Alicia I love this movie so much

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

SeeQuant Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Trey Yancy This is not a film that can be truly, totally appreciated by those who did not have the benefit of growing up in the time that gives this context. This was a time only a few years removed from the day when a Russian submarine commander near Cuba refused a direct order that would have started WWIII. It was the era of Viet Nam and riots, of a musical revolution never seen before or since, and a cultural revolution that reverberates to this day. Those of us who grew up with Mercury through Apollo memorized every technical detail of the program, plus mission objectives, names, backgrounds and everything else. On the way home from Scout camp with the bus radio on we listened to the live broadcast as Apollo 11 landed and when it did, not only did we cheer but every single car on the road and every pedestrian. It was beyond being merely heady. It was a moment in history that will live as long as recorded history exists. Cernan's documentary was not (as some reviewers suggest) an ego trip. As described by one great writer, the story is not about the "I" but about the "eye" - seeing things through Cernan's perspective. Younger generations have never experienced genuine awe. And they have not experienced this awe in the context of the cold war and being drafted right out of high school and being dropped into a rice paddy. When you live in such a situation and then you have something else going on that makes everything - including war - seem infantile, then you have a perspective that shows the Mercury through Apollo days to be among the most important times in all of history. If some find this film boring, it is because they haven't the context to understand genuine awe. Recent generations are very self-focused. The generation of the early space program was focused outward. It is that focus that reveals that which is truly important, which is the entire human species and not just one's circle of friends. I appreciate what Gene Cernan has done here and I'm glad he got to it before his time ran out. Films about Apollo 11 have been done to death. I'm glad that Cernan made a film that focused on the human experience and I am glad that it was his experience that provided the lens through which we could view it.

MartinHafer I am interested in learning about the astronauts and the Apollo program, so I enjoyed this film. However, I must also admit that the film is incredibly somber and slow....much more than it should have been considering the subject matter. The music sure didn't help, as it was REALLY moody and a bit depressing.The film is a biography of Eugene Cernan...the last astronaut to be on the moon. But the story really doesn't talk much about Cernan's life up until he joined NASA. The story then follows him on his Gemini and two Apollo missions and then talks about his life since. This story really benefits from having Cernan involved and narrating his life. I saw a similar sort of film about Neil Armstrong lately...but it was made after his death and didn't have this intimacy you have in "The Last Man on the Moon". Overall, well worth seeing....just drink a couple cups of coffee first so you stay awake!!

mikerosslaw One of the big reasons that NASA got their funding cut is that they never took full advantage of their own exclusive access to stunning space visuals to engage the American public, and keep them engaged. Sadly, like most inferior documentaries, "The Last Man on the Moon" relies far much too much on "talking heads," and it contains only a miserly few minutes of actual footage of Moon or even actual space exploration. I couldn't stand any more close-ups of old guys reminiscing about the good old days. I wanted to see more action footage of what they astronauts did, not hear about it. Also, the mawkish, nauseating sentimentality of pic forced me to turn it off fifteen minutes before it was over. MEMO TO THE PRODUCERS: HELLO?! IT'S A MOTION PICTURE! DON'T JUST TELL US. SHOW US!**You turned what could have been a spectacular visual odyssey into a saccharine soap opera. I couldn't care less what became of Mr. Cernan's marriage. I know that the astronauts were heroic, but you deprived us all of much of the priceless visual footage available showing exactly what made them heroes. You failed to exploit what must be an untapped veritable treasure chest of unseen space travel footage at NASA, and relied instead on the cliché of talking heads for filler. Boring.NASA has always been clueless about the value of providing comprehensive visuals to the public. We the public want to see NASA's stellar accomplishments. Had they understood the political and economic realities of governmental funding, NASA from the get-go would have created an entire division devoted exclusively to producing space exploration films for schools, TV, theaters, and yes, even for Congress, using breathtaking space exploration footage. This would have kept the program literally in the public eye with spectacular visuals of our nation's bold adventures, and it would doubtless have excited public support and fully justified with nonverbal eloquence the need for space exploration. Most people don't understand or care about tech-talk, but they fully appreciate breathtaking photos and true adventure motion pictures. NASA had a monopoly on the space exploration genre, but sat on the images instead of sharing them, say, in creating an ongoing series visually chronicling the heroic exploits of our space programs. No documentary has never have been successful relying on talking heads. It's a lazy, artless way to pad a treatment of an otherwise interesting and film-worthy idea. Walt Disney understood this and executed his timeless visual masterpieces in his marvelous "Disneyland" TV nature documentaries and theater productions as far back as the 1950s! Walt didn't lecture us; he showed us in stunning 35mm color motion pictures. You know, like NASA should have been dong for decades.In short, producers, YOU FAILED TO MAKE SPACE TRAVEL ITSELF THE STAR. Cosmically disappointing, and infinitely boring and overripe.**For an example of what I'm writing about, see my short nature documentary "The Underwater Wildlife of Big Sur" that I personally shot and produced at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtN0QCi2G2M

crocolm It seems to me that nowadays we are no longer as attuned to, or turned on by Space Exploration as generations were in times past. It's probably not too much of an exaggeration to say it could be seen by many as 'old hat'. The reasons for this, I speculate, may be variously due to the Un-manned, technically advanced nature of many of today's missions (which has removed the key human interest element from the story) as well as our obsession with matters more material or tangible. This feature length documentary which I watched today was shown as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. It harks back to the pioneering age when Space Exploration was front and centre in the public's consciousness and for Americans it's every success was regarded as a source of intense National pride in their Cold-war Space-Race against the Soviet Union. Astronauts were routinely and quite rightly feted as All-American heroes. Here was a time when the various Apollo missions were a Prime-time ratings winner, transfixing an anxious TV-watching public who tuned in on a daily basis for the latest updates knowing as they did the inherent danger involved.I came to this as a casually interested viewer with, at best a passable knowledge of the history of Space Exploration. Without a doubt my interest has now been piqued. It's a thoroughly enjoyable documentary which deserves to be shown (and seen) on the large screen. Gene Cernan is the hero and focus of this story; he being the last of the 12 men to set foot on the moon. However Gene or any of the other players are not presented as mere cardboard heroes; instead the very real man as well as Astronaut is revealed- there is no excess light shown on Gene the astronaut to the exclusion of Gene the man, husband and Father. For instance sadness and regret at being away from his daughter for extended periods are juxtaposed with the euphoria of being one of the lucky few to know what it really feels like to get your space-boots covered in moondust.The fact that Gene is now in his 80's as are most of the other Astronauts featured makes it a timely production and it also lends a poignancy and a gravitas to it. Gene comes across as a proud but very grounded man capable of making telling insights and being able to reflect meaningfully on his achievements without ever wearing them haughtily. The contributions from former fellow Astronauts, Mission control commanders and family members by turn combine to create a full and rounded picture of the man. The Last Man on the Moon is very deftly paced and well edited. Its shot through with the most amazing and varied archive footage including everything from amateur home-movies to NASA archived material. When viewed through the prism of today's super-advanced technological times there's a flying-by-the-seat-of-their-pants feel to much of the Mission control and Space footage which I found fascinating. There's a great swinging-sixties soundtrack to boot. Definitely recommended. One final thought; does anyone else think that Gene Cernan is a ringer for Clint Eastwood?