Fly Me to the Moon

Fly Me to the Moon
Starring Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Ray Romano, Woody Harrelson
Directed by Greg Berlanti

There's numerous conspiracy theories going out there about a plethora of different things, and one of them is the belief that many people hold that we never actually landed on the moon, but instead it was faked by famed director Stanley Kubrick in order to make it seem America was beating the evil Russians during the Space Race. Kubrick was claimed to direct it due to his stellar film "2001: A Space Odyssey" years before, and there's small kernels that people hold onto to keep their claim alive, one of which being that we still haven't returned to the moon since 1969, despite light years of advanced technology. A movie really hasn't been made about this topic, and "Fly Me to the Moon" comes closest - and it would've been stellar if it didn't focus on a forced love story between two characters that have absolutely zero chemistry.

During the Space Race in the 1960s, America wanted to beat Russia to the moon, but the public was more concerned with the Vietnam War and other controversies, and the previous failings of NASA still looms large in the public conscious. Launch Director Cole Davis (Channing Tatum) wants to get to space as soon as possible, but with the public not caring they bring in ad woman Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson) to spice things up. Although Cole at first had a crush on Kelly after meeting her in a diner, he becomes angered with how she's monopolizing the mission, hiring actors to play the astronauts and workers, and making things more glittery and glamorous. Kelly herself has skeletons in her closet, and after being approached by the mysterious Moe Berkus (Woody Harrelson), she's instructed with a task: fake the moon landing, because the President doesn't feel we'll be able to get there in time. As Cole and Kelly continue to butt heads but also flirt, she keeps the production a secret from Cole because she knows it'll destroy him - but if it doesn't work, then America will become the laughing stock of the world.

"Fly Me to the Moon" is a decent historical pseudo-real life event that blends the factual and the fantastical decently, moving at a decent pace despite it's 132 minute runtime, and features Scarlett Johansson in her best role since her one-two punch of "Marriage Story" and "Jojo Rabbit." It's engaging and captivating for the most part, and is filled with humor and emotion that keeps you engaged. While it's somewhat dry, it spritzes enough water in your face to keep your eyes open.

The film's main focus is the will-they-won't-they relationship between Cole and Kelly, and to that end it really serves as a detriment to the movie. Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johnasson have proven themselves time and again, but when they come together here, the chemistry is just not there (ironically, Chris Evans was originally cast but had to pull out, and the comradere he shares with Johansson would've made this story actually work). Channing Tatum is almost a ghost in this film, blending into the background for most of his scenes as he delivers everything with a stoic nature that doesn't really deviate whether he's talking about lost friends or being angry about Kelly's meddling. Tatum's bread and butter is romantic dramedies, but here he just doesn't deliver the goods.

On the opposite end, Scarlett Johansson is obviously having the time of her life as Kelly Jones. She is fast talking, hilarious, and always stays two steps ahead of everyone (or at least giving off the appearance of it). She captivates the screen and is energetic and lively, keeping the film's pace perfectly. However, when her time with Tatum's Cole comes into romantic territory, it begins to unravel. Again, the chemistry is nonexistent, and it'll break your neck as the film goes from them hating each other to possibly liking one another to hating each other again and so on, like the most boring romantic comedy tennis match.

The film's bloated runtime is wasted on this love story, as the actual story is much more intriguing. Seeing how a group of ragtag people came together and achieved the impossible is an awe-inspiring story, and when that takes center stage it really sets off the film in positive ways. The mechanics, the nuances, and everything that had to come together to get us to the moon is something worthy of recognition, and fortunately we have another film that focuses on this - "Hidden Figures."

So the film progresses as Kelly and Cole flirt and flight, the Space Race heats up, and everything seems to be coming together: then Woody Harrelson's Moe Berkus throws a massive curveball about 90 minutes or so in: Kelly has to fake the moon landing, in case the real moon landing doesn't happen. This brings about the most comedic moments of the movie as she enlists her director friend Lance Vespertine played by "Community" star Jim Rash (who's also a dead ringer for Stanley Tucci) to create the landing. His flamboyant attitude delivers gut-busting laughter, and going against Johansson's comedic timing it all falls perfectly into place. Yet this also serves as the unneeded trope most romantic comedies have: the "all is lost" moment. She cannot tell anyone - especially Cole - about what's happening, and it's no spoiler to announce that Cole does indeed find out, leading to another boring fight where we, again, know what'll happen.

Then the film takes a final turn in the end concerning the filming of the fake moon landing that makes the film drag on even longer, leaving me nitpicking the previous minutes of the film and being able to shed at least thirty minutes from the runtime and still making it impactful.

All that to say I actually did enjoy the film, I just wish it would've focused either entirely on the fake moon landing or the real moon landing, and not both - and especially not also shoehorning in a love story as fake as "Twilight."

The Score: A-