DVD Review: Apollo 11 (documentary)

Apollo 11
directed by Todd Douglas Miller [DVD 629.454 Apo]

This marvelous documentary film was released to theaters earlier in 2019, and is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray just in time for the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11’s mission to the moon in July.

This documentary uses a lot of archival footage which has never been seen before, and was cross-matched with archival audio recordings, to give viewers an opportunity to see and hear elements of the Apollo 11 mission in a way that has never been experienced previously. The film-makers made the decision to not include an omniscient narrative voice, and instead use only the voices and footage as found in the original 1960s footage. In some ways, this leads to a seemingly less-structured method of storytelling, yet at the same time, it introduces an incredible feeling of authenticity and immediacy to what they share with us.

The humanity of the Apollo astronauts shines though, but the incredible spotlight of worldwide attention on them lends them a super-human element as well. But, by following the nuts-and-bolts details of the moon landing mission, viewers can come to a serious appreciation of all the work that went into landing men on the moon for the very first time. Highly recommended!

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the documentaries In the Shadow of the Moon, The Last Man on the Moon or Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon. Also the specialized research microfilm reel – Apollo 11’s Moon Landing.]

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ] | [ official NASA Apollo 11 web page ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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