It will be 50 years ago this summer that Americans first walked on the moon, and this feature-length documentary takes us inside the event with footage that’s never before been seen or heard.

Apollo 11 is a celebratory movie designed to rekindle awe for the accomplishments of the NASA astronauts and ground scientists, as well remind us what can be achieved when a country and its politicians work in unison toward a shared goal.

Director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13) painstakingly assembled Apollo 11 from a trove of newly discovered 65mm footage and 11,000 hours of uncatalogued audio recordings. NASA cinematographers filmed everything – not only the Mission Control scientists, but also the mechanical workers prepping the launchpad platforms and catwalks, and the crowds that assembled on the nearby beaches and parking lots. This constructs a sense that this was a community’s effort, rather than just the heroic actions of three brave astronauts (Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins).

For a full review of Apollo 11, go here or pick up The Austin Chronicle in print, on the streets March 13.

Apollo 11

Festival Favorites

Thursday, March 14, 2pm, Zach Theatre

This article appears in March 8 • 2019.

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Marjorie Baumgarten is a film critic and contributing writer at The Austin Chronicle, where she has worked in many capacities since the paper's founding in 1981. She served as the Chronicle's Film Reviews editor for 25 years.