First Man is a dramatic  movie that tells the story of how man reached the moon for the first time. The movie revolves around Neil Armstrong, an engineer, who becomes one of the lucky few chosen to be a part of NASA's space program. Neil Armstrong's sacrifices are showcased, as well as all of the other difficult decisions that were made by NASA to eventually be in a position to put Neil on the moon, including the death of a few of his friends. Taking place between during 1961-1969, the movie showcases all of the steps that were necessary in order to build up to the point of having man be able to go to the moon. The movie also balances between Neil's work and his personal life, making it have some qualities similar to that of a biography, including how his personal life affected his work life and eventually the way that he made history. As the movie unravels, audiences soon discover that putting Neil Armstrong on the moon with his crew was a lot more difficult than it sounds and far easier said than done. 
 First Man is basically a mixed bag. There are some parts that feel stupendously inspired and strong, while others feel stretched out, boring, and unnecessary. The beginning of the movie does a pretty good job of jumpstarting the movie and introducing audiences to Neil Armstrong. The middle of the movie manages to present new obstacles for the characters, except this portion of the movie feels incredibly slow to the point that it almost becomes painful. The ending of the movie doesn't actually prove to be nearly as enticing or exhilarating as it should have been, and things just end somewhat awkwardly. Even though the conclusion of the movie involves the breathtaking view of space from the moon, and includes a nice little twist of sorts, it just doesn't feel as empowering as it could have been. To make matters worse, the movie strangely excludes the planting of the flag in the moon, which although isn't entirely necessary, the fact that the time on the moon is so brief, regardless of how it is the main concept powering the movie, is slightly off-putting. 

 First Man has some weird aspects due to the tone of the movie. The tone of the movie is insanely slow during most portions, which is odd, considering that the movie should be an action-packed adventure. Even though some slowness is necessary to generate suspense, this isn't always carried out as planned. The movie never really becomes that intense, and audiences never really have the need to crawl to the edges of their seats. Furthermore, the balance between the personal life and work life of Neil Armstrong isn't the greatest. The movie essentially showcases the worst parts of each in that neither the most exciting portions of his personal life are shown or of NASA. Instead of focusing on all of the cool math, science, and engineering behind the technology capable of putting man on the moon, the film doesn't really have any focus whatsoever on NASA. Although Neil's personal life had a large effect on him and go a long way in demonstrating how human he really was, the movie doesn't focus on all of the aspects of his personal life enough to make it really that powerful or notable. Because neither Neil's work life or personal life really ever become that compelling, there is very little that genuinely makes audiences feel an entire spectrum of emotions with the exceptions being the depressing events that unfortunately occurred, like the deaths of a few close friends. 

 First Man does greatly benefit from having some extraordinary visuals that help to elevate the movie to the next level. The vivid visual effects of the movie prove to be quite outstanding and are able to make viewers feel like they are watching the space ships launch in person. The spectacular special effects of the movie are key to the outcome of the movie and showcase how all of the technology worked, showing how the astronauts' lives weren't all glamorous. Instead of them just being the unstoppable heroes that they have come to be known for, they could have died doing their jobs, because there was so much uncertainty, causing them to be at risk of their very own lives constantly. As great as the visuals are, there aren't really that many instances that put the visuals in the spotlight, which is a shame, considering that it would aid in capturing the dream of going to the moon even further. Although when the visuals are used, it is quite effective, having more scenes with the awesome visuals could go a long way. 

 Even though First Man was expected to be an absolute powerhouse with critics, neither critics nor viewers really seemed to fall in love with the movie. Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie a high 87%, which is an impressive mark but not quite as high as some might have expected, and a low 83% of Google users liked the movie, which is actually a lot worse than it seems. Although the movie was meant to be an award-winning film, in reality, it isn't that exceptional with critics or viewers. 

 First Man was meant to be a must-see movie that would certainly prove to inspire people as it showcased the story of the first man on the moon, except to some extent, the movie falls short, since it doesn't accomplish nearly as much as expected, and even though the movie is still well done, it ends up disappointing, because it doesn't reach the lofty goals set for it.