Storyline
A look 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.
Directors
Cast
Lukas Haas, Corey Stoll, Ciarán Hinds, Ryan Gosling, Ethan Embry, Shea Whigham, Charles Carroll, Kyle Chandler, Jason Clarke, Claire Foy, Jamie Anne Allman, Patrick Fugit, William Gregory Lee, Matthew Glave, Pablo Schreiber, J.D. Evermore, Stephanie Turner, Christopher Abbott, Steve Coulter, Brian d'Arcy James, Brady Smith, Donald Watkins, Brian Mahoney, Nelson Bonilla, Todd Truley, Choppy Guillotte, Cory Michael Smith, Kevin Buttimer, Anthony Paolucci, Mark Kelly, Kris Swanberg, Ambrit Millhouse, Olivia Hamilton, Anna Chazelle, Aurelien Gaya, Dustin Lewis, Gavin Warren, Luke Winters, Connor Blodgett, Lucy Stafford, Leon Bridges, Skyler Bible, Braydyn Nash Helms, Edmund Grant, Callie Brown, Claire Smith, John David Whalen, Rodney J. Hobbs, Kermit Rolison, Willie Repoley, Ben Owen, Jim Stearns, James H. Williams, William G. Tomek, Helen S. Jackson, Mark Armstrong, Robert Hatch, Tyner Rushing, Myra Brown, Ronald Hicks, Lawrence Jonasson, Irina Labouz, Philip Boyd, Timothy Batten, Tim Olcott, Andrea Maria Hintermaier, Tess Oakland, Michael Lee Kimel, Ryan Clay Forbes, Joshua Powell, Thomas Clay Strickland, Brad Kitchen, Tim Harper, Andrew Armstrong, Kevin Johnson, Damian Lovello, Andrew Stahl, Mark Kirkman, Brian David McCay, Mark Schlichting, Mark Yurgil, Andrew Buckman, Christopher Sgubin, Greg Puckett, Shawn Eric Jones, Perry Zulu Jr., Kent Wagner, Caroline Davis, Katelyn Davis, George Linkenback
Trailer
Reviews
100
After seeing First Man, it’s doubtful you’ll think about space flight, or Armstrong’s historic walk, in quite the same way. You’ll know more deeply how it happened, what it meant and what it was, and why its mystery — more than ever — still lingers.
91
In its tragic undertones, complex psychological edifice, and claustrophobic visuals, First Man stands out, in both content and form, as a remarkable, jaw-dropping departure from anything Chazelle has previously made.
90
It’s a credit to the filmmakers and to lead actor Ryan Gosling’s thoughtfully internalized performance as Neil Armstrong that this sober, contemplative picture has emotional involvement, visceral tension, and yes, even suspense, in addition to stunning technical craft.
85
Overall, it’s an impressively mounted film, from the seamless visual effects to the score by Justin Hurwitz, which is flexible enough to accentuate both the film’s tension and its earthbound humanity, to the always exquisite editing by Tom Cross (“Whiplash”), which plays a key role in establishing the characters, the stakes and even the passage of time.
83
Steering an astonishingly accomplished path between the small steps and the giant leaps of the Apollo 11 mission, reigning Best Director Damien Chazelle opens the 75th Venice Film Festival with First Man, an immersive, immaculately crafted, often spectacular and satisfyingly old-fashioned epic that may well become the definitive moon-landing movie.
