‘First Man’ (2018) Review:

I had the privilege of seeing an exclusive screening of ‘First Man’ on the 9th of October, and after a few days of thinking about it and analysing it… I believe I am finally ready to share my exact thoughts on it.

One thing I cannot deny is that Chazelle has already made it into my list of favourite directors of our generation. His films are always full of tasteful visuals that never leave my eyes dissatisfied. ‘First Man’ does the exact same thing. The moon landing sequences are just breathe-taking and if you didn’t think twice about, you would think they were actually filmed on the moon. Even some of the shots of inside the Armstrongs household are just perfectly alined and symmetrical. This work is purely admirable and I applaud Chazelles directing of this film.

The performances were also just as convincing. Gosling as Armstrong was something that surprised me but nether-less he absolutely nailed the role (as he always does.) Perfectly displaying the disconnect Armstrong felt from his family, and portrays him in such a way that the audience too feels disconnected from him, which some critics believe is a flaw to this film but I think it is a necessary aspect. Armstrong was not a friendly, warm-hearted male. He was quite cold and distant, further displaying that Goslings portrayal of him was accurate and well-thought. Foy also took my breathe away in a particular scene (I won’t spoil) in which she was just phenomenal and I really admired her performance.

Only one or two things bothered me with the film. It was slow at certain points and I found myself wanting a bit more action to happen at times but this is a film about a more personal journey rather than just a mission to the moon, which is also highly admirable. This may just have been a personal preference. The amount of shakey cam made me feel a bit ill at times and sometimes I craved a still shot but I do understand the motifs behind all of it so I guess it is redeemable.

I highly recommend everyone goes and sees this emotional film about a man that no one ever really knew much about it. With it’s perfect visuals, moving score and terrific performances. ‘First Man’ is set to blast off.