What's Your Favorite Engineer Movie?

I have great hopes for Iron Man, but haven't seen it yet, so I'd say Falling Down.

IF YOU DIDN'T SE IRONMAN DON'T READ THIS POST

It's a great engenieering movie exept the end of it, where moving some switches and pulling down the Circuit Breaker Manual Spring Charger makes a huge blast, perhaps something more simple like throwing the cellphone in the reactor would look more real, what kind of protection system allows you to make such a disaster.

Apollo 13 shows the best side of American ingenuity. Thinking hero's instead of action hero's.

Apollo 13 is my favorite. Astronaut Farmer was good, except for the first attempt to launch, where the rocket fell over but did not explode.

Most other well-done movies are more science than engineering; e.g. 2001, Contact, etc.

The 13th Warrior.

It is absolutely the best demonstration of the 8-D method of root cause anaylsis problem solving that i have ever seen.

Not just reacting. Not just treating symtoms.

Getting, and eliminating root causes.

However, its technology focus is horses and premedeiveal non mathematical.

It has some interesting lessons about diversity, nonstandard tool kits, and getting to the implied. It shines a light on how what we do as problem solvers matters. and if we dont get to root cause, it just gets worse.

There are some really great lines too. about learnng to listen.

if you have ever been frustrated by shallow, feeble, impotent problem solving and people claiming to be the real deal who are merely parts changers ("lets see if this works!") then you will absolutely LOVE this movie.

But its problem solving, more than engineering.

milo

Dont recall the name of the TV movie (years ago in black and white) that dealt with the infiltration of a Nazi chemical complex by a chemical engineer in Norway . The facility was destroyed and slowed the Nazi abilities to produce an atomic weapon before the end of WWII. I believe it starred Jack Webb.

Office Space (do software engineers count?)

Chain Reaction w/Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman - the greatest piece of fiction here is that anyone could belive Keanu Reeves could figure out cold fusion

Bridge on the River Kwai

October Sky

"Flight of the Phoenix" (original one with Jimmie Stewart)

The "Flight of the Phoenix" was good and "DAS Boot" AKA "The Boat". It is about a German submarine in the second world war and what it took engineering wise to keep it going as a fighting unit or at least surviving.

BAB

The Mosquito Coast with Harrison Ford and River Phoenix was pretty good and one of my favorites.

China Syndrome, mainly because I lived 50 miles downwind of Three Mile Island at the time China Syndrome came out, so it really hit home. (I used to have a T-Shirt that said, "I survived Three Mile Island--I think"). Also, I've been involved with process control for a very long time, and I still remember instrument techs tapping on an instrument faceplate with a pencil eraser. It was good to see engineer Jack Godell portrayed as a hero instead of a villain, as in most movies

And let's not forget Mr Scott of Star Trek, who solved every problem. My favorite scene involving Scottie was in one of the Star Trek movies where they go back in time to 20th Century California, and he has to deal with a 1990s-era PC with a--gasp!--keyboard!

Not a movie, but could be...

McGyver. With a paper clip, nickle, water bottle(empty), 2 rocks, and a dirty sock he could rebuild a plane.