Year: 2018
Director: Damien Chazelle
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, and Ciaran Hinds
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, and Ciaran Hinds
Tagline: One giant leap into the unknown
Synopsis: A look at the life of Neil Armstrong as he goes from test pilot to the first man on the Moon.
Synopsis: A look at the life of Neil Armstrong as he goes from test pilot to the first man on the Moon.
Review
From my elementary school days, I knew the name Neil Armstrong. And I knew he was the first man to walk on the Moon. I also knew he safely returned from the Moon. So when I say that First Man kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next, it's a pretty high compliment to the filmmakers.
Watching this film is probably as close to being an astronaut as I'll ever get. And I'm OK with that. The filmmakers opted for many tight shots and perspective shots. At times, you feel you are seeing what Neil and the other astronauts would have seen -- and only what they would have seen. We first see the Moon, for example, only through a small window. The visuals are amazing, but they can also feel claustrophobic and dizzying at times. Being an astronaut involves a lot of spinning, it would seem. If you get motion sick easily, be warned.
The visual highlights of the film are, rightly, the Apollo 11 launch and the Eagle landing on the Moon. The filmmakers clearly pulled out all the stops to make those scenes as visual and visceral as possible. As close as they could, they make it feel like you are there. I'll never know what it was like to watch the actual Apollo mission on live television. This will have to do. And it delivers.
As the story unfolded, I realized how little I actually knew/remembered about the Gemini and Apollo space programs. I only remember a little from my history classes. I vaguely recalled that there were serious setbacks and that astronauts lost their lives. But it wasn't as real to me. First Man does a beautiful job putting some of those things in perspective. While Neil is the focus of the film, we see him interact with friends in the program. And, with him, we feel loss when tragedies happen. The cost of the space program has never been more real to me.
There's a powerful scene just before the Apollo 11 launch that has the head of the manned space program reading through a prepared contingency statement ... just in case Neil and Buzz don't make it back from the Moon. I've always taken it for granted that they went to the Moon and came back. It's sobering to realize it wasn't that certain.
Although there is much about NASA, the other astronauts, and the space race to the Moon in First Man, ultimately, those take a backseat to the personal story of Neil Armstrong. This is less a story about how we got to the Moon, and more a story about Neil's physical and emotional journey during those years. As one critic I read noted, Neil and his wife Janet are the only well-rounded characters in the film. The others are intentionally rather flat, because this is Neil's and Janet's story. Ryan Gosling and Claire Foy do an amazing job telling that story.
First Man isn't a romanticized view of Neil Armstrong the hero. Rather it's an intimate view of Neil Armstrong the human, the father, the husband, the friend, and also the astronaut. It could be argued that the film is as much about coping with the loss of a child as it is about landing on the Moon. And I believe the story is better for that.
I also quite enjoyed the film's soundtrack. There were some fitting 60s songs thrown in. But it was mostly the score I enjoyed. The filmmakers use less-common instruments, like a theremin, to give the music a unique sound. And the music for the Apollo launch and Moon landing are sufficiently epic.
First Man is rated PG-13. There is no violence or sexuality in the film. But there are off screen deaths, heavy themes, and one F-bomb (shouted by a character at their absolute breaking point). I don't recall much (if any) other language.
I quite enjoyed First Man. It's a thoughtful look at the personal life of a man most of us only know from history books and video clips. It was also a very real look on what the Gemini and Apollo astronauts went through. If you are interested in space or in biopics, I recommend First Man. But if you are prone to motion sickness, maybe wait to see it on a smaller screen.
*** Spoiler Section ***
When asked at the final pre-flight press conference, Neil declines to answer what personal item(s) he'll be taking to the moon. I was pretty sure I knew what the movie would portray. And I was not disappointed. It was a fitting emotional climax to the movie. Neil made it to the moon, and he came to terms with his daughter's death.
Apparently the film raised some controversy because it doesn't depict the iconic moment when Neil and Buzz plant the American flag on the Moon's surface. The flag is shown in subsequent shots, but the moment isn't a focal point. Some felt that made the film somehow "un-American." I disagree. But more to the point, the film isn't about NASA or the U.S. landing on the Moon. It's about Neil. It's about his journey, physically and emotionally. His moment with Karen's bracelet is the emotional climax the film needed. Making a big to do about planting the flag would have detracted from that moment. First Man is about an American triumph, but not about American exceptionalism.
Lastly, I loved the final scene of the movie: where Neil is in quarantine and Janet comes to visit. I kept wondering what on earth they could possibly say to each other in that moment. What could they say that wouldn't be cheesy or corny or saccharine-filled? The filmmakers must have wondered that too, and came up with the perfect moment. Neil and Janet say nothing. At least nothing with words. It works so well.
Watching this film is probably as close to being an astronaut as I'll ever get. And I'm OK with that. The filmmakers opted for many tight shots and perspective shots. At times, you feel you are seeing what Neil and the other astronauts would have seen -- and only what they would have seen. We first see the Moon, for example, only through a small window. The visuals are amazing, but they can also feel claustrophobic and dizzying at times. Being an astronaut involves a lot of spinning, it would seem. If you get motion sick easily, be warned.
The visual highlights of the film are, rightly, the Apollo 11 launch and the Eagle landing on the Moon. The filmmakers clearly pulled out all the stops to make those scenes as visual and visceral as possible. As close as they could, they make it feel like you are there. I'll never know what it was like to watch the actual Apollo mission on live television. This will have to do. And it delivers.
As the story unfolded, I realized how little I actually knew/remembered about the Gemini and Apollo space programs. I only remember a little from my history classes. I vaguely recalled that there were serious setbacks and that astronauts lost their lives. But it wasn't as real to me. First Man does a beautiful job putting some of those things in perspective. While Neil is the focus of the film, we see him interact with friends in the program. And, with him, we feel loss when tragedies happen. The cost of the space program has never been more real to me.
There's a powerful scene just before the Apollo 11 launch that has the head of the manned space program reading through a prepared contingency statement ... just in case Neil and Buzz don't make it back from the Moon. I've always taken it for granted that they went to the Moon and came back. It's sobering to realize it wasn't that certain.
Although there is much about NASA, the other astronauts, and the space race to the Moon in First Man, ultimately, those take a backseat to the personal story of Neil Armstrong. This is less a story about how we got to the Moon, and more a story about Neil's physical and emotional journey during those years. As one critic I read noted, Neil and his wife Janet are the only well-rounded characters in the film. The others are intentionally rather flat, because this is Neil's and Janet's story. Ryan Gosling and Claire Foy do an amazing job telling that story.
First Man isn't a romanticized view of Neil Armstrong the hero. Rather it's an intimate view of Neil Armstrong the human, the father, the husband, the friend, and also the astronaut. It could be argued that the film is as much about coping with the loss of a child as it is about landing on the Moon. And I believe the story is better for that.
I also quite enjoyed the film's soundtrack. There were some fitting 60s songs thrown in. But it was mostly the score I enjoyed. The filmmakers use less-common instruments, like a theremin, to give the music a unique sound. And the music for the Apollo launch and Moon landing are sufficiently epic.
First Man is rated PG-13. There is no violence or sexuality in the film. But there are off screen deaths, heavy themes, and one F-bomb (shouted by a character at their absolute breaking point). I don't recall much (if any) other language.
I quite enjoyed First Man. It's a thoughtful look at the personal life of a man most of us only know from history books and video clips. It was also a very real look on what the Gemini and Apollo astronauts went through. If you are interested in space or in biopics, I recommend First Man. But if you are prone to motion sickness, maybe wait to see it on a smaller screen.
*** Spoiler Section ***
When asked at the final pre-flight press conference, Neil declines to answer what personal item(s) he'll be taking to the moon. I was pretty sure I knew what the movie would portray. And I was not disappointed. It was a fitting emotional climax to the movie. Neil made it to the moon, and he came to terms with his daughter's death.
Apparently the film raised some controversy because it doesn't depict the iconic moment when Neil and Buzz plant the American flag on the Moon's surface. The flag is shown in subsequent shots, but the moment isn't a focal point. Some felt that made the film somehow "un-American." I disagree. But more to the point, the film isn't about NASA or the U.S. landing on the Moon. It's about Neil. It's about his journey, physically and emotionally. His moment with Karen's bracelet is the emotional climax the film needed. Making a big to do about planting the flag would have detracted from that moment. First Man is about an American triumph, but not about American exceptionalism.
Lastly, I loved the final scene of the movie: where Neil is in quarantine and Janet comes to visit. I kept wondering what on earth they could possibly say to each other in that moment. What could they say that wouldn't be cheesy or corny or saccharine-filled? The filmmakers must have wondered that too, and came up with the perfect moment. Neil and Janet say nothing. At least nothing with words. It works so well.
Quotable Quotes
- [Draws the Earth and the Moon on two blackboards] "That's to scale." [Having done the math, a young scientist comes in and moves the moon over a few inches.] "It was almost to scale." -- Deke Slayton
- "Your father's going to the moon." "Oh. Can I go outside and play?" -- Janet and Mark Armstrong
- "Houston, this is Tranquility Base. The Eagle has landed." -- Neil Armstrong
- "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." -- Neil Armstrong
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