First Man: Out in space; feet on ground

First Man : ****

US | Drama | History

Cast: Ryan Gosling; Claire Foy; Corey Stoll; Jason Clarke; Kyle Chandler;

Duration: 138 minutes

Release: October 2018

Plot: (Google)

Universal Pictures’ First Man, the riveting story of NASA’s mission to land a man on the moon, focusing on Neil Armstrong and the years 1961-1969. A visceral, first-person account, based on the book by James R. Hansen.

Review:

First Man directed by the award winning Damien Chazelle is a piece that you wont be able to read til the last minute. It has no apparition until you reach the end and realize the reason of the story.

Damien's films have a meaning hidden within its story and here the true story is overshadowed by the Nation's attempt to outrun the Soviet space endeavours. Not that it harms the movie in any sense.

Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong in the middle of Mojav Desert in 1961 sets out in his jet testing the flight strength as an engineer in the film's first scene. You see him look over the earth's edge and space beyond as he reaches the atmosphere's edge. That scene sets the film's tone, the character's color and the story's direction.

We follow Neil as he battles through the death of his daughter, starts a fresh as the NASA crew member for Gemini and grows into the strong willed Astronaut has only one goal to make Apollo a success.

As years go by we see the Neil change from the man who says 'When you get a different vantage point it changes yours perspective.' to the man who refuses to talk to his sons in-spite of knowing that it could be the last time he sees them.

I don't know if Ryan was the right choice for Neil but watching his fine face for 138 minutes even in the most heartbreaking scenes brought me comfort. Claire Foy's strong presence adds a separate perspective to the one man show.

Damien Chazelle's La La Land showed us the film does not have to be a glamours film to look beautiful, he takes the same approach to this drama making ever scene an experience along with breathtaking background score. The compliment each other like two side of the same coin.

From silence to the clutter of the space craft bond so well with the screen it pulls you in for a remarkable ride.

First Man is not about the man who first landed on moon, the man who made sure that humanity - United States took the flight out into space but the man who left his daughter's last painful memory on Moon.

The best part of the film is how the moon has been picturized the maker, its so distant and far out of reach even when we see them walking on the fine granular surface.

Verdict: While the film talks about NASA's Apollo mission it actually is about Neil's journey of letting go of his daughter's painful memories.

**** stars

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