Apollo 11 is a documentary made in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of the titular first mission that successfully placed human beings on the Moon. Similar to Maria By Callas, it only uses footage shot during that period without any talking heads expounding retroactively on the period, but unlike that movie, it is actually good. The documentary feels as if someone is steering the ship, not just putting the footage in chronological order then resting on the laurels of its subject.
For Apollo 11 to get made, various people had to catalogue nine days worth of audio and video footage, increase and preserve the quality of the original footage, transfer it from analog to digital, sync the audio with the video and finally select what to use to make the ninety three minute documentary. Then when footage wasn’t available, simple graphics similar to the kind of maps that you see during flights to show the progress of an ongoing trip, but more streamlined and basic, are used to reflect the module’s relationship to Earth and the Moon.
Even though Apollo 11 has a built in narrative, Todd Douglas Miller’s editing choices give it a momentum and humanity that was simply missing in Maria By Callas. The movie has a sense of balance, rhythm and symmetry. It starts and ends with the massive, technical scope of the project then swiftly intercuts personal photographs with professional scenes to create a psychological insight into the astronauts’ experience, which is not an instinctual choice for a movie limited to a nine-day period about a specific mission. It is a healthy reminder to audiences that there is so much more leading up to what was recorded at that moment, and all that we’re seeing is the surface, not the interior lives of all the people that made up these moments. It imbues every moment with a fulfilled emotional potential even when it does not literally depict them.
At the bookends of the movie, it toggles between the backstage performance, and the people lined up to watch the show. There is an electrifying feeling that subsides into a vaguely nervous, but subdued professional one during the middle once the only connection between people and the astronauts becomes audio. It goes from expansive to intimate, from controlled chaos to still wonder. The appearance of a counter that denotes the time and altitude also acts as a gauge for increased anticipation over what comes next even though we know what happened.
Matt Morton’s soundtrack is impressively majestic and electrifying without being overbearing or intrusive. Most importantly, the soundtrack isn’t condescending and constantly urging its audience how to feel. The music accompanies the footage beautifully. The audio shows how people try to use words to either participate in an experience that is literally impossible for him to partake in or convey the monumental importance of the event in history, but Miller also wisely shows how quotidian base human scandal invades the lofty ambitions of man. If you end up watching this film at home, I would watch First Man the day before, then Apollo 11 and counter intuitively closely follow it up with Chappaquiddick to get the full spectrum of humanity’s capabilities in a single day. Then if time permits, watch Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House and The Post to see if the honor given to station sticks in your throat with perspective. Miller has a judicial sense of historicity that provides context without diluting his focus or editorializing too much though the final speech shows whom his heart favors.
The impression of the sea of humanity behind the scenes is largely homogenous even in terms of appearance except for Bruce McCandless II who stands out in his various turtlenecks instead of the usual informal NASA uniform of white shirt and tie. He becomes more memorable than the astronauts who are largely unseen during the majority of the film. Without the subtitles stating which shift team we were watching—shifts are indicated by color codes, it would be a sea of humanity.
I wasn’t planning to see Apollo 11 in theaters, but it was playing nearby so I couldn’t resist. I’m not especially interested in the subject matter, but it was amazing marketing to release it after First Man when potential viewers would be primed to find out the real story. Naturally both movies were released to coincide with the anniversary, but documentaries generally get less distribution in theaters regardless of quality than movies so this order of release does matter.
I went in with no expectations. Seeing it on the big screen was a privilege, but I do miss the subtitles that come with home viewing. In spite of the audio and visual footage being shockingly crisp and vibrant, it is still muffled voices communicated over communication systems. For me, the subtitles insure that I’m not just allowing the words and images to float over me as I get lost in the footage and guarantees that I’m not mishearing what is being said. Another benefit of home viewing is that if you get sleepy, you can pause the movie, surrender then resume watching your movie refreshed. Even though it is thrilling to see man venture into the unknown, in the interest of full transparency, I did not get enough sleep the night before I saw the movie, and during the middle, I started to struggle against falling asleep. The moon may be beautiful, but it is hard to stay awake when your perspective is a capsule window even if it is showing flames.
Without the big screen, you can’t appreciate how vibrant the images are, particularly the final scenes on Earth as people wait on a naval carrier to retrieve the astronauts as they hurtle back to Earth. I suppose if you have a large enough screen and an impressive surround system, you can get the same experience, but I highly doubt it. First Man more convincingly provides a sense of vicarious danger and thrill, but Apollo 11 gives a more comprehensive and authentic take by virtue of the footage being contemporary with the events unfolding.
If you are a 1960s American history buff or a NASA nerd, then Apollo 11 is must see documentary otherwise you can skip it. It is the perfect family friendly outing: educational and adventurous with nothing prurient except a blink and you could miss it allusion to Chappaquiddick. If you don’t already know about the incident, you’ll be clueless. Regardless of the value to individual viewers, like They Shall Not Grow Old, the simple process of preparing and making Apollo 11 has already contributed a timeless value to history that would not be possible if not for the efforts of the filmmakers and NASA to unearth and preserve the media that made this film possible.
