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For All Mankind, a review by Danae Cassandra

For All Mankind
Year of Release: 1989
Directed By: Al Reinert
Starring: James A. Lovell Jr., Russell L. Schweickart, Eugene A. Cernan, Michael Collins
Genre: Documentary

Overview:
In July 1969, the space race ended when Apollo 11 fulfilled President Kennedy's challenge of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." No one who witnessed the lunar landing will ever forget it. Al Reinert's documentary For All Mankind is the story of the twenty-four men who traveled to the Moon, told in their words, in their voices, using the images of their experiences. Forty years later, it remains the most radical, visually dazzling work of cinema yet made about this earthshaking event.

My Thoughts:
Excellently done film about the early years of the space program, and the moon landings. Simply told by the astronauts themselves using footage from them, this is documentary filmmaking at its purest state. Here are the events, make of them what you will.

I feel like this is a film that was meant to be inspiring. Look at our achievements! Look at what these men did! They went to the moon! There is so much passion, excitement and courage in their words and achievements that you can't help but admire these people.

Yet I felt an overwhelming sadness watching this film. Where have our dreams gone? Once they were big. Once we reached for the stars. It seems like all our dreams are gone these days. We haven't landed a manned mission on the moon in 44 years. For all our technological advancement, what have we done with it? We have more computing power now in our pockets then they did to go to the moon, and we do nothing of any import with it. It doesn't feel like we look to the stars, to the future, to the greater good of mankind any longer.

Bechdel Test: Fail

Overall: 4/5

(From March Around the World 2016 on March 11th, 2016)

The Final Countdown, a review by DJ Doena

May, 2nd


Kirk Douglas   ...    Capt. Matthew Yelland
Martin Sheen   ...    Warren Lasky
Katharine Ross   ...    Laurel Scott
James Farentino   ...    Wing Commander Richard T. Owens / Richard Tideman
Ron O'Neal   ...    Cmdr. Dan Thurman
Charles Durning   ...    Sen. Samuel Chapman
Victor Mohica   ...    Black Cloud
Soon-Tek Oh   ...    Simura

Synopsis: Warren Lasky is a civilian consultant whose task is to evaluate the efficiency of the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. But shortly after the Nimitz has left Pearl Harbor on December 6th, 1980, the ship encounters an electromagnetic storm none of them has ever seen before. And when they are clear of the storm there are not where they are supposed to be. It's still December 6th - but 1941, one day before the Japanese Empire started its attack on Pearl Harbor.

My Opinion: What if? I really like the questions this movie asks - whether or not one is allowed to interfere with things that already happened. And I liked the faces of the senator and the japanese pilot when Owens told them what was about to happen. And I have to say: I love aircraft carries, they are beautiful. And I love it to see planes starting from and landing on them and this movie had plenty of such footage.

(From DJ Doena's movie watchings 2009 on May 2nd, 2009)

Tom's Random Star Trek Reviews, a review by Tom

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
3.12 Past Tense, Part II
Writer: Ira Steven Behr (Screenwriter), René Echevarria (Screenwriter), Ira Steven Behr (Original Material By), Robert Hewitt Wolfe (Original Material By)
Director: Jonathan Frakes
Cast: Avery Brooks (Commander Sisko), Rene Auberjonois (Odo), Siddig El Fadil (Doctor Bashir), Terry Farrell (Lieutenant Dax), Cirroc Lofton (Jake Sisko), Colm Meaney (Chief O'Brien), Armin Shimerman (Quark), Nana Visitor (Major Kira), Jim Metzler (Chris Brynner), Frank Military (B.C.), Dick Miller (Vin), Deborah Van Valkenburgh (Detective Preston), Al Rodrigo (Bernardo), Clint Howard (Grady), Richard Lee Jackson (Danny), Tina Lifford (Lee), Bill Smitrovich (Webb), Mitch David Carter (Swat Leader), Daniel Zacapa (Henry Garcia)

An okay conclusion to this two-parter. Better than the first part.

Rating:

(From Tom's Random Star Trek Reviews on November 2nd, 2011)