First Man (2018)

Review

141min

Genre:     Fact-based, Drama

Director:  Damien Chazelle

Cast:       Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke…and more

Writers:   Josh Singer and James R. Hansen

-Synopsis-

In the middle of the cold war and at the height of the space race, an unassuming pilot and NASA astronaut from Ohio is chosen to command what would become the first successful manned mission to the moon, turning his life upside down and becoming global icon in the process—as Oscar winning director Damien Chazelle ditches his beloved jazz for this Neil Armstrong biopic.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a more meteoric rise of a filmmaking career than that of Damien Chazelle, from 2014’s Oscar-winning do-or-die jazz drumming masterpiece ‘Whiplash’, to reviving the classic movie musical in 2016 with the multiple Oscar-winning ‘La La Land’. Now the New England native trades a music-led narrative for a historical one, meticulously crafting his ode to the brave and intrepid early space explorers, and a very personal portrait of a reluctant legend.

Ryan Gosling stars as engineer and test pilot Neil Armstrong, reeling from personal tragedy in the late 1950s and looking to start anew with wife Janet Armstrong (Claire Foy), finding purpose in NASA’s manned space program ‘Gemini’ in Houston with new neighbours and colleagues, including fellow astronaut Ed White (Jason Clarke). When the race to the moon heats up and tragic setbacks up the stakes, Armstrong joins fellow Apollo 11 astronauts Buzz Aldrin (Corey Stoll) and Michael Collins (Lukas Haas) as commander of the legendary first successful manned mission to the moon—changing the course of history with one giant leap for mankind , and salvaging a losing space race against the Soviets.

Part biographical drama and part space mission movie, ‘First Man’ combines some of the ‘daring pilots as intrepid space pioneers’ element of Philip Kaufman’s 1983 classic ‘The Right Stuff’, with the faithful Apollo program depiction and mission glitches narrative of Ron Howard’s ‘Apollo 13’, painting a picture of men willing to take the considerable risks which all great explorers did throughout history—only on a new and far more dangerous frontier. But more than anything this is the tale of the man behind the legend, a story of a typical American family and their patriarch—a humble and introspective figure, whose deeds would transform him into a global icon of hope for a new age . . . and a reluctant political poster child for American excellence.

‘First Man’ is a meticulously designed and beautifully displayed piece of cinematic art, expertly shot with restraint by Oscar-winning Swedish cinematographer Linus Sandgren (American Hustle, La La Land) who captures the first-rate production designs which authentically re-create the 60s, plus the beauty of this planet . . . and beyond.

When the narrative calls for spectacle, Chazelle obliges with some truly wonderful sequences, particularly the crowning Apollo 11 mission elements; ranging from arguably the greatest launch sequence ever committed to film, to elegant waltz driven spaceship manoeuvres likely inspired by a certain Kubrick space classic, and of course the moon landing itself—divided between an energetic harp and xylophone-led lunar approach, and a hauntingly quiet touchdown. And these are the scenes where Chazelle’s beloved music—a narrative key in his other work—gets to truly play its part, beautifully setting the atmosphere with an eclectic score from the director’s long-time friend and collaborator Justin Hurwitz (Whiplash, La La Land).

Ultimately though ‘First Man’ is very much a character piece and human drama, with Chazelle focusing his lens on the effects of these other-worldly endeavours, and their deadly missteps, on the lives of these bold men . . . and on their families. It falls then to the cast to anchor the film, and they’re well led by Gosling in a restrained but poignant performance as a noble introspective figure who internalised his anguish, becoming an iconic canvas on which people projected their hopes, and their ideologies.

The Canadian star is well supported by an international cast playing utterly convincing Americans, including the always excellent Aussie Jason Clarke as dependable friend and fellow astronaut Ed White. But it’s British star Claire Foy who makes the biggest impact and earns her co-star billing as Janet Armstrong, the heart of the piece and the crucial emotional conduit for the Armstrongs—adding fire to an impressive post ‘The Crown’ film career so far.

Despite all its merits as a measured but engrossing human drama with spectacular visual trimmings, ‘First Man’ has split opinion, particularly among audiences, and not just because of a so-called flag-planting scandal on which we won’t even elaborate. It would be easy to complain with a lazy pun, as some have, that the film takes too long to lift-off, or lacks melodrama, but that would be missing the point entirely.

The film is titled ‘First Man’ and not ‘Apollo 11’, because this is not the tale of the mission, this is the personal story of what it took to get there, and the making of the extraordinary man who commanded it—and for our money it’s a hell of a story, masterfully told by a young filmmaker who continues to impress and capture the imagination

The Bottom Line…

Damien Chazelle’s third feature in four years is a beautifully crafted, tone-perfect ode to the intrepid space explorer and their families, and a restrained but powerful and poignant portrait of the man behind the legend who helped to crown mankind’s achievements in the 20th century—adding another notch in the cinematic belt of a filmmaker who started mightily strong, and shows no signs of abating.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

The Right Stuff (1983)

Philip Kaufman’s Oscar-winning biographical drama about the self-styled and daring US pilots who would become America’s first astronauts during NASA’s early days, at the height of the cold war and the ‘space race’ against the Soviets.

Directed by Philip Kaufman and starring Sam Shepard, Scott Glenn and Ed Harris among others.

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