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Monday, July 8, 2013

July Film Club: Documentary #1

Alright everybody, this month we're going to move into some different territory for our documentaries.  The first one will be Al Reinert's wonderful film, For All Mankind.

For All Mankind is a 1989 documentary film documenting the Apollo missions of NASA.  It was directed by Al Reinert with music by Brian Eno.  The film provides 80 minutes of real NASA footage, taken on the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s.  The focus of the documentary is on the human view of the space flights, and the original mission footage is provided along with the voice of the astronauts, from interviews and form the actual mission recordings.  Among those providing narration are Jim Lovell, Michael Collins, Charles Conrad, Jack Swigert, and Ken Mattingly.  The film concentrates on the beauty of the earth as seen from space.  For All Mankind was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1990.
In the DVD commentary, Reinert explains that he made the film after learning that huge amounts of footage shot by astronauts had been archived by NASA without ever being seen by the public.  Al Reinert and editor Susan Korda sifted through six million feet of film footage, and 80 hours of NASA interviews to create the documentary.

This film holds a 93% certified fresh rating on the aggregate review site Rottentomatoes.com out of 15 critical reviews.

This film must be seen to truly appreciate its beauty and splendor.  The marriage of the images on screen and the soundscapes created by the gifted Brian Eno are oftentimes overwhelming in their majesty.  This is a film that every person on earth should experience.

We will meet Thursday, July 18th at 6:15pm, hope to see you all there!

Here's the trailer:

http://www.criterion.com/films/599-for-all-mankind

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