First Man Review

Doesn’t quite reach infinity and beyond.

Coming into First Man I had high expectations. Damien Chazelle has directed two of my favourite two films of the decade if not of all time. In Whiplash and La La Land Chazelle make music in films matter again. Whiplash may not be a musical but the way it manages to use music as a weapon in scenes that are tenser and rewards you more than any shoot out ever will. La La Land may be my favourite film of all time. Its not only a love letter to classic Hollywood and musicals but it’s a film that whether its my 1^st time watching or my 50^th manages to make me sob with joy and happiness. So, with his third big studio release Chazelle has turned away his attention from music and has put it onto space. With Gosling, my favourite actor in the world, reuniting with the director to tackle Neil Armstrong’s journey to the moon does Chazelle manage to achieve a feat seldom if ever seen achievements in Hollywood and manage to make his first 3 films in a row Classics?

First man tells the story of Neil Armstrong’s mission to become the first man on the moon and the effect that is has on his marriage to Janet Armstrong. It pains me to say this, but this is a project which never quite reaches the stars. Let’s just get the big negative out of the way. The films plot may be tackling the biggest human achievement of all time but its very boring.  The film when on earth in for the most part just a series of conversations that fire out numbers which fires out statistic and facts that the audience has no reason to care for. The space scenes are beautiful (which ill get to later) but whenever the film is in the planning stages it is tedious.  It’s of no faults to the actors who all give it their best shot but there’s just no real entertainment in much of the writing and the dialogue that comes with it.  I only discovered what I think the reason for the blandness of the human’s interactions in the film may have been. Unlike his last two projects Chazelle didn’t write first man. Josh singer is the man who wrote the script. Instead of writing a compelling hard-hitting script that entices us into a true story like he did with Spotlight, the writer has instead written a script with drawn out lifeless conversations that bore the audience in line with his script for the already forgotten The Post. There’s nothing wrong with films based closely to true stories but when it’s this boring it’s not fun.

The performances in First Man are much better than the actual script. Neil Armstrong is a historically straight man which doesn’t give us the most compelling character, but Gosling makes it work. Gosling makes Armstrong almost robotic in his mannerisms and tone of voice, but it makes for rewarding scenes when he escapes his emotionless shell. The subplot of Armstrong’s grievances is what makes First Man stand out. The microscope it points on grief is where I related to the film. Even though the film takes place over roughly 10 years an event from the first 10 minutes stays with Armstrong until the final 10 minutes. Its in these moments where we feel that the lead is a human where it makes up for how cold Armstrong for most of the film. Claire Foy is the heart and soul of First Man. The English actress’s stock is rising quickly, and this is her standout performance. Janet Armstrong is the films biggest hero. Janet manages to run the family while Neil is on bis missions with Foy showing great passion, fear and anger regarding both her family life and the space mission. Foy is the stand out from everyone involved and a shoe in for an Oscar nomination. The supporting cast is disappointingly wasted for the most part. Jason Clarke and Kyle Chandler are normally both reliable, but their characters are too dull to leave a lasting impression. Corey Stoll fairs better as Buzz Aldrin who everyone hates in the film, but it makes for the films only humorous scenes. First Man has an abundance of acting talent involved but when playing one dimensional character it’s hard to ignite much passion.

The best thing about First Man without a doubt is the direction and special effects. The space scenes are spectacular. Anytime the film catapults into a space it’s so immersive that I felt more like an astronaut than any other film has ever made me feel. Chazelle makes a lot of bold choices once he puts his characters into space which I praise him for. The use of shaky cam in sci-fi is often used poorly to try and make the ship movement intense, it ends up just shaking the camera slightly from left to right. In First Man when the rockets soar upwards or hurtle the camera shakes ferociously in every direction to the point where you can’t make out what’s on screen. This made me feel as if I was in danger with the characters anytime something bad happen. The score of the film isn’t as bold as his previous films but Chazelle once again uses music to his aid. One song titled The Landing captures made me well up in the cinema. Justin Hurwitz is the best composer in the game and this soundtrack even though not as bombastic as some of his other is still magnificent. Chazelle and Hurwitz are a deadly duo in Hollywood and I wish they made a film that was less of a documentary and focused on making a space opera.

Overall First Man although a spectacular directorial and visual achievement, its narrative is too weak to make this another classic for Chazelle. Don’t get me wrong this is one of the better films of the year but as a Chazelle superfan I can’t help but feel a little disheartened. Gosling too is my acting idol but when you’re playing a one-dimensional character there is only so much that you can do. This plays the based on a true story card close to its chest I’ll give it that. First Man is an astonishing visual feat that you need to see in Imax to truly experience the grand scope and scale of the film. However as for replay-ability this is the first project by Chazelle that I won’t be revisiting countless times for repeat viewings and that breaks my heart.

Liam’s Summary of First Man.

Best Moment: The moon sequences are among the best scenes of film this year

Worst Moment: You can really feel the 2 and half hour runtime.

Best Character: Buzz Kill Aldrin

Worst Character: Maths. The Martian made them cool again, First Man hurts its new-found reputation.

Overall Rating: 3.5/5