I have to say I am confused over the adoration for the score. Much of its /heavily/ influenced by temp. What’s truly original is fine, if not simple and a little too understated imo.
First Man (2018)
It might sound that way but I don't think it's true. justin hurwitz worked more or less nonstop on the score for this since La La Land, as he tells it. he just stumbles into a few similar sounding motifs.TeddyBlass wrote: ↑October 19th, 2018, 11:44 amI have to say I am confused over the adoration for the score. Much of its /heavily/ influenced by temp. What’s truly original is fine, if not simple and a little too understated imo.
I love the score, personally.
-Vader
I should finally be receiving the annotated screenplay book next week (got delayed like fuck for international release so ordered from the US) and that 100% has the Apollo 8 launch so I'm sure it'll address the fire scene and other cut stuff too.
I personally like the score alot but I do agree that he may have been influenced by temp or at least other scores in part. The Apollo 11 launch sequence is so blantanly 'influenced' by John Powell's United 93 score (which Greengrass used again in Captain Phillips) that he doesn't even disguise it by keeping the exact same ending.TeddyBlass wrote: ↑October 19th, 2018, 11:44 amI have to say I am confused over the adoration for the score. Much of its /heavily/ influenced by temp. What’s truly original is fine, if not simple and a little too understated imo.
The truly original parts of the score worked for me. To be fair I liked the 'influenced' themes as well. The landing score, which is original, I thought was fantastic.
That's pretty nice man,
As for the score, I thought it was beautiful. The themes immediately click and stay with you afterwards. I loved how Hurwitz made the recurring themes crescendo with the Moon landing, it wasn't overused or anything like that. I listened to the score in it's entirety and it's just fantastic. Perfectly heightens the film.
Saw it yesterday. At the end of the film I felt disappointed, but then as I was going home, the whole thing suddenly turned and changed in me. I started to think about it from a filmmaker's or an artist's point of view - I'm not one, but Chazelle is. And the least an artist can do is take a well-known topic, an event popular almost to the point of being cliché, then turn it upside down. I think this is what happened here. I expected this film to be a celebration of the space age and space exploration, but in my opinion it is almost the exact opposite of that.
I didn't really get why this film had to exist until the last scene on the Moon (I hope this is not a spoiler). I didn't really get what this film was until that point in the story. But in that scene something changes, and the pieces suddenly fall in their places.
I think this film is quite depressing and challenges you the way the Gemini and Apollo programs challenged the characters. As Armstrong points out at the start of the film, the reason to explore space is to change our perspective as humans - and I think this is exactly what happens to Armstrong in the final scene, and to us, viewers. Because that was the point I realized that this movie wasn't necessarily celebrating the Moon landings. I mean, the program itself. It celebrates the people behind it, if anything, but even that is not self-explanatory. I think it's a quite bleak portrayal of people who were fighting for something - but even they weren't sure what they were fighting for. And to me, that was the core idea of the final scenes.
I avoided spoilers on purpose, so this post could end up being very vague, but the point is this: I went in expecting something, and got something else entirely. And this is good. Of course the film is emotional, I mean it has emotional scenes, but in the end I would rather say that the film is bleak - not in direction or writing, but in themes. It's a bleak perspective of a surprisingly sad and depressing era in human exploration.
Also, all the action scenes are incredibly tense and claustrophobic, space never felt this alien and hostile before, and I mean this. I've never seen a film where space, or being in space, was portrayed this dangerous and bleak and, once again, hostile. Not even Gravity, no. I was really afraid every time they approached a space shuttle, even when it was only a test! I felt discomfort in each of these scenes. This is an amazing aspect of First Man.
I really don't get why people are comparing this to Interstellar, because the most that can be said is that some of the visual aspects of First Man were definitely inspired by Nolan's work - mostly the outer shots of spacecraft, but that's it.
So, overall, very interesting film, and something worth revisiting.
I didn't really get why this film had to exist until the last scene on the Moon (I hope this is not a spoiler). I didn't really get what this film was until that point in the story. But in that scene something changes, and the pieces suddenly fall in their places.
I think this film is quite depressing and challenges you the way the Gemini and Apollo programs challenged the characters. As Armstrong points out at the start of the film, the reason to explore space is to change our perspective as humans - and I think this is exactly what happens to Armstrong in the final scene, and to us, viewers. Because that was the point I realized that this movie wasn't necessarily celebrating the Moon landings. I mean, the program itself. It celebrates the people behind it, if anything, but even that is not self-explanatory. I think it's a quite bleak portrayal of people who were fighting for something - but even they weren't sure what they were fighting for. And to me, that was the core idea of the final scenes.
I avoided spoilers on purpose, so this post could end up being very vague, but the point is this: I went in expecting something, and got something else entirely. And this is good. Of course the film is emotional, I mean it has emotional scenes, but in the end I would rather say that the film is bleak - not in direction or writing, but in themes. It's a bleak perspective of a surprisingly sad and depressing era in human exploration.
Also, all the action scenes are incredibly tense and claustrophobic, space never felt this alien and hostile before, and I mean this. I've never seen a film where space, or being in space, was portrayed this dangerous and bleak and, once again, hostile. Not even Gravity, no. I was really afraid every time they approached a space shuttle, even when it was only a test! I felt discomfort in each of these scenes. This is an amazing aspect of First Man.
I really don't get why people are comparing this to Interstellar, because the most that can be said is that some of the visual aspects of First Man were definitely inspired by Nolan's work - mostly the outer shots of spacecraft, but that's it.
So, overall, very interesting film, and something worth revisiting.
^^^^^^^^ I agree with alot of what you say. For me it was one of the only times in recent memory that I have come out of the cinema with my expectations surpassed. Thinking about it afterward, certain filmmaking choices I was surprised by or disliked somewhat, make more sense now (to me at least) and the whole experience and my love for the film goes up a level. Definitely will be revisiting the film.
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this got released here on friday but i could only get to see it today. I got really emotional during the landing scene, but then Chazelle did that thing again with the flashback at the end I fucking DIED
I just cannot stress enough how great of an actor Gosling is, and it’s so weird to see him still be quite underappreciated, despite being so popular and liked. His approach to acting in general is so subtle and understated, and I guess for some that reads as too monotone or samey, but it works here sooo well. The way he and Foy communicate their characters relationship never needs any of the angry cliche meltdowns or saccharine “baby i love yous” to understand the intimacy between the two. The way turmoil and anxiety builds up as the movie progresses is so heartbreaking, but I love how the film never tries to desperately pull at the viewers’ heartstrings. Or raise the stakes at the expense of exploiting other peoples’ tragedies. The stakes are insanely high, but we just get, it’s communicated to us in such a simple, real way.
This couldn’t be farther away from Interstellar in my mind, and I’m super aware of the technical inspirations. So I don’t really get the comparisons.
I adored the ending shot. I literally thought to myself “if that was me, I’d end the movie right there”. And it did.
I just cannot stress enough how great of an actor Gosling is, and it’s so weird to see him still be quite underappreciated, despite being so popular and liked. His approach to acting in general is so subtle and understated, and I guess for some that reads as too monotone or samey, but it works here sooo well. The way he and Foy communicate their characters relationship never needs any of the angry cliche meltdowns or saccharine “baby i love yous” to understand the intimacy between the two. The way turmoil and anxiety builds up as the movie progresses is so heartbreaking, but I love how the film never tries to desperately pull at the viewers’ heartstrings. Or raise the stakes at the expense of exploiting other peoples’ tragedies. The stakes are insanely high, but we just get, it’s communicated to us in such a simple, real way.
This couldn’t be farther away from Interstellar in my mind, and I’m super aware of the technical inspirations. So I don’t really get the comparisons.
I adored the ending shot. I literally thought to myself “if that was me, I’d end the movie right there”. And it did.
Loved this. Was especially impressed by Foy's performance.
Everything at the end, the takeoff, the landing, the moon sequence were all absolutely brilliant. Chazelle is a genius, and I'm kinda sad that he won't be making another movie for a while now because of the Netflix and Apple projects, but hopefully those will turn out great as well.
Everything at the end, the takeoff, the landing, the moon sequence were all absolutely brilliant. Chazelle is a genius, and I'm kinda sad that he won't be making another movie for a while now because of the Netflix and Apple projects, but hopefully those will turn out great as well.
So much yes.Ruth wrote: ↑October 21st, 2018, 4:00 pmthis got released here on friday but i could only get to see it today. I got really emotional during the landing scene, but then Chazelle did that thing again with the flashback at the end I fucking DIED
I just cannot stress enough how great of an actor Gosling is, and it’s so weird to see him still be quite underappreciated, despite being so popular and liked. His approach to acting in general is so subtle and understated, and I guess for some that reads as too monotone or samey, but it works here sooo well. The way he and Foy communicate their characters relationship never needs any of the angry cliche meltdowns or saccharine “baby i love yous” to understand the intimacy between the two. The way turmoil and anxiety builds up as the movie progresses is so heartbreaking, but I love how the film never tries to desperately pull at the viewers’ heartstrings. Or raise the stakes at the expense of exploiting other peoples’ tragedies. The stakes are insanely high, but we just get, it’s communicated to us in such a simple, real way.
This couldn’t be farther away from Interstellar in my mind, and I’m super aware of the technical inspirations. So I don’t really get the comparisons.
I adored the ending shot. I literally thought to myself “if that was me, I’d end the movie right there”. And it did.
