 16

see youth comments

The film follows Opportunity, the Mars Exploration Rover affectionately dubbed Oppy by her creators and scientists at NASA. Oppy was originally expected to live for only 90 days but she ultimately explored Mars for nearly 15 years.