Review – First Man

Ryan Gosling brings his dull-eyed emptiness to the lead in this Neil Armstrong biopic. The effects work is meticulous to a fault, re-creating the look and feel of early space flight so realistically that it's nearly as nerve-racking as the real thing. Though the characters' personal lives are beyond maudlin (which doesn't work well with Gosling's typical emotionless stupor), the historical details are fascinating enough to carry the production. Mildly amusing