Gagarine: First in Space

Good biopic.

The story of Yuri Gagarin, the first person in space. Told by concentrating on his historic flight, interspersed with flashbacks to his youth, Air Force training, cosmonaut training, his relationships and family life.

Very well made. The special effects for Gagarin's journey into space and back are superb. The story around the flight is also well told - the director creates genuine tension regarding his safety, even before he goes into space. As you can imagine there would have been - nobody had done it before, and the technology was fairly primitive.

The personal side is kind of schmaltzy though. There are also some other scenes that don't seem to add much to the movie.

A good story on a very brave man.

Is it propaganda? Yes in the same way as The Right Stuff or Apollo 13 are propaganda but this does not detract from the massive technical achievement of the Gagarin's flight.

At that moment the USSR was vastly in advance of US in space technology.

This would change but nothing can change the events of April 1961.

The film is very well made with breathtaking and realistic special effects and fine acting especially by Yaroslav Zhalnin... his Gagarin is intense intelligent and determined.

I imagine he an Neil Armstrong were cut form similar cloth.

Overall this film is a fine drama not afraid to discuss the political games in play.

Worth a view especially for anyone interested in space and as a antidote to the endless mindless CGI fueled science fiction we see in our cinemas.

than kind of movie who use the life of a man for describe the force of an idea. honest, useful, simple. a film who reminds an event. and recreate a way. without be great, it is perfect choice for discover the roots of a legend.clear, precise, poetic. the images from the Gagarin's past, the choice for mission, the faith and the generosity as ingredients of the entire story, the dialogs and the science for use in right manner the measure are the virtues of movie. and, sure, Yaroslav Zhalnin as Gagarin who maintains the colors for Charming Prince but, in same measure, suggest the heroism as result of a not easy experiences. a good film. a beautiful one. first, for its honest manner to present one of the great moments from the XX century.

The move into space is one of mankind's greatest achievements in the 20th century and this biopic is a worthy addition to the more commonly found fare us in the west are exposed to.

In a way this could be seen as the Russian equivalent of the excellent 1983 Hollywood film 'The Right Stuff'. It celebrates the putting of the first man into space, Yuri Gagarin of course. The film is told in a way that details his famous flight in 1961 with flashbacks to key points in his life, his childhood, his romance with his soon to be wife, his joining the Soviet Air Force and the trials and tribulations of the journey that resulted in him eventually making history.

As the film is less than two hours long it does have a feel of a carefully put together and slightly hurried celebration of an authentic Soviet hero. Gagarin is made out to be the nicest man in the world who was a model poster boy for the Soviets, and it does gloss over his life and stops conveniently before his faults as a human being (particularly his later alcoholism) became apparent. However that is my only grumble because this is a meticulously well done film with top rate effects and beautifully filmed. Yes it has a certain propaganda value (as do a great many American films on similar lines) that a cynic might try and pull apart. The re-enactments of the Soviet people celebrating his achievement do have a slight cheese factor when viewed from a modern perspective, but these are minor criticisms as the film is not intended to be a warts and all look at Major Gagarin's life, but a celebration of what he achieved and the fearlessness of a man who knew that to make history he had to knowingly take risks, with a brief explanation at the end of his life beyond his famous flight and his tragic death at the age of just 34.

The film explores the tale of Yuri Gagarin, the legendary first man in space, who won the space race for the Soviet Union. The viewer is presented with a recap of that memorable day when humanity finally reached the final frontier, with a multitude of flashbacks to Yuri's youth and childhood.

We see Yuri's humble beginnings and his journey through life and the events that shaped him into the man who would become the greatest space explorer in the history of mankind.

The actors do a magnificent job of capturing the raw emotion of that day and present us with a story of all the people responsible for the first flight into space. Particular regard is to be had for Yaroslav Zhalnin who does a stellar job portraying the man himself.

For any fan of film or space exploration.

10/10