In the Shadow of the Moon

In the Shadow of the Moon ***1/2

Directed by David Sington

Featuring
Buzz Aldrin
Alan Bean
Eugene Cernan
Michael Collins
Jim Lovell
Edgar D. Mitchell
Harrison Schmitt
Dave Scott
John Young

100 Minutes(Rated PG for mild language, brief violent images and incidental smoking. )
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"In the Shadow of the Moon" is just such a glorious and joyful experience, and it has taken any doubt that I had about the lunar landing being a hoax away from my mind. Honestly I didn't have much doubt it begin with, but that lingering "maybe" that always hung around has disappeared. Trust me. After seeing this film, the explanation for it all being a hoax will stem from the idea that those people just can't see a great moment for what it is. And this film was so powerful and happy and fun to watch and fascinating and interesting, that I'm so glad that I went against my judgment and went to check it out.

We get the first moon landing story-and there were nine total launches, not all of them being a success. And we get it from the point of view of several of the astronauts that are alive at the moment. And we go through it, step by step, from them being called out to them going into space, to them putting the flag into the ground of the moon., and then finally until their return. We see actual footage and photographs from NASA-at times photos from similar events of other missions were used to represent what happened on another-but there was no computers or animation used in the making of the film, and everything was real.

There were a few moments here where I actually wondered about the mysteries of the universe. I realized that we really are such a small little rock just hanging like a ball of nothing in such a vast environment. It is such a wild concept, considering that to the average eye-and not to the eye of the men who have been in space-Planet Earth is the biggest thing we have-and yet it goes on for millions and millions of miles, up until they don't even use the phrase mile. And the ending just sums up a time for a country going through difficulties, and how going into space was not just a moment for America-even though the flag is there-but just for everyone. The war stopped for a minute, and it became a universal idea. Perhaps the film gets a little preachy when it becomes an environmental message in the vein of "An Inconvenient Truth" and "The 11th Hour," but that's only for a few minutes tacked at the very end. And stay for the credits, because its hilarious hearing how the spacemen feel about the ideas that the lunar landing was a hoax. And that Michael Collins is funny every single time he begins to talk. "In the Shadow of the Moon" is a great documentary-away from politics and war and modern time problems, and a reminder on how we can all be united once again, even in simple ways like this.

Now Playing At:
Landmark Sunshine Cinemas
AMC Lincoln Square and IMAX