The Wonder of It All (2007)

"I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." These words spoken by... See full summary »

Director:

Jeffrey Roth

Writers:

Jeffrey Roth, Paul Basta,

Stars:

Eugene Cernan, Yuri Gagarin, John F. Kennedy

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Eugene Cernan	...	Himself
Yuri Gagarin	...	Himself (archive footage)
John F. Kennedy	...	Himself (archive footage)
Alan Bean	...	Himself
Edgar D. Mitchell	...	Himself
Buzz Aldrin	...	Himself
John Young	...	Himself
Harrison Schmitt	...	Himself
Charles Duke	...	Himself (as Charlie Duke)
Gus Grissom	...	Himself (archive footage)
Edward H. White II	...	Himself (archive footage)
Roger B. Chaffee	...	Himself (archive footage)
Neil Armstrong	...	Himself (archive footage)
Michael Collins	...	Himself (archive footage)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Buster Crabbe	...	Flash Gordon (archive footage)

Storyline

"I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." These words spoken by President John F. Kennedy in May 1961 changed the lives of twelve men who became known as "Moonwalkers." The Wonder of it All focuses on the rarely told human side of the men behind the Apollo missions through thoughtful and candid accounts from seven Moonwalkers. Astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Alan Bean, Edgar Mitchell, John Young, Charles Duke, Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt intimately reflect on the training, the tragedies, the camaraderie and the effect their space travel has had on their families. The Wonder of it All honors the men who walked on the moon and became heroes to a nation. They fulfilled the dream of humankind to set foot on another world and, in so doing, forever changed the way we view ourselves.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 April 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

A teljes csoda - Amerika örök emlékű hősei

Box Office

Budget:

$175,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$18,988 (USA) (17 July 2009)

Gross:

$779,632 (USA) (18 December 2009)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Color:

Color (hd)

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Eugene Cernan: [about the Apollo 1 fire] It's a cliché to say they didn't die in vain, Grissom, White and Chaffee, but they truly didn't. If it weren't for their sacrifice, and the mistakes we made early on in Apollo to get to the Moon as quickly as we could, we probably would have lost somebody on the way. But they stimulated the re-design of this spacecraft to allow us to get there safely and return home and get the job done; you know, and those three guys have never received the tribute that I think they ...

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Connections

Features Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1934)

User Reviews

Review

What an amazing film.

I didn't know what to expect when I walked into an advance screening of this film several weeks ago. The space race has been covered ad nauseum in the past, most recently in the disappointing film In the Shadow of the Moon, which to me was just a rehash of the same old stuff. (Besides, they only concentrate on the Apollo 11 mission, when there were six missions that went to the moon. What about the other guys?) This film is different because it introduces the astronauts who walked on the moon as people. I didn¢t know anything about the different personalities of the astronauts before this film. But the seven astronauts featured are so different, and by the time the film is over you feel like you actually know them personally. It is as if you have been invited to their homes for a personal conversation.

There are many subjects covered that I never thought of before. What does moon dust smell like and feel like? What happens after you walk on the moon, then have to find an occupation later? What do you think of when you look at the moon after being there many years ago? The style of the documentary is unlike anything I've ever seen before. There is no narration. It's made up of conversations with the astronauts that have been edited smoothly to make an ongoing dialogue. At first I didn¢t think it would work for the entire film, but there is a crescendo that happens that makes the whole film worthwhile and wonderful.

I hope that this film comes out on DVD soon. I would like to own a copy. It is worth watching over and over