Review of First Man (2018) by Bob S — 12 Oct 2018

Saw First Man on opening night in Tampa, It was a late 10:45pm movie, but there were only 15 people in the entire IMAX theatre! The era video was spot on down to the harvest gold refrigerators, dress and speak... the action on launch pad, in capsule and in space was visually & auditorily stunning. But, I found myself hoping Gosling's character (N Armstrong) would show more emotion.. smile or ever look happy. I didn't know he lost a daughter at such a young age and gave him a wide range for his sadness.

And then being an introverted engineer surrounded by rooms full of them in that environment I can accept.. but after 2+ hours of him being morose and looking stern, I couldn't relate to him.. and it feel a little slow. (The preview shows EVERY SMILE in the movie).

This new trend of lowering audio dialog to near discernable volume is getting horrible. While I MAY just need hearing aids in the next few years.. if a speaking character is soft-spoken and there's anything going in in the background, it will get washed out. Keep in mind there were 15-20 people in an IMAX theater.. I should have heard a pin drop.

(Oh.. AMC fixed hearing everything.. as Aldrin & Armstrong were going to walk on the moons surface.. a AMC employee had to retrieve an aluminum ladder from behind the screen clanking to get it out, only to walk the right aisle clanking as they carried it back out to the lobby totally distracting from the moment).

The movie was a 6.5/10 for me... but I'm over the sullen and moroose earthbound for 2+ hours. Show the grandeur and immenseness of space, the rockets, the action.. but all those wide angle shots never connected with the characters at a distance.