...they put a Man on the Moon

Neil Armstrong on the Moon

With the release of his latest Oscar contender, director Damien Chazelle  of La La Land fame, gives us a visceral yet birds-eye view of the First Man (on the Moon), largely taken from Neil Armstrong's biography of the same name.

After seeing what I thought was supposed to be humanity's greatest achievement, brought to life on the big screen, I found myself questioning why it was such a depressingly sad and moody insight into the life of one of our great heroes.

What is the point of creating such an authentic piece of nostalgia for a mainstream audience, and strip away everything that was amazing about it? If you believe they put a man on the moon, you have to believe that the reason Armstrong was so miserable all the time, even shouting at reporters at press conferences, was because of the death of his two-year-old daughter seven years earlier.

From personal experience, losing someone you love and are close to is not something you just 'get over'. You learn to live with their death. So Armstrong does exactly this, he copes with the deaths of his colleagues, and even pays homage to his child while walking on the moon. All of the 'death' evident in First Man overshadows any great joy or excitement that reaching the moon would have, or so the film reveals to us. In this respect, the achievement of reaching the Moon is treated as meaningless.

Perhaps there is more than meets the eye here, as synchronicity strikes the man on the moon...

Jim Carrey staring at the Moon in the TheTruman Show (1998)

Carrey was born in the Toronto suburb of Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, to Kathleen (née Oram), a homemaker, and Percy Carrey, a musician and accountant. He was raised a Roman Catholic and has three older siblings: John, Patricia, and Rita. His mother was of French, Irish, and Scottish descent and his father was of French-Canadian ancestry (the family's original surname was Carré).

At age 10, Carrey wrote a letter to Carol Burnett of the Carol Burnett Show pointing out that he was already a master of impressions and should be considered for a role on the show; he was overjoyed when he received a form letter reply. Carrey lived in Burlington, Ontario, for eight years.

Ryan Gosling (as Neil Armstrong) with Jimmy Kimmel all one big joke!

Ryan Thomas Gosling was born in London, Ontario, the son of Thomas Ray Gosling, a travelling salesman for a paper mill, and Donna, a secretary. Both of his parents are of part French-Canadian descent, along with some English, Scottish, and Irish decent. Because of his father's work, the family "moved around a lot" and Gosling lived in both Cornwall, Ontario, and Burlington, Ontario. His parents divorced when he was 13, and he and his older sister Mandi lived with their mother.

Gosling was educated at Gladstone Public School, Cornwall Collegiate and Vocational School and Lester B. Pearson High School. As a child, he watched Dick Tracy and was inspired to become an actor…. Gosling performed in front of audiences from an early age, encouraged by his sister being a performer. He and his sister sang together at weddings; he performed with Elvis Perry, his uncle's Elvis Presley tribute act.

From a recent article in The Metro -  "Of his current situation, Carrey told the website: ‘I have gone through some really tough times in the last few years and I would not wish them on anybody, but my God, my understanding of life and what is real and what is not real has expanded exponentially because of that. ‘And my ability to understand suffering, which is a valuable thing. It’s the way to salvation because once you understand it, you have compassion, and the next thing you know, you are free."

Carrey pulling the Moon down to Earth in Bruce Almighty (2003)

The Daily Telegraph reported that Gosling said the moon landing “transcended countries and borders” and was “widely regarded in the end as a human achievement [and] that’s how we chose to view it”.

He also said he did not think Armstrong “viewed himself as an American hero” and added: “From my interviews with his family and people that knew him, it was quite the opposite. And we wanted the film to reflect Neil. I’m Canadian,” Gosling added, “so [I] might have cognitive bias.”

Carrey as Andy Kaufman (Man on the Moon)
or is it Endless Sunshine in John Malkovich's mind?

Carrey loves Emma Stone apparently!