It is late 1968, Nixon has just been elected president, and the NASA mission to land on the moon before the Soviet Union is in danger because government funds are being withdrawn. The mysterious Mo Berkus (Woody Harrelson) employs marketing specialist, Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson ), to fix NASA’s public image and attract funding. Along the way, a relationship develops between Kelly and the NASA director in charge of the Apollo 11 launch, Cole Davis (Channing Tatum).
Fly Me to the Moon was a complete pleasure to watch. It works as a playful drama about the space-race, although we all know what happens, and a romantic comedy. In fact the characters of Jones and Davis feel like they could have been played by Doris Day and Rock Hudson in a contemporary take on this story.
Despite this being complete fiction, the details, including the production design, make it feel real. I particularly enjoyed the attempts to film a back-up fake Moon landing, Stanley Kubrick jibes and all. The performances are all pitch perfect, including Ray Romano as Cole’s second-in-command and Anna Garcia as Kelly’s assistant.
Director Greg Berlanti keeps everything moving at a breezy pace in this thoroughly enjoyable movie.
Rating: 8 out of 10