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First Man
Academy Award® Winner
The story of astronaut Neil Armstrong and the challenges faced by the Apollo 11 mission that led to him being the first man to set foot on the Moon.

Starring Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke...  View more >

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Reviews Summary


Please Note: Reader Reviews are submitted by the readers of The BigScreen Cinema Guide and represent their own personal opinions regarding this movie, and do not represent the views of The BigScreen Cinema Guide, or any of its associated entities.

Oct 9, 2018
In the 2016 hit La La Land, director Damien Chazelle's pacing and style combined with Ryan Gosling and co-star Emma Stone to create a stylistic view of Hollywood and Los Angeles. Since that was a romance, the relationship between the two leads was essential to the story. It all worked, and the movie got critical and audience attention, and it received six Academy Awards.

In First Man, Chazelle and Gosling are back, but it's not a romance, and Stone isn't back to create a leading-couple production.

First Man is a slow-paced biography about astronaut Neil Armstrong and his efforts to be the first man on the moon. And I do mean slow-paced. At around 2 hours and 20 minutes, I think this movie will leave some audience members impatient.

This is not a rousing and patriotic "we did it" movie like The Right Stuff. It's not a "we'll overcome insurmountable odds" movie like Apollo 13. It's an examination of one man's journey through the space program in the 1960's that eventually leads him to be the first man to set foot on the moon.

Many reports that I have read about Neil Armstrong describe him as private, shy, and introverted. The viewer definitely gets that sense here, as he has trouble being open and personable with his wife and kids, to the point where she has to prod him to say a proper farewell before his fateful mission on Apollo 11.

All this is not to say that First Man is not an enjoyable movie. I did enjoy it, and the sequences during launch and in space are incredible! There is one in particular, where they are on the Gemini VIII mission and the first-ever docking maneuver in space is attempted. Something goes wrong and Armstrong and David Scott are sent spinning to the point where most everyone believes they are going to be casualties of the program. This is a very dizzying sequence made even more-so through the Dolby Atmos soundtrack which has you feeling like you're part of the action.

Also returning from La La Land is composer Justin Hurwitz, and before I knew that he was involved, I definitely recognized some of the elements in the movie's score. Don't expect the playful style of La La Land, though. No one is dancing on the tops of cars here.

The movie had an impact, but I fear that its pacing will prevent some from enjoying it fully. It really does underscore the achievements of everyone involved in the space program, as they were doing everything for the first time, and the pressure to make mistakes on the ground instead of in space, all while upholding a Presidential promise made to the world.

I'm glad to have seen it, and I can tell you that I spent several nights afterward looking at the full moon in a very different manner.
Oct 16, 2018
A lot of critics like "First Man." Even got a 88% rating from Rotten tomatoes, (I feel like I had to complete with this web site to get my opinion cross.) but for some reason, I didn't like the movie. the performances from Ryan Gosling is ok, but the pace of this is slow and grinding. sure the story of how Neil Armstrong's journey to the movie should have been more interesting, but it's not. there is a lot of special effects that could get a few Oscar Nomination, even for best picture, but the pace of this movie didn't work for me.Another thing that bother me is director Darrien Chazelle overplay his drama card, making watching this movie a little difficult. Instead of "First Man," I'll recommend three movies that tied in with early space travel; The Right Stuff (1983), Apollo 13 (1995) and Hidden Figures (2016). Any movie but "First Man."
Oct 25, 2018
A good movie. A bit slow at times. Having lived through the real event,I found this movie was a bit boring! They tried real hard in bringing some of the behind the seans events into the publics knowledge.
Dec 1, 2018

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