There are several movies made already about the 1960s space race, but anything ‘old’ can feel new again if it’s presented from a different angle. Fly Me to the Moon might not be your thing if you’re searching for an in-depth look at moon landing conspiracy theories. It certainly makes for an interesting backdrop for a rom-com, which raises the stakes considerably than simply finding the right partner to ride into the sunset with.

Set in 1969 when NASA rushed to meet John F. Kennedy’s commitment to land astronauts on the moon before the decade ended. An early scene at the Cape Canaveral facility shows how the Apollo program is understaffed and underfunded by Congress. Meanwhile in Manhattan’s Madison Avenue, marketing maven Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson) is seen with a pregnant belly waltzing confidently into a room full of auto executives who don’t think she’s up for the job of selling sports cars. She ends up outsmarting, well more hoodwinked them all with her charm and seductive prowess.

Johansson plays up her retro-bombshell looks to great effect (albeit with a rather distracting wig) as the female Don Draper who’s made a career out of lying and trickery. Right after the meeting is done, we see her toss her foam fake belly to her bubbly assistant Ruby (Anna Garcia), and judging from all the paraphernalia in her office, this baby-bump charade is just one of Kelly’s box of tricks. Her reputation that she will do whatever it takes to sell anything to anyone doesn’t go unnoticed by a mysterious CIA operative Moe Berkus (Woody Harrelson). He’s found the perfect person to help restore NASA’s image that would improve America’s prospects of outpacing the Soviets. Harrelson’s mischievous brand of humor suits this role perfectly as he can also be alarming and unpredictable.

As an advertising major, seeing Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins in product placement commercials from watches, mixed drinks to underwear is a hoot. Kelly’s relentless marketing schemes put her on a collision course with strait-laced Cole Davis (Channing Tatum), NASA’s launch director. Cole passionately champions space exploration and thinks that Kelly’s approach of commercializing NASA undermines its integrity. But in Kelly’s mind, there is no mission without funding and public support, so both of them have a point. The conflict between these two mindsets seems organic and not contrived.

Before they butt heads a la Pride & Prejudice‘s Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, we’ve got a meet-cute at a Cocoa Beach diner where Cole awkwardly confesses he has the hots for her. Kelly is not immune to his charm and good looks either, but she remains laser-focused on the tasks at hand. Her job becomes even more complicated when Moe also assigns her Project Artemis, which is to stage a fake moon landing as a backup plan in case the Apollo 11 mission fails.

This is such a busy movie with a lot going on, not to mention the tonal shifting that intensifies in the second half. The odd mix of tones sets this movie apart from the based-on-a-true-story NASA-themed films such as Hidden Figures or First Man. Miraculously, director Greg Berlanti (known mostly for his CW series) manages to keep the tonal shifts from feeling overly jarring. Screenwriter Rose Gilroy (Dan Gilroy’s daughter) mixes real-life tragedy with the fictitious story, as Cole is still haunted by the Apollo 1 cabin fire that killed three astronauts. There’s a superstitious element thrown in as well involving a black cat that makes for some droll scenarios. I think Gilroy does a pretty good job considering this is her feature screenwriting debut.

Johansson is adept at balancing the comedic and serious aspects of the movie while displaying her knack for a Southern accent. Tatum is relegated to mostly the serious bits, and he’s so darn earnest that it’s actually comical. The costume department puts him in a mock neck sweater (that looks like a Star Trek uniform) and slacks the entire time as if to emphasize that Cole is as straight as he comes, the perfect all-American hero type who’s served 50+ military missions and would’ve been an astronaut himself if it weren’t for his heart condition.

The role was originally for another square-jawed dreamboat Chris Evans, which would’ve been amusing as Cole is so similar to the heroic, goody-two-shoes Steve Rogers. Comedian Ray Romano plays it straight here as well as a NASA engineer, while Jim Rash is broadly over the top as a flamboyant film director Kelly hires to stage the fake moon landing.

I had a rather low expectation with this one as I didn’t really know what to make of it, but I ended up enjoying this more than I expected. The retro set pieces, costumes, cars, vibe, etc. are fun to watch, and the lively score by Daniel Pemberton is pleasing to the ear. For a movie about faking things, the filmmakers strive for authenticity in depicting NASA. Some scenes were filmed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, and the well-staged moon landing scenes feel more like an homage than a spoof of it. Despite the sexy pairing, the romance itself is very chaste, more PG than PG-13, it’s as if it were made at a time when the Hays Code was still enforced.

Overall, I find Fly Me To The Moon to be the fun pleasant surprise of the summer so far! I had fun with this one despite the rather long running time. I don’t even mind rewatching it at some point when it arrives on streaming on AppleTV+.

Have you seen Fly Me To The Moon? I’d love to hear what you think!

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