The Last Man on the Moon

I must say, I did learn a lot about the Apollo programme. I didn't find it sleep inducing as another reviewer here said. It was a solid documentary.

The direction, the editing, the humanity that comes thru is what is so riveting. The rare film footage, the honesty and you can obviously watch it from a historical angle as well. I appreciate this film and what it must have taken to put this together.

It is emotional in parts and so interesting looking at the history of the space program. I applaud all the people it took to make a doc. Like this.

Like entertainers the space men if you will were not able to be there for their families sometimes. I think a lot of folks in the entertainment industry will relate to this part of the story.

Good cowboys do get to ride off into the sunset sometimes.

Sure enough Eugene Cernan did a very unique thing...but mainly for himself: Let's be honest: He didn't exactly make headlines the way Armstrong did. Nor did he invent a cure to cancer. Of course space travel has it's romantic side and during 'Last Man on the Moon' there's plenty of impressive footage from the Apollo program (and some less impressive home video's from Cernan's personal collection with endless narration). This documentary however claims to be centered around Cernan, and I expected the same character study as the one I once saw of Neill Armstrong, a recluse who simply couldn't cope with the fame and a very interesting man. Cernan however seemed to have embraced fame a bit too eagerly thus loosing himself in his ego: He still travels across the globe to tell his story to anyone who cares and in my case: to someone who stopped caring halfway the documentary. There was so much 'hero talk' by Cernan himself it became a bit annoying. That's when I just wanted to watch more impressive NASA footage. Alas, I was treated to more Cernan talking and less Cernan 'moonwalking'. Just watch any NASA sponsored IMAX 3D docu and you'll be way more impressed.

It seems to me that nowadays we are no longer as attuned to, or turned on by Space Exploration as generations were in times past. It's probably not too much of an exaggeration to say it could be seen by many as 'old hat'. The reasons for this, I speculate, may be variously due to the Un-manned, technically advanced nature of many of today's missions (which has removed the key human interest element from the story) as well as our obsession with matters more material or tangible.

This feature length documentary which I watched today was shown as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. It harks back to the pioneering age when Space Exploration was front and centre in the public's consciousness and for Americans it's every success was regarded as a source of intense National pride in their Cold-war Space-Race against the Soviet Union. Astronauts were routinely and quite rightly feted as All-American heroes. Here was a time when the various Apollo missions were a Prime-time ratings winner, transfixing an anxious TV-watching public who tuned in on a daily basis for the latest updates knowing as they did the inherent danger involved.

I came to this as a casually interested viewer with, at best a passable knowledge of the history of Space Exploration. Without a doubt my interest has now been piqued. It's a thoroughly enjoyable documentary which deserves to be shown (and seen) on the large screen. Gene Cernan is the hero and focus of this story; he being the last of the 12 men to set foot on the moon. However Gene or any of the other players are not presented as mere cardboard heroes; instead the very real man as well as Astronaut is revealed- there is no excess light shown on Gene the astronaut to the exclusion of Gene the man, husband and Father. For instance sadness and regret at being away from his daughter for extended periods are juxtaposed with the euphoria of being one of the lucky few to know what it really feels like to get your space-boots covered in moondust.

The fact that Gene is now in his 80's as are most of the other Astronauts featured makes it a timely production and it also lends a poignancy and a gravitas to it. Gene comes across as a proud but very grounded man capable of making telling insights and being able to reflect meaningfully on his achievements without ever wearing them haughtily. The contributions from former fellow Astronauts, Mission control commanders and family members by turn combine to create a full and rounded picture of the man. The Last Man on the Moon is very deftly paced and well edited. Its shot through with the most amazing and varied archive footage including everything from amateur home-movies to NASA archived material. When viewed through the prism of today's super-advanced technological times there's a flying-by-the-seat-of-their-pants feel to much of the Mission control and Space footage which I found fascinating. There's a great swinging-sixties soundtrack to boot.

Definitely recommended. One final thought; does anyone else think that Gene Cernan is a ringer for Clint Eastwood?

I had the privilege of seeing this at its Premiere in the UK at Shefields DocFest last Summer.

Being a child of the Apollo Space Program and witnessing the step by step progress on Mans conquest of the Moon I become easily emotional these days to any footage of that magical era.

This Documentary is a well crafted piece of work and I concur with the sentiment of the previous viewer, so I won't say much more other than enjoyment is guaranteed.

What really sealed it for me on the day I viewed it was that at the end of the screening Gene Cernan was ushered in from the back of the Auditorium to a standing ovation, and I at last got to meet a real genuine Space Cowboy after all these decades.

It is mind bogglingly what these guys achieved and this film should be shown to all kids in Schools in a bid to inspire and educate them as to what can be achieved if one has the will to do it.