Tanya’s Score: Good*
Rated: PG
Starring: the Queen of England, the kid from Witness, Ryan Gosling
Plot: A close look at Neil Armstrong (Gosling) and his life events leading up to the historic moment of being the first man to walk on the moon.
Tanya’s Verdict: I liked that this movie chose to show the story via snippets of pivotal moments Armstrong experienced in both his personal life and career (often overlapping) rather than in typical movie plot fashion. The filming as well as the music set a strong tone – and the movie’s momentum was such that if you weren’t clear on the dates and details of specific events already – then you followed the plot’s long and winding path uncertain as to what would be revealed. Also Claire Foy as Armstrong’s long-suffering wife is one of the movie’s brightest spots. My biggest complaint was it ran a bit long – several times I drifted away from the movie’s story to focus on my weekly grocery list. While my girls found it boring (they did enjoy the scenes of Armstrong’s family life especially when his children misbehaved), my 8-year-old son enjoyed the entire film.
*Four score descriptions: Sh**; Okay; Good; Great