Film Review: "First Man" (2018).

"Experience the impossible journey to the Moon." Experience First Man. This biographical drama film directed by Damien Chazelle, written by Josh Singer, based on the book First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen. The film looks at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.

In early 2003, Clint Eastwood and Warner Bros. bought the film rights to Hansen's book. In 2015, Universal and DreamWorks ultimately took up the project. After the release of Whiplash (2014), Damien Chazelle signed onto the film's production that year, and hired Josh Singer to rewrite an existing script. Chazelle wanted to approach this story as a thriller and make the public feel the dangers faced by the astronaut team. In November 2015, Gosling, who starred in Chazelle's La La Land (2016), joined the project to portray Armstrong. In November 2017, Principal photography began in Atlanta and Roswell, Georgia. Chazelle was particularly attached to making his film as authentic as possible. Chazelle, as well as Gosling, visited the Armstrong Air and Space museum in Armstrong's hometown of Wapakoneta, Ohio to do research on Armstrong and the Gemini VIII mission. This care for detail was maintained, even with the reproduction of the space capsules and Armstrong's home. For the space capsules, Chazelle and production designer Nathan Crowley agreed that no ship would be enlarged by more than 10%, even if it sacrificed the comfort of the actors. For Armstrong's home, using the original blueprints, the production crew built a replica of it in an empty lot in order to replicate the look of his house. Chazelle and cinematographer Linus Sandgren chose to shoot the Moon landing sequence on IMAX 70mm film as opposed to the 16mm and 35mm film the rest of the film was shot on. The sequence was shot in a local rock quarry at night. For the film's score, composer Justin Hurwitz featured various uncommon instruments including the theremin, Moog synthesizer and an Echoplex, which give the score its uniqueness. He also rerecorded a string orchestra being played back through a Leslie rotor cabinet to create special sound effects.

The film stars Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, Ciarán Hinds, Christopher Abbott, Patrick Fugit, and Lukas Haas. The cast gave stellar performances that were acted without pumped-up histrionics. It is because of the ensemble that the film is one hell of a ride from beginning to end.

In recreating the troubled space mission through the eyes of one of the legendary astronauts, First Man pulls no punches: it's a masterfully told drama from director Damien Chazelle, bolstered by an ensemble of solid performances. Chazelle lays off the manipulation to tell the true story of the dangerous 1969 Apollo 11 mission in painstaking and lively detail. It's easily one of the best films of the year. Although, I just wish that it worked better in the biographical drama department. Nonetheless, it's absolutely thrilling.

Simon says First Man receives:

Also, see my review for La La Land.