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MAGNIFICENT DESOLATION: WALKING ON THE MOON 3D
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Tom Hanks isn't an astronaut. But he played one in APOLLO 13 (1995), which qualifies him to narrate this kid-friendly, large-format 3D documentary/docudrama designed to rekindle waning excitement about lunar explaration. Given that it debunks conspiracy theories like the one that inspired the paranoid thriller CAPRICORN ONE (1978) — which was predicated on the notion that the moon walks were all showbiz fakery — you have to question the movie's own strategy of mixing real footage with glossy CGI recreations. Yes, the footage shot by Neil Armstrong and other astronauts is grainy, black and white and lacking in Hollywood oomph, but it's real. And yes, the recreations were carefully researched using NASA file photography, but they're not real. Using the strategy made popular by Ken Burns, observations by actual astronauts are delivered by actors ranging from Gary Sinise to Paul Newman; leave a comment
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