|  |
| Customer Reviews: | | Average Customer Review:
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
 Evokes a sense of pride and wonder .... Sep 01, 2008
"Awesome" and "awe inspiring" have become hackneyed clichés, but they truly apply in the case of this riveting documentary. "In the Shadow of the Moon" chronicles the Apollo space program, which audaciously planned to land a man on the moon within a 7-8 year time frame. We now all know they succeeded but it is easy to forget or take for granted the enormity - and dangers - of the task set before us. America galvanized behind John F. Kennedy's goal to land a man on the moon before the end of the 1960's decade.
The film is a blend of "talking heads" from various ex-astronauts, now clearly in the twilight of their lives, and documentary footage from the 1960's. As the Eagle spacecraft lands in July 1969 and Neal Armstrong sets foot on the lunar surface, it's hard not to tear up in pride, in pride for what America was able to accomplish. You see how the entire world rejoiced in this triumph and identified with it, hearkening to time when it seemed that everyone else in the world did not hate or resent Americans.
Another undercurrent is the spiritual epiphany that the moon trips induced in many of the astronauts. The view of the bejeweled earth from outer space gave some of them a new sense of wonder, awe, belief in God and a vision of stewardship over our planet.
A gaping omission is the absence of any comments from Neal Armstrong, who apparently is a committed recluse.
The notion of watching a documentary about the Apollo Space program may sounds as dull as reading transcripts of the Federal Reserve Board, but I assure you, you will NEVER be bored!
They were the best of times, they were the worst of times! Sep 01, 2008
This is an incredible documentary about true American heroes, a time when we dreamed, and a true story about going to the moon simply because we believed we could do it. Well written, directed and produced this movie has amazing footage that tickles the imagination. The backdrop for this drama was the cold war, Vietnam and a country going through major growing pains. The US space program was frequently the one bright unwavering beacon of hope through the turbulent 60s and early 70s.
In all the time that we have been on the earth with over 6 billion alive today and many more billion who have lived, we have only put 12 humans on another world. It gives goose bumps to think about what these men have seen and done.
I have met very fortunate to meet several of these men in person. Each one is different and yet they all share great desires, passions and dreams. Their commitment to excellence is unquestionable. Today, excellence still exists, but it isn't respected like it was then. We can learn much from this movie and these amazing human beings.
The Re-Discovery of Common Sense: A Guide to: The Lost Art of Critical Thinking
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Superb Documentary of One of Mankind's Best Moments Aug 02, 2008
"In the Shadow of the Moon" is probably the best documentary of the Apollo program I've seen in a long time, perhaps ever. The only other film that rivals it is the Discovery Channel's "When We Left Earth." That particular film covers the entire Mercury-Gemini-Apollo era as well as the space shuttle era, however. "In the Shadow of the Moon" displays terrifically digitized NASA films--more brilliant than I've seen before--as well as commentary from the aging veteran astronauts who flew the missions to the moon. Curiously missing, however, is the reclusive Neil Armstrong (who appears in "When We Left Earth"). It's no big deal, though, as the others take up the slack. Michael Collins, Buzz Aldrin, and Alan Bean are particularly entertaining. Jim Lovell, Gene Cernan, Edgar Mitchell, Dave Scott, John Young, Harrison Schmitt, and Charlie Duke (who, as Apollo 11's capcom, offers valuable insight into that mission) round out this brilliant crew of space veterans. I bought the DVD without having seen the film at the theaters, and I was not disappointed. You won't be either. Five stars.
In The Shadow of the Moon Jul 26, 2008
This documentary was great. Ron Howard has done it again detailing the Space race program while at the same time showing the astronauts side of what they saw and experienced in their travels to the Moon and how they were forever changed because of it.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
In the Shadow of the Moon Jul 25, 2008
While channel surfing on TV I caught this CD on a station I never watch.
I was riveted! I lived through America's rush to the moon, even getting up to watch the lift-offs of every flight on Pacific time. All of the emotions of being there is brought home in these interviews with the men who made the flights. I immediately ordered 3 copies of the film for my grandsons because I've never seen anything that better portrays the drama of those heart-stopping mornings so many years ago. It is beautifully done and the pleasure of listening to those true heros is not be be missed.
|
| | |
|
|
