This film is a U, was released on June 28th 2019, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS because there is nothing to be spoiled, unless you've been living under a rock the size of the moon.
Apollo 11 is a documentary about the titular space mission when three astronauts, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, set off to land on the moon for the first time in human history. I love space and I thought that this would be a good thing to see in the cinema and also good for some insight into the mission. We recently had First Man which was a dramatisation of the same mission but that was more focused on the life of Armstrong and the sections in space and on the moon were somewhat secondary. So I was excited to see more about this achievement in American history.
The thing I was so happy about with Apollo 11 is that it really only gets the title of a documentary just because it uses archival footage of a real event. I was so glad to see this film didn't have a cheesy narrator nor interviews with some of the people involved, as that would've distracted from the point of the film. Instead, the film just shows you everything that happened from the moments preparing to lift off, to when the three made it back to earth and were celebrated. So, I enjoyed this film so much because it felt like it was telling a story, and given the fact that it is only made with real footage, it was a much more engaging and gripping experience. The film also masterfully uses sound. It is so well implemented that it makes the film more atmospheric, and the wonderful score adds to this. There are times when the film goes silent, sometimes it has tons of voices at once, and it always felt appropriate to the scene. The biggest accomplishment of this film is that it has an atmosphere. When what you see and what you hear are combined, it takes you right into the world of the film and you can feel everything the film wants you to, whether it's the high heart rates of the astronauts, the complications of calculating landings / other manoeuvres, or the awe of watching the first man step down a ladder onto the moon. One thing I should mention is that this film demands a big screen. The bigger the screen and the louder the volume, the more invested you can be in the film. Although that's not to say it can't be enjoyed on smaller screens, its only the experience that gets enhanced by the larger size. Another thing is that the films does a great job at helping you understand how a lot of technical aspects of the mission worked. This was especially good for me as even though I love space, I'm not familiar with how any of this mission was pulled off, so it was beneficial to get a technical understanding.
In terms of negatives, there are very few. My only real issue is kind of inevitable for a film like this, and that is that some of the footage is a little bit poor in quality as is some of the sound. However, this isn't a legitimate critique in my opinion because the fact that they could get all the footage they did is largely commendable, its only problematic when you can't clearly identify what is being said or what is happening.
Apollo 11 is one of the biggest surprises of the year. I'm not usually one to enjoy documentaries nor can I really put up with archive footage of a low quality, but I loved this film. This is an enthralling experience and I can't wait to see it again. Even though some of the novelty may be lost from the transition of cinema to home, I'm still really excited. It takes you right into the legendary mission of 1969 with excellent usage of sound, music, and really impressive footage. This is a film I'd highly recommend to anyone who likes space or just wants to be blown away for an hour and a half, because it is worth it. I can't remember the last time I left the cinema so keen to revisit the film I'd literally just witnessed.
I'm going to give Apollo 11 a 9/10
The thing I was so happy about with Apollo 11 is that it really only gets the title of a documentary just because it uses archival footage of a real event. I was so glad to see this film didn't have a cheesy narrator nor interviews with some of the people involved, as that would've distracted from the point of the film. Instead, the film just shows you everything that happened from the moments preparing to lift off, to when the three made it back to earth and were celebrated. So, I enjoyed this film so much because it felt like it was telling a story, and given the fact that it is only made with real footage, it was a much more engaging and gripping experience. The film also masterfully uses sound. It is so well implemented that it makes the film more atmospheric, and the wonderful score adds to this. There are times when the film goes silent, sometimes it has tons of voices at once, and it always felt appropriate to the scene. The biggest accomplishment of this film is that it has an atmosphere. When what you see and what you hear are combined, it takes you right into the world of the film and you can feel everything the film wants you to, whether it's the high heart rates of the astronauts, the complications of calculating landings / other manoeuvres, or the awe of watching the first man step down a ladder onto the moon. One thing I should mention is that this film demands a big screen. The bigger the screen and the louder the volume, the more invested you can be in the film. Although that's not to say it can't be enjoyed on smaller screens, its only the experience that gets enhanced by the larger size. Another thing is that the films does a great job at helping you understand how a lot of technical aspects of the mission worked. This was especially good for me as even though I love space, I'm not familiar with how any of this mission was pulled off, so it was beneficial to get a technical understanding.
In terms of negatives, there are very few. My only real issue is kind of inevitable for a film like this, and that is that some of the footage is a little bit poor in quality as is some of the sound. However, this isn't a legitimate critique in my opinion because the fact that they could get all the footage they did is largely commendable, its only problematic when you can't clearly identify what is being said or what is happening.
Apollo 11 is one of the biggest surprises of the year. I'm not usually one to enjoy documentaries nor can I really put up with archive footage of a low quality, but I loved this film. This is an enthralling experience and I can't wait to see it again. Even though some of the novelty may be lost from the transition of cinema to home, I'm still really excited. It takes you right into the legendary mission of 1969 with excellent usage of sound, music, and really impressive footage. This is a film I'd highly recommend to anyone who likes space or just wants to be blown away for an hour and a half, because it is worth it. I can't remember the last time I left the cinema so keen to revisit the film I'd literally just witnessed.
I'm going to give Apollo 11 a 9/10
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