Aufbruch zum Mond

Whiplash habe ich nicht gesehen, das kitschige La La Land hat mir nicht Spaß gemacht, aber von Aufbruch zum Mond bin ich vorbehaltlos begeistert. Hinreißende Flugszenen aller Art (man hat das Gefühl, dass man dort mit ihm/mit ihnen sitzt), dramatische Momente aus dem "gewöhnlichen Familienleben“. Ryan Gosling spielt wieder mal sehr gut und ich habe ihm alles geglaubt. Dabei ist das Drehbuch keine klassische biografische Angelegenheit, bei der die Zuschauer*innen nur die einzelnen Punkte abhaken. An die Grenze vom Kitsch kommt der Film erst im Finale (Armband). Das Drehbuch balanciert es aber aus, fällt nicht herunter und verletzt sich nicht. Ich freue mich auch darüber, dass ich wieder einmal die Musik loben kann. Justin Hurwitz spielt nämlich ein Theremin, die Szene mit Gemini begleitet er mit einem Walzer und bei der Landung auf dem Mond donnert er so dramatisch, als ob Hans Zimmer und Philip Glass zusammenarbeiten würden. Auf den Soundtrack freue ich mich sehr. (11.10.2018)

Die Mondelegie, ein Film, in dem es viel mehr um Vaterschaft als um Weltraumforschung geht. Dieses ist und bleibt schließlich immer nur ein Ort, an dem unsere dünnen und zerbrechlichen Schalen ihren Kummer sowie ihre Trauer ablegen. In diesem Jahr hat mich nichts so sehr gepackt, wie der Aufbruch zum Mond. Es handelt sich um ein virtuoses Mosaik scharfer, detaillierter und klaustrophobischer Fragmente in Super 16 und IMAX-Breite, das meiner Sensorik eine reinigende Spülung verpasst hat. Gosling vermag wiederum mit seinen Augen der Melancholie Ausdruck verleihen und Claire Foys Leistung ist stärker als die Erdanziehungskraft. So hätte Interstellar aussehen müssen... Meiner Ansicht nach ist dies das größte Filmerlebnis des Jahres 2018 und ein perfektes Reparat für La La Land. Damien teilt wiederum Schläge aus. (20.10.2018)

It's probably going to get snubbed at the Oscars, given the audience ignorance and the politics the Academy has set in recent years, but for me, this is the Movie Of The Year. A technically extremely precise piece of work and at the same time an emotional ride that gives you goosebumps in the last act. In fact, I can't remember the last time a film with a scientific basis has grounded me like this. Perhaps Zemeckis's Contact, twenty long years ago. Gosling as a man who has to suppress his emotions and think coldly and rationally, otherwise he couldn't do his job, is totally accurate as an actor. At the other pole, Claire Foy is a geyser of emotion, and Hurwitz's music is energetic and intimate at the same time. This is going to be the pride of my blu-ray collection. PS: Unfortunately, there are mental gimps among us, such as the "greatest horror expert" Psychor, who vulgarly disparage human agency bought with sweat and blood. I don't know, couldn't these individuals just die so they don't poison our air? (15.12.2018)

What comes to mind is of course a comparison with Interstellar, Gravity or, God forbid (the premise!) Apollo 11. In the first two instances, the similarities are visual while in the third case they relate to the plot. However, The First Man is still a unique film, by which Damien Chazelle managed to blow the minds of everyone who were looking forward to a typical action flick with everything it entails. Because The First Man is everything but an action flick, even though it is full of suspense. My only regret is that this film is too long. Certain dialogues could’ve used some cutting. I however liked looking at Neil Armstrong with his own eyes. Naturally the most visually compelling part of the film is its second half that beautifully shows Apollo 11 landing on the Moon. It almost makes you think that the director and cameraman actually landed on the Moon again to take these breathtaking shots. I can imagine that watching this in a cinema must be absolutely fantastic. Ryan Gosling is of course a great choice. I didn’t think he would come unprepared for his role of Neil Armstrong. Moreover, the political debates revolving around NASA were a welcome bonus. (16.10.2019)

Damien Chazelle is one of the most interesting young filmmakers of our time, and I don't know if Whiplash or La La Land is better. Anyway, with these two films he has shown that he is not going to be stuck in one single genre, so I was looking forward to the Neil Armstrong biopic and the story of the conquest of the moon. In part, I got exactly what I expected and wanted: a technically perfect film that suits the IMAX big screen, has great cinematography and a sound design that makes you feel scared during the Apollo 11 launch like a regular horror movie. It's great to watch, but Chazelle tries to tell perhaps too many things surrounding the event, and there are just too many stories of pilots, engineers and families. So much so that a lot of them fizzle out and don't lead anywhere substantial plot-wise, or have as much emotional impact as they might have wanted. Overall, though, this is still a must-see film, and preferably in the best and biggest theater possible. There, First Man can be compared to Gravity or Interstellar, at least technically. (04.10.2018)