Apollo 11

I watched and taped this movie when the Family Channel originally ran it in 1996. They (the Family Channel) promoted it pretty heavily and had trivia questions during the commercial breaks. It was an event geared for family viewing, something the Family Channel has lost site of lately. I recently viewed my tape to see how I would react to it almost 10 years after its release. My opinion has not changed; It is an enjoyable movie but it is what one would expect from a made for TV movie. I don't think the makers of this film can deny that they were cashing in on the waves created in the wake of the successful Apollo 13 which was released the previous year (1995). There was some good information conveyed in the movie, however, it did borrow a number of snippets from Apollo 13 - the wrist watch being put on over the astronaut's space suit, the close up of the traction belt on the tractor moving the rocket to the launch pad (almost the exact same shots used in Apollo 13) and Gene Kranz stating "Work the problem..." The actor who played Gene Kranz seemed to be trying harder to be Ed Harris than Gene Kranz. I like the scenes that showed the astronauts at home with their wives/families before the flight. I felt they were done very well and added some good contrast to the goings-on at NASA. I also found one scene somewhat out of place - Micheal Collins makes a comment which alludes to receiving a T-shirt that says "My husband went to moon and all I got was a lousy..." I doubt that saying was around in 1969. Despite these factors, I would definitely recommend this film as it is well made and informative. It is also a great story about American triumph, something badly needed in a post-9/11 world. I will point out that I too agree - the song at the end is beautiful.

If anybody knows who sings this song please tell me! It's a choir instrumental piano song with lyrics in Latin or greek, whatever. It consists of four words sounding like : "Hope sonnen forte patriares" The soundtrack listing of imdb says it could be (or else the song isn't listed there) "No name blues" by The Mersh Bros. Band, written by Phil Marshall. There's no soundtrack CD or any hint of the performers nor the writer on the internet! Please write to me, if you know something about this song!

I liked this film, I liked the way it was shot - it's not that clear, but when the original footage is shown it all blends in well. there's not much footage with models/cgi and that is good, the film is not trying to beat 'Apollo 13' and I guess it was shot on a lower budget. The astronaut's wives are well portrayed, as are the crew them selves. It gives another slant to the Apollo 11 story. If you have seen Tom Hank's from 'Earth to the Moon', it is good to compare them. The music is good if you like 1960's music and I agree with the previous reviewer the end music is very good, it makes it it's own-film, it is not trying to be/beat 'Apollo 13' or 'Marroned' for that. I for one would add this to my collection of DVD's. Worth watching if you are a 'Space Fan'. (It was shown on Hallmark Channel 190 in the UK on 01:01:2005)

The movie is very well done with a combination of period music as well as integrated actual footage. It shows the interactions of the entire crew, astronauts and ground crew and family in a nicely done way. You MUST see it. I did record the movie at the time it aired on VHS tape. Tho many do not know this, it actually was created on a video tape which was not available to the general public. I have a copy of it. It is marked NOT FOR SALE FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY - FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. I quit breathing when it was found fearing my poor VHS copy would be all that ever existed of it. I search but have never found a DVD of it. I intend to make my own. You really should see it. The music was matched very nicely to each segment. And the closing music by Alvin Lee and Ten Years After couldn't have been more appropriate. Watch this one with the whole family so they can appreciate one of the major milestones of human history as man first set foot on the moon. As far as I'm concerned, it is the best movie of 1996.

I watched this movie when it first came out. I was very pleasantly surprised by the movie and thought it was quite excellent ! The casting was well done and the characters were totally believable. There was a fantastic blend of period music and actual film footage inter spliced. You could not help but be riveted to your chair feeling just like it was happening the first time. But then, I *did* see it happen the first time so that drove the movie home even more. The documentaries on the event are great, but this movie flows to more of the human side of how it all came together. Fascinating, entertaining, factual and a good addition to your collection. Enjoy !