Walking on the Moon 'Film Review'

[spudicus]

Here Man completed his first explorations of the Moon. December 1972 AD. May the spirit of peace in which we came be reflected in the lives of all mankind.

These words are etched into a Plaque that sits silently on the Lunar Module of Apollo 17, in the southeastern rim of the Mare Serenitatis, in the southwestern Montes Taurus on the surface of the Moon

It has been 33 years since Mankind walked upon the surface of the Moon. Tom Hanks new film ‘Magnificent Desolation’ celebrates that thin slice of history, where Men reached beyond their petty differences and instead reached toward another world.

It is difficult to describe the impact the film had on me last night. The Imax 3D cinema gave a breathtaking vision of what the Apollo missions achieved. The sense of how difficult and dangerous the missions must have been were captured with digital perfection, and the sense of depth and size that only Imax can deliver, gave a truly amazing view of the Moons surface.

The film does lack some fluidity, and in my opinion did not require scenes that show ignorant American children struggling to name their Countries Astronauts, and it is at times, a little bit too sentimental. This is though a minor irritation.

I sat with an open jaw, as the film relived the moment where Houston quizzed two Astronauts David Scott and James Irwin from Apollo 15 on their location. They were then informed they were just a few yards from the edge of Hadley Rille, a 75 mile long 950 feet deep canyon. The film perfectly captures the difficulty in judging distance, and potential lunar hazards, as the two men peer over the edge of an Abyss they just had not seen!

Tom Hanks also gives the film an even more dramatic edge, by taking the audience through a what-if scenario. This involves a Lunar Rover crashing into a crater, stranding its two-man crew a long way from the safety of their Lunar Module, with no communications - save for some frantic hand signals!

I left the Cinema with a feeling of awe and respect, and a hope that one day soon we will once again take those small steps and giant leaps. If you can get to an Imax cinema to watch the film you will not be disappointed.

Spud