This is a fascinating documentary, covering every aspect of the Apollo 11 mission and the science and technology that supported it. It also paints a layered portrait of the the world that was watching (not to mention a vintage glimpse at mid-century America. The business and restaurant signs! OMG!) Very human, poetic, philosophical, and informative at the same time. It brought tears to my eyes more than once.
I was too young to remember this event and the world it took place in. My mom tells me our family was like most others that day–glued to the television. At one point, my father took my older sister outside to look at the moon, but when there wasn’t much to see you didn’t normally see, she asked to be taken back inside to watch it on the television. Then she promptly got freaked out by the closeups of the astronaut’s helmets, faces turned into black reflections.
I get very frustrated sometimes with the pace of humankind’s exploration of space, but when I watch a documentary like this and reflect on what the world was like one hundred years ago, fifty years ago, I realize: I live in an amazing age.
Happy anniversary, Apollo 11.
Author Nancy E. Shaffer 