Terrific, realistic, eye-opening biographical

Rating: 8/10 (27 April 2019)

First Man tells the inside story about the astronauts from the 1960s who were battling to defeat the Russians in the race to space. The focus is on Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling - LaLa Land), the first man to walk on the moon. Along the way you learn about his wife (Claire Foy - Girl in the Spiders Web) and their complex, strained marriage. Most revealing are all the details you learn about his family and the stress and strain they faced.
Gosling delivers a stellar performance as Armstrong, who is revealed as a quiet, humble, gracious man. He carries the weight of multiple tragedies on his shoulders. You learn that he's lost family, and friends, but somehow, space calls to him. He is revealed as a try pioneer who wants to go where no one has gone before. And this guy was REAL, not like Matt Damon in Martian. Which makes his story even more compelling.
The director does a terrific job of weaving in key incidents that led to decisions that caused things to happened that affected the entire Gemini and Apollo program. Finally, the focus was definitely on the first step on the moon, but also the journey to get there.
This film delivers real lifelike feelings throughout. These space ships were using computers that nowadays are antiques. You feel the ships shaking, You hear the groans and creaks of metal being stressed. You hear buzzers going off with warnings. You are there. If you watch the Special Features, you learn that the film is very realistic because instead of a green screen, they used a new, huge LED screen with images of the moon. This gave the actors and stage people the ability to see their surroundings and deliver a more real experience. It works!!! I really hope this LED technology advances movies to become more realistic, which benefits everyone.
Great acting by Claire Foy as Mrs Armstrong. She delivers the perfect portrayal of a 1960s wife of an astronaut who at any time could lose her husband. Other excellent supporting cast roles too. The landing reveals something that I did not know, and you will be surprised too. It reveals how much Armstrong loved his family, and how he felt about a greater power. Gosling should have been at least nominated for Best Actor - again - he was terrific.
First Man is an excellent film that stands right up there with The Right Stuff and Apollo 13 as superior space films. See it - you'll love it. Enjoy