The Last Man on the Moon

2016 "One man's part in mankind's greatest adventure"
7.4| 1h39m| en
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The 1960s was an extraordinary time for the United States. Unburdened by post-war reparations, Americans were preoccupied with other developments like NASA, the game-changing space programme that put Neil Armstrong on the moon. Yet it was astronauts like Eugene Cernan who paved the uneven, perilous path to lunar exploration. A test pilot who lived to court danger, he was recruited along with 14 other men in a secretive process that saw them become the closest of friends and adversaries. In this intensely competitive environment, Cernan was one of only three men who was sent twice to the moon, with his second trip also being NASA’s final lunar mission. As he looks back at what he loved and lost during the eight years in Houston, an incomparably eventful life emerges into view. Director Mark Craig crafts a quietly epic biography that combines the rare insight of the surviving former astronauts with archival footage and otherworldly moonscapes.

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Reviews

Perry Kate Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.
Roman Sampson One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.
Loui Blair It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
Trey Yancy This is not a film that can be truly, totally appreciated by those who did not have the benefit of growing up in the time that gives this context. This was a time only a few years removed from the day when a Russian submarine commander near Cuba refused a direct order that would have started WWIII. It was the era of Viet Nam and riots, of a musical revolution never seen before or since, and a cultural revolution that reverberates to this day. Those of us who grew up with Mercury through Apollo memorized every technical detail of the program, plus mission objectives, names, backgrounds and everything else. On the way home from Scout camp with the bus radio on we listened to the live broadcast as Apollo 11 landed and when it did, not only did we cheer but every single car on the road and every pedestrian. It was beyond being merely heady. It was a moment in history that will live as long as recorded history exists. Cernan's documentary was not (as some reviewers suggest) an ego trip. As described by one great writer, the story is not about the "I" but about the "eye" - seeing things through Cernan's perspective. Younger generations have never experienced genuine awe. And they have not experienced this awe in the context of the cold war and being drafted right out of high school and being dropped into a rice paddy. When you live in such a situation and then you have something else going on that makes everything - including war - seem infantile, then you have a perspective that shows the Mercury through Apollo days to be among the most important times in all of history. If some find this film boring, it is because they haven't the context to understand genuine awe. Recent generations are very self-focused. The generation of the early space program was focused outward. It is that focus that reveals that which is truly important, which is the entire human species and not just one's circle of friends. I appreciate what Gene Cernan has done here and I'm glad he got to it before his time ran out. Films about Apollo 11 have been done to death. I'm glad that Cernan made a film that focused on the human experience and I am glad that it was his experience that provided the lens through which we could view it.
heleneshaw The 2017 United States Presidential election will be remembered as one of the most controversial in history.Very few saw it coming... the dawn of a completely new era...This film will be an instrumental segue for the new generation... from industrialization to the age of information...It's been inching its way in... first it was ridiculed, silenced with money... and now, the turn in history.I see the historical value of this film and truly appreciate it. I also embrace its excellent portrayal of man's passion to improve the world.Thank you.Helene Shaw (aka Madeleine de Vercheres) Victoria BC CanadaFeb. 26/2007
Chuck Fisher I've been a space junkie since 1968, even applied to be an astronaut--I've seen just about every documentary on the space program and read many books. I was really impressed by the way this documentary was produced. Cernan comes across as a genuine, no-nonsense, sensitive, big- perspective kind of guy. The footage montage is creative, not staid, and it doesn't dominate the documentary. The photography is excellent. I saw this as the best visual story of an astronaut, not just a moon-walker--or even the last moon-walker--that is available right now. Every person under 50 should watch this--especially the youngsters.
tonyhaines-spp I highly recommend this movie for anyone, but if you are a NASA buff you will see footage that is rarely seen. As an avid NASA fan boy from the 60s it's difficult to show me shots I have not seen before. This movie did that well. I appreciate how they mixed the old footage into this modern retrospective. Instead of expanding the old 4:3 footage and exploding pixels they just let it be. The Last Man on the Moon is unique film because of the elements that are not in the movie as well. Not in the movie are the rehashed NASA film angles that we are all kinda done with. Another standard of NASA movies is the heroic main characters and astronauts. Most of the personal stories still known today were products of the NASA press office and Time magazine. This movie avoids those fictional narratives. I loved the way we get to know Gene Cernan the man. Here's a guy with many flaws but he was good enough to fly into space three times. The film makers took their sweet time telling his story from early childhood to now, an 82 year old grandfather. The sound track is excellent! The film uses a perfect mix of original and period music. I was there when Apollo 17 launched from pad 39a in 1972. It was my fourth time watching a Saturn 5 lift off. This one was different however. It was late at night, delayed a few times. When it finally took off the night turned into day, it made a fitting end to the Apollo story.