Sombre but refreshing look at an American hero

Rating: 9/10 (23 October 2018)

This is a movie which is not presented as a fun, space adventure, but as a solemn and harrowing look at Neil Armstrong personally during his period as an astronaut for NASA throughout the 1960s. Slow-paced and serious in tone, this style isn't for everyone, which is understandable, but I found this to be a masterfully crafted film which goes beyond a standard biopic and utilising an interesting angle to examine its main protagonist. The film really does go slow, sometimes to a fault as some scenes drag on a bit too much, but not as to make the entire film boring or monotonous. And we get a view of Neil Armstrong as a very stoic, often emotionless man. You may feel that this character is a bit personally detached from the audience, but it actually creates a real look at Armstrong's personality. And this is why much of this film is dedicated to displaying his family life, as how his personality and duties as an astronaut (especially by the time the Apollo 11 mission comes round the corner) influence the relationship with his family. The dynamic between Neil and his wife Jane is arguably the best element of this film's narrative, as her qualms resulting from Neil's busyness reveals so much about the one theme Chazelle loves to focus on in his films: the troubling side-effects of single-mindedly pursuing an ambition. The performances by Ryan Gosling and especially Claire Foy are fantastic: some of my favourite scenes were when Foy's character took centre stage. And the camerawork, while admittedly making me feel a bit dizzy during the spaceship sequences, adds a sense of authenticity to the whole film. And the space sequences are gorgeous too! This movie is worth the try at least and quite unique for its genre.