"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."This is a drama with documentary-ish elements mini-series of 12 episodes about the space race of the 1960's from USA's perspective, that gave us one of the biggest achievements in mankind's history, landing man on the moon. Being a huge fan of the subject matter and space in general, I was surprised that I didn't watch this series sooner. It is an HBO series, so you know it will be quality, and along with that, Tom Hanks is the producer, acts as the narrator at the start of each episode and acts in one of the episodes, and is an avid space fan to top it off. Just one more reason to love the guy.The series covers different aspects, different major events and different people involved in the whole ordeal, from Kennedy's wish and promise to land a man on the moon by the end of the decade, to the last apollo mission in the 70's. And it did all that masterfully. The attention to detail was outstanding. Tons of actual footage was used alongside very well acted dramatized scenes detailing important decisions and personalities. It looked really great with amazing huge detailed sets. The only thing that felt off was some of the rare CGI shots, which feels dated now but considering they are from 1998, and that too from a series, I'm not complaining much. It was great to see how many different things, how much effort, how much dedication it took to make this all happen. It was also great to see different side of it all, political, manufacturing, the astronauts themselves etc. "We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon, in this decade and do the other thing. Not because it is easy, but because it is hard." -John F. Kennedy.The series also had a great soundtrack, really uplifting the whole thing to that magical feeling of space exploration and the ability to do the impossible. Probably my favourite thing about the series, it just really gave me that feeling that I often look for in such series/movies. The only real gripe, or rather a nitpick, from my part for this series is that since each episode focused on a specific topic, the enjoyment factor varied quite a much sometimes for me. Some episodes were truly great, while others were pretty good. Even the least enjoyable episode was still good though.All in all, it was a great experience, something I wished I had watched long ago. Easily one of the best mini-series I have ever watched. You could just tell how much effort was put to make this series and tell the story in a faithful way, as well as in an enjoyable way and not make it a full on documentary. It is amazing to see what we are capable of when working towards a common goal and when we have proper driving force behind us. 9.5/10

Certainly, the accomplishments of the space program make Americans very proud. But a TV mini-series devoted to the subject didn't need endless flag-waving and a soundtrack that sounds like a slanted World War II movie from the 1950's and early 1960's to make its point. (One episode actually uses the theme music from "The Great Escape"!) "From the Earth to the Moon" is a bit over-the-top in the patriotic department and a little under-done in the real behind-the-scenes drama department. The United States' project to send a man to the moon and return him to the earth, which was originally proposed by John F. Kennedy, was full of glitches, setbacks, wrong-turns, conflicts, and clashes. A few these behind-the-scenes darker aspects were portrayed but not nearly as many as actually occurred. Unfortunately, the filmmakers glossed up the positive aspects and left out a lot of the darker albeit more interesting aspects of this incredible venture.The made-for-television mini-series comes off more like a NASA press conference or a tour for fifth-graders at a museum than a stark honest depiction of the actual events leading up to the first moon missions. "From the Earth to the Moon" depicted very little conflict between any of the personalities, the technological setbacks, the political controversies, and the many mishaps that are inevitable from such an undertaking. Some were hinted at, such as the decision concerning who would be the first man to walk on the moon but I wanted to see more of the arguments, the setbacks, the conflicts. These more negative aspects were part of the history of the missions but a lot of this was glossed over in favor of how wonderful the resulting accomplishments were and how great everyone got along with each other. The film "The Right Stuff" did a far superior job of showing the craziness, the absurdity, and some of the foolishness that comes along with these kinds of projects that involve millions of dollars and 1000's of people.Probably the strongest and most informative episodes were the following: "Spider", the episode that chronicles the design of the LEM, aka the lunar module, "Galileo Was Right" which depicts one of the later missions in which the astronauts train to become like geologists, and "Le Voyage dans la Lune" concerning the early 20th-century silent film of a voyage to the moon, which was made in France.The most disappointing of the series has to be the first landing, "Mare Tranquilitatis". Apparently, there were many unexpected hurdles and unforeseen setbacks that almost prevented the first landing and the famous moon walk of Neil Armstrong from taking place. Many of these twists and turns were absent in favor of a patriotic outcome replete with glorious brass choirs. An issue about who would be the first man to walk on the moon and when Armstrong missed the intended landing target were the only stumbling blocks that were developed during the episode. I caught the tail end of a documentary about the subject in which Armstrong related many of the hurdles that had to be overcome to accomplish the mission which were glaringly absent from the television portrayal.Patrotism is not born of flag-waving or music. It's born from admiring the struggles of our American heroes. Only when we see how much these people had to fight and struggle can we truly admire them. But if their struggles are softened, the true point of their heroism becomes lost, and I think that's what was missing from this series. If I had seen more of the "tear your hair out" hurdles that had to be overcome, I probably would have felt more patriotic towards these people and what they did. Instead I think I came away feeling like it was no big deal.

As a young boy, I always dreamed of being an Astronaut. This mini-series made me remember those dreams. "From the Earth to the Moon" is a masterpiece. The whole history of getting a man on the moon, from the Mercury program through Gemini to the Apollo missions are chronicled. The acting is awesome, the sets are extremely realistic and the action and drama(and some humor)of the early period of NASA is sensational. If one needed a history lesson about our early space program, I would recommend this series. My favorite characters are Nick Searcy as Astronaut Donald "Deke" Slayton (who was grounded due to physical ailments-he would later fly on the Apollo-Soyez mission)and Stephen Root as Flight Director Chris Kraft. This is one space series not to be missed. You won't be disappointed.

This is one hell of a production! It starts out with the Mercury missions, but not just the glossy scenes we know and have seen already, it goes beyond the norm. This 12 part series explains the absolute minutia of the space effort and the lives of the people behind it. It progresses through the Gemini and finally the Apollo missions all the way to the last Apollo 17 lunar landing.I learned quite a few things about the space race that I never knew before, such as: The surly nature of Alan Shepard, the fate of the astronauts wives, the fun nature of the Apollo 12 crew and the internal politics within the ranks of the astronauts themselves. I was also surprised on how much a bastard that Walter Mondale was in his attempts on derailing the space program. (I'm glad his bid for the White House was a failed one... Ignorance favors all political parties.)A lot of familiar faces starred in this production, the one that knocked me for a loop was Malcolm in the Middle's father as Buzz Aldrin. The acting is great and shows the versatility of the actors in both comedic and serious roles. I knew that Pete Conrad was cocky, but it shows more of his personality here. Armstrong has been known to be rather sullen and quiet, and is clearly demonstrated here as well. To this day, he doesn't talk much about his adventure. The decision determining who will be the first man on the moon is blunt and anti-climatic, but it tells it as it is. It tells of the astronauts secret activities and agendas, as well as particular small moments that they experienced.In the Apollo 13 segment, the production did not go into the details of the incident like we all seen before, but rather focused on the reporters angle on the event. And I rather enjoyed the insight sweat details on the building of the L.E.M. I wish they did a segment on the rover. I thought that they labored too long over the Apollo 16 mission - training much...learning geology with a trained eye, but I appreciate the effort that they went through. The Apollo 1 tragedy was produced well, with the political aftermath fallout. I hope that all what was filmed is true, and I do understand creative license, but I would feel better if I knew they kept it faithful to actual events. I need to view this again to catch more, but I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the space program. JoeChicago Astronomer http://astronomer.proboards23.com