For All Mankind

Great footage, but the missions are all over the place without really telling us. If you don't have a little knowledge beforhand, like Apollo 13, you're pretty much left in the dark which mission is which and may think it was just 1 mission to the moon (and back obviously). Started to really dawn on me when Apollo 13 had that breathing problem (which was solved in a jiffy in this documentary) and then a crew was going for a moonlanding ( which obviously Appolo 13 never did. But hey when you hear the name Neil Armstrong you are pretty much back on course. Ah okay great i am seeings Apollo 11 and the first moonlanding at the moment : )

Footage: 8.5 Overall Docu : 6.

I saw this film at a very, very young age and I suspect that it is the reason I developed a heavy interest in space exploration. I recently saw this again for the first time in many years since all I had was a vague recollection of it. And after watching many times since then I have no problem saying that this is one of the best documentaries ever made.

One must give the film's director, Al Reinert, at a ton of credit for his work. Who else could have come up with the brilliant notion behind this film? Who would have thought of taking footage from all of the Apollo missions (and a couple of the Gemini missions) and combining them with the words of the men who went where no one had (or has since) gone before? (Apologies for paraphrasing Star Trek) The genius of this film is that it shuns away from traditional documentary styling. Instead of compiling facts on one mission and having a well known actor/actress do the narration, the film lets those who went tell the story. Who else is better qualified? They might not be professional actors, but the astronauts don't need to be. It is the power of the events they describe that is the main reason for their presence. They are a powerful voice in this story.

In many reviews I have read, I have seen complaints about the mixing of footage or the use of footage out of its context (a Gemini reentry used for the TLI burn for example). Yes the mixing is nowhere near subtle and is, thus, blatantly obvious. But it is my feeling that this mixing was necessary. The only way to get across the story of Apollo's achievement to the average person was to mix the footage. Does it really matter in the end? I mean by that this: the film isn't about a single mission to the Moon. No, the power of Apollo lies not in each mission, but in the overall effect of the Apollo program. This film is about the journey of Apollo, the effect in had on the astronauts, and the effect it had on us all.

If there is one element of this film that really stayed with men it was the music. It is among the most beautiful and haunting things you will ever here. Brian Eno does a marvelous job of conveying the mystery and majesty of both space and the Moon. This is one of those scores who really have to hear to believe.

For All Mankind, perhaps better then anything else out there, demonstrates the power of humanity in space. For one to really appreciate this film it needs to be seen on a large screen in surround sound. Only then can one appreciate both the film and the power of the Apollo legacy. This is the first film I've seen that I recommend to everyone. This is a film that is truly "For All Mankind".

Without repeating all the good comments that have been mentioned by earlier reviewers, I will add what is unique for me.

1. When Reinert wonderfully builds up the tension for the liftoff, it is more than a crescendo of power when those Saturn 5 rocket motors blast to life! I've had the film on VHS tape for about 10 years, and I still enjoy knocking the socks off of first time viewers when the surround sound system is allowed give its all as it shakes the house. If there were ice chunks on the outside of my house, they would surely shatter and fall just as they did from the rocket body as it slowly left the pad. UNBELIEVABLE! I once read that the Apollo rocket, if it all exploded at one time, would equal 80% of the Hiroshima atomic explosion in WW2. Imagine sitting atop that 31 story tall monster awaiting your fate on the launchpad.

2. Eno's music- just can't say enough superlatives about this soundtrack. Like good art, there is plenty there to continue to pique your interest for years. He is a gift to all mankind for his work on this soundtrack, but that is just the beginning. He's been doing that high level of work for decades!

GREAT FILM!!!

In a project almost more ambitious than the Apollo program itself, Al Reinert distills six million feet of NASA film footage and over 80 hours of taped interviews into a glorious 90- minute flashback to the ultimate achievement of our time: the manned exploration of another world. The film condenses all ten Apollo moon shots into a single flight, using only the genuine sights, sounds, and impressions experienced by the astronauts themselves along the way, from the tension and exhilaration of lift off to the joy (and inconvenience) of zero gravity, and from the loneliness of deep space to the wonder of stepping foot on an alien world. Seeing the footage for the first time on a big screen can be a revelation; it's a thrilling, vicarious journey across a new threshold in human evolution, providing both an argument for the continued human exploration of the cosmos and a timely reminder of how precious life on our own planet is.

I taped this off British TV in 1989 or 1990, and could never understand why nobody I speak to has ever heard of it! Even real space enthusiasts have not seen or heard of this wonderful film. Even today it remains unavailable on DVD except in the USA (buy an import from Amazon, well worth it!).

Quite simply there is no better way to tell the story of such a unique and special journey than in the words of those who undertook it. Here we have the live radio transmissions between the astronauts and Houston, reminiscences from the astronauts a decade or so after and no interference from any professional actor/narrator. There is footage even the most obsessed space enthusiast will not have seen, especially the 8mm film shot by the astronauts themselves.

This film presents, in a mere 80 minutes, the story of the Apollo missions from pre-launch preparations though the journey, their time on the surface of the moon to the take-off from the moon and safe return to earth. The views are as majestic as any on the earth, all accompanied by soft and appropriately ethereal music.

Why this hidden gem of a film is not constantly being broadcast on a documentary channel or even entertainment stations is totally beyond me - and also beyond those I have shared the DVD with. Seek out this film and watch it. As a friend said to me, "why is it we can walk into any shop and buy row upon row of rubbish and we cannot buy this, which shows a real achievement of mankind".