"All Systems Go!"
by Scott Mantz

"In the Shadow of the Moon"
Directed by David Sington

Star Trekkers! Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin bask in the glow of their success in "In the Shadow of the Moon"

Acquired at this year's Sundance Film Festival, “In the Shadow of the Moon” is a fascinating, surprisingly funny and extremely moving new documentary about the Apollo space program that really does have the right stuff.  By combining brand new interviews with the surviving astronauts with never-before-seen footage from the NASA archives, director David Sington brings a fresh, heartfelt and awe-inspiring perspective to mankind's most daring voyage into the final frontier.

In 1961, within weeks of Alan Shepard's 15-minute suborbital flight, President John F. Kennedy challenged the nation with a seemingly impossible task: to land a man on the moon before the decade was out.  In July of 1969 -- just 5 months shy of Kennedy's deadline -- Apollo 11 touched down on the lunar surface, and Neil Armstrong took his one giant leap for mankind.  Mission accomplished, not just for the United States, but for the entire world.

The voyages of the Apollo astronauts that took place between 1968 and 1972 have already been well documented, thanks to excellent books (“A Man on the Moon”), superior documentaries (“For All Mankind”) and amazing Hollywood productions (“Apollo 13,” “From the Earth to the Moon”).  But what makes “In the Shadow of the Moon” such essential viewing is the human perspective provided by the 10 interviewed astronauts on their amazing technological achievement.

And not only are their stories witty, nostalgic and bittersweet, but many of them are told here for the first time.  Armstrong may have been the first man to walk on the moon, but who knew that his Apollo 11 co-pilot, Buzz Aldrin, was the first to actually relieve himself on the moon?  And in the event that a technical glitch prevented them from climbing back into lunar orbit to rendezvous with Michael Collins, President Nixon had a speech already prepared about their brave sacrifice -- portions of which are read here by Collins.

Sadly, the one voice missing here is Armstrong's.  That's too bad, since it would have been nice to have all three Apollo 11 astronauts on the record about their amazing mission.  But the rest of the star voyagers provide plenty of interesting anecdotes, particularly when they look back on the political and social upheaval that helped define the 60s.  Even more moving are the recollections of Charlie Duke (Apollo 16), Edgar Mitchell (Apollo 14) and Dave Scott (Apollo 9 & 15), each of whom experienced a spiritual awakening upon their return to earth.

But even after four decades, the archival footage continues to be impressive.  Take the thunderous sound of the mighty Saturn V rocket during liftoff; the unforgettable image of the earth rising from behind the moon; the dramatic descent of the Eagle onto the dusty lunar surface; the ghostly images of mankind's first steps on another heavenly body.  It's no wonder that the world was truly united -- albeit briefly -- by this incredible accomplishment.  Too bad it didn't stay that way, and it kind of makes you wonder what it would take for something like that to happen again.

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