Fly Me to the Moon Review – Charming, Old-Fashioned Fun

A period piece, a romantic comedy, survivor’s guilt, and some Ocean’s Eleven-style antics await you in Fly Me to the Moon. Set during the Space Race, Fly Me to the Moon follows a marketing guru hired to spruce up the image of NASA so they can secure further funding for the Apollo 11 mission. Directed by Greg Berlanti (Love, Simon), it stars Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) as the marketing guru and smooth talker Kelly Jones, whereas Channing Tatum (Magic Mike) plays her love interest, NASA director Cole Davis. 

Fly Me to the Moon also stars Anna Garcia (Very Important People), Woody Harrelson (Zombieland), Ray Romano (Everybody Loves Raymond), Jim Rash (Community), Donald Elise Watkins (Emergency), and Noah Robbins (Miss Sloane). After an awkward meet-cute, there’s nothing but tension between Cole and Kelly when Cole realizes she’s been hired to promote the program because he wants NASA to be treated more respectfully. Ordered by government man Moe Berkus (Harrelson), Kelly is tasked with creating a fake version of the Moon landing and hiding the set from the rest of NASA – including Cole. 

Fly Me to the Moon Has Delightful Vibes

From the beginning of Fly Me to the Moon, it’s clear that you’re going to be watching a fun movie. There’s a cool montage of the Space Race leading up to the time in which the film is set, and there’s a fantastic short sequence of Kelly pitching an advertising campaign to some car company executives, Mad Men-style. You get a strong sense of Johansson’s character, who is manipulative yet extremely charming. The story is fairly straightforward, but the characters are interesting. The lead characters aren’t one-note, with interesting backstories that inform their decisions. 

Cole’s not just a straight-laced NASA director. He’s tense because he failed on the first Apollo mission and carries survivor’s guilt. He’s also only not going up to the Moon himself because of a medical condition. So, when he’s aggressively knocking down Kelly’s suggestions, it’s not just because he thinks highly of NASA or because she’s knocking back his advances. On the contrary, the two rarely dislike each other. They go back and forth while working together, but there are only a couple of times when their relationship seems antagonistic. Although, Tatum and Johansson don’t have much chemistry. 

The story itself stays entertaining, bouncing between poking fun at Moon landing deniers and the pair’s relationship antics. While scrounging up some money and discreetly recreating the landing in a NASA hanger, Kelly, Ruby (Garcia), and at times Cole, take part in elaborate schemes. These are exhilarating sequences that break up some of the subplots, and they work to keep the story moving. It’s a longer film – with a 132-minute runtime – but it isn’t horribly paced. 

A Mile a Minute

Johansson’s performance in Fly Me to the Moon is fantastic. It’s frantic and comedic, and she perfects the fast-paced dialogue, charming her way through every conversation. She also plays the emotional, more remorseful moments quite well. Tatum manages to have some depth in his performance, believably capturing the character’s guilt and anger. But, otherwise, he’s surprisingly flat for most of the film. Harrelson is just doing a creepy version of many of the characters he’s played over the years, but it works well, and Garcia is funny and expressive as Ruby, Kelly’s assistant. 

Fly Me to the Moon is a consistently funny movie, but not in a way that will keep you laughing. It’s not filled to the brim with humor, but I found myself charmed by it. The story does switch tonally a couple of times, especially when Cole deals with his trauma. But, it’s not a detriment to the film, only adding depth to the narrative. The costuming is terrific, with Cole and Kelly switching between retro colorful outfits. 

While it isn’t a biopic, Fly Me to the Moon feels surprisingly authentic to the period in which it’s set. The costuming helps, but the soundtrack is what brings that feeling home. It’s full of classic songs like the titular “Fly Me to the Moon”, as well as “Moon River”. The sequence surrounding the Moon landing itself is also surprisingly accurate to the original footage. Fly Me to the Moon nails the period piece feel. 

How Are We Feeling, Mission Control?

Even though you might never fully buy into the relationship, which is the crux of the film, Fly Me to the Moon has plenty of character to charm you into having an enjoyable experience. It never does anything egregious, Johansson’s great, and it’s a good story with a few twists and turns. The only things dragging the film down are Tatum’s performance, the fact that it’s not overly funny, and the lack of chemistry between the two leads.

If you like romantic comedies or films about the Space Race, then give Fly Me to the Moon a chance because you’ll probably enjoy it. It would probably make for a fine date movie. If you want to see the scale of NASA’s accomplishments you should probably head to the theater for this one. 

You can watch Fly Me to the Moon when it soars into theaters on July 12, 2024.