Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
02-28-19, 08:22 AM
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Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
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Apollo 11 is in theaters everywhere March 8.
From director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13) comes a cinematic event fifty years in the making. Crafted from a newly discovered trove of 65mm footage, and more than 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings, Apollo 11 takes us straight to the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission—the one that first put men on the moon, and forever made Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin into household names. Immersed in the perspectives of the astronauts, the team in Mission Control, and the millions of spectators on the ground, we vividly experience those momentous days and hours in 1969 when humankind took a giant leap into the future.
From director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13) comes a cinematic event fifty years in the making. Crafted from a newly discovered trove of 65mm footage, and more than 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings, Apollo 11 takes us straight to the heart of NASA’s most celebrated mission—the one that first put men on the moon, and forever made Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin into household names. Immersed in the perspectives of the astronauts, the team in Mission Control, and the millions of spectators on the ground, we vividly experience those momentous days and hours in 1969 when humankind took a giant leap into the future.
100% currently on RT: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/apollo_11_2019
02-28-19, 08:29 AM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Thanks for the heads up. Looks like it ids exclusively in IMAX this weekend.
02-28-19, 09:30 AM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
First of all, when is some foreign asshole going to jump in with a slanderous early review and destroy this movie like First Man?
Second, wasn’t the 65mm film just for still photography?
Second, wasn’t the 65mm film just for still photography?
02-28-19, 09:50 AM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
They've done a shitty job of advertising this. Friday Night's IMAX show has 17 seats sold so far, checking the AMC website. That's not great.
02-28-19, 12:15 PM
#6
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
I can't wait to see this! The trailer looks awesome.
02-28-19, 02:15 PM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
I found one of my (fairly) nearby theatres will have this in IMAX, so I will see this on Saturday.
02-28-19, 02:37 PM
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03-01-19, 11:47 PM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Just got back from seeing this. First of all, the new footage is MIND-BLOWING and stunning to see. That said, there is sadly very little of that 70mm footage in the movie. It's just some scenes before launch, some amazing footage of the rockets on the pad and some of people watching the launch in FL (including a really cool celebrity sighting!). Maybe 15 minutes of stuff total, but probably less than that. Also some more stuff after landing, briefly. The vast majority is grainy video footage. Obviously they didn't bring 70- MM film canisters into the lunar capsule, but for God's sake, couldn't they have used those same cameras to shoot the Mission Control stuff?
Anyway, it was a fascinating watch. The movie just flew by for me. No narration, no retrospective interviews, just Walter Cronkite and other news casters describing what was happening in real time. I really enjoyed it. Made me a little sad that there were no kids there. I don't think young people have any interest in the space program -- kinda weird because every kid my age dreamed of being an astronaut. Times have changed.
BTW : This movie is a CNN film, so while I HIGHLY recommend catching it in IMAX this weekend, it will almost certainly be broadcast on CNN on July 20th.
Anyway, it was a fascinating watch. The movie just flew by for me. No narration, no retrospective interviews, just Walter Cronkite and other news casters describing what was happening in real time. I really enjoyed it. Made me a little sad that there were no kids there. I don't think young people have any interest in the space program -- kinda weird because every kid my age dreamed of being an astronaut. Times have changed.
BTW : This movie is a CNN film, so while I HIGHLY recommend catching it in IMAX this weekend, it will almost certainly be broadcast on CNN on July 20th.
03-02-19, 01:24 PM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
I’m going today. Taking my daughter. 11 years old. She has no interest, but I’m hoping this will jog her interest.
I know one of her friends wants to be an astronaut. She’s attended special programs at JPL and Cal Tech. She’s serious. So is my nephew who is the same age. There’s kids that are into it.
I know one of her friends wants to be an astronaut. She’s attended special programs at JPL and Cal Tech. She’s serious. So is my nephew who is the same age. There’s kids that are into it.
03-02-19, 07:15 PM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Okay, saw it. It’s very good.
The quality of almost everything is so much better than any previous version. Tons of stuff you’ve never seen before and tons of stuff you’ve seen before looking better than ever. A few of the early shots in 70mm are just breathtaking. They look brand new.
Maybe the most interesting is the footage of the people. The crowds, the reporters, the onlookers; stuff like the bank of payphones for the press to use. That was maybe the only thing in the movie that I felt I had to explain to my 11 year old.
The music is excellent. There’s an interesting note in the credits that it was created entirely with equipment that existed in 1969 or prior. So while it sounds rather modern it has a foundation in analog equipment. A nice touch.
Footnote: I saw this at the Orange 30 IMAX in Orange, CA. Not my usual imax. Total rip off. Real IMAX screams are 2 or 3 times larger than this runt of a screen. Never going back there.
The quality of almost everything is so much better than any previous version. Tons of stuff you’ve never seen before and tons of stuff you’ve seen before looking better than ever. A few of the early shots in 70mm are just breathtaking. They look brand new.
Maybe the most interesting is the footage of the people. The crowds, the reporters, the onlookers; stuff like the bank of payphones for the press to use. That was maybe the only thing in the movie that I felt I had to explain to my 11 year old.
The music is excellent. There’s an interesting note in the credits that it was created entirely with equipment that existed in 1969 or prior. So while it sounds rather modern it has a foundation in analog equipment. A nice touch.
Footnote: I saw this at the Orange 30 IMAX in Orange, CA. Not my usual imax. Total rip off. Real IMAX screams are 2 or 3 times larger than this runt of a screen. Never going back there.
03-02-19, 10:23 PM
#15
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Saw it today. It was really good. I think it's a good supplemental film to First Man.
The footage and editing was pretty amazing. This wasn't a traditional documentary. I actually felt like I was there experiencing it 50 years ago. And I thought it really worked with no narration.
BTW, I don't know how many of you are familiar with him, but the movie critic Scott Mantz was actually in the audience for my showing. He's usually on Collider Video on YouTube. He was there with his wife and sat 2 rows ahead of me. This IMAX showing was in Long Beach, CA. So I assume he lives in the area.
The footage and editing was pretty amazing. This wasn't a traditional documentary. I actually felt like I was there experiencing it 50 years ago. And I thought it really worked with no narration.
BTW, I don't know how many of you are familiar with him, but the movie critic Scott Mantz was actually in the audience for my showing. He's usually on Collider Video on YouTube. He was there with his wife and sat 2 rows ahead of me. This IMAX showing was in Long Beach, CA. So I assume he lives in the area.
05-28-19, 08:59 PM
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05-28-19, 10:16 PM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Just got back from seeing this. First of all, the new footage is MIND-BLOWING and stunning to see. That said, there is sadly very little of that 70mm footage in the movie. It's just some scenes before launch, some amazing footage of the rockets on the pad and some of people watching the launch in FL (including a really cool celebrity sighting!). Maybe 15 minutes of stuff total, but probably less than that. Also some more stuff after landing, briefly. The vast majority is grainy video footage. Obviously they didn't bring 70- MM film canisters into the lunar capsule, but for God's sake, couldn't they have used those same cameras to shoot the Mission Control stuff?
Has anything ever been attempted like that? Part of me thinks it would be heresy, but is it really much different than dramatic music playing when the Eagle approaches the lunar surface? Or your subwoofer starts to rumble when the rocket lifts off? These are already subtle things added to enhance the drama of the picture.
05-29-19, 09:42 AM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
That’s not a very good idea. The only weakness of this film is the filmmakers’ determination to use only footage of Apollo 11. The 11 crew didn’t shoot that much of themselves going to or from the moon. They also used some kind of early video equipment. What you see in this doc is just about all there is. Many past docs, like For All Mankind, substitute shots from later missions to fill in the holes. Same thing with the moonwalk itself. Apollo 11 spent very little time on the moon, and filmed a limited amount. Later moonwalks were much longer and more compelling. I appreciated this film recusing itself to just Apollo 11 footage. It made me appreciate the “seat of the pants” of it all.
06-06-19, 11:32 AM
#19
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
Saw this last night and thought it was fantastic. For something with such little dialogue, I was glued to the screen.
06-25-19, 06:33 AM
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Re: Apollo 11 (2019, D: Todd Douglas Miller) -- documentary
I finally got around to watching this at home, and I'm guessing it has much more of an impact in IMAX, because I thought it was only so-so (I have a 65" TV, but of course, that's still not very big). Maybe it's because I'm such a huge follower of the space program I'm too familiar with the mission and previously seen footage, but I really felt this movie needed some of the more "traditional" documentary elements, like a narrator or current "talking head" interviews with those involved that are still alive. I also would have liked to have seen more of the news footage from the day - I guess CNN wasn't going to get permission to use stuff from CBS (we got a few voice overs from Walter Cronkite, but that was it).
It's not a bad film - but given all the hype, it came off as just "okay" for me. I doubt I ever watch it again.
It's not a bad film - but given all the hype, it came off as just "okay" for me. I doubt I ever watch it again.
