A romantic comedy starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum revisits the American adventure of the first step on the Moon

Starring the glamorous duo Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum, this humorous romantic comedy takes us behind the scenes of the Apollo 11 mission.

Images of astronauts walking on the Moon on the 21st July 1969 were they filmed in a studio (by Stanley Kubrick) to serve the communication of the American government? ? The first moon landing and the first step on the Moon and the rumors surrounding this historic event once again inspire cinema with this comedy which has fun debunking rumors and stereotypes while cultivating the myth. To The Moon is released in theaters on July 10, 2024.

1969, the beautiful Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson) is hired by a close adviser to the President of the United States to help NASA win back the hearts of Americans. The country has its eyes on Vietnam, and the team in charge of the space program, led by Cole Davis (Channing Tatum), a veteran, has lost its luster since the Apollo 1 mission cost the lives of three astronauts.

Cole Davis, already overwhelmed by a mission that is running out of steam, views with suspicion this woman who does not hesitate to use all the means at her disposal, including some arrangements with reality and with the truth, to convince. He ends up being seduced by the formidable efficiency of Kelly, an expert in marketing, in the search for sponsors, and in lobbying with senators who must be convinced to boost NASA’s budget. Then Kelly is entrusted with a new (secret) mission : to make a studio film of a fake moon landing, with fake astronauts, which could be broadcast in the event of a problem with the real Apollo mission 13…

By integrating the rumor into the scenario, this comedy humorously defuses the rumor and conspiracy theories that have been circulating for decades about the veracity of what hundreds of millions of people may have seen on that famous 21 July 1969 on television : man’s first steps on the Moon. In the midst of the Cold War, it is on the field of communication that the two great powers confront each other, and all means are good to win the battle of image and ideologies.

And that is what this comedy is mainly about. : the limitless deployment of resources allocated to propaganda, marketing, advertising, and the first product placements which accompanied the birth of the consumer society.

In the role of the queen of these new sales techniques, a woman who came from nothing, who made lying her livelihood, to the point of virtuosity, a colorful character, feminist, but knowing how to use and abuse the codes of femininity to achieve his goals. A character embodied by a Scarlett Johansson sparkling with the allure of Marilyn.

Opposite, the stereotype of the hero straight in his boots, with a physique of Big Jim embodied by an impeccable Channing Tatum. These two characters at the antipodes will, we suspected a little, meet. In mirror of the conquest of space, Greg Berlanti immerses us in the story of a romantic conquest, this discovery of a terra incognita which presides over any good romantic encounter.

Lights, costumes, music and sets, main and secondary characters all played by excellent actors and actresses… To The Moon draws an America of the years A highly stylized 1960s film, playing with stereotypes to better destroy them. This seemingly light comedy has fun putting the staging of this global event into perspective, with a timely little black cat in the role of truth-setter. A scathing portrait of America, a chronicle of the birth of an image-based society, To The Moon is also a satire of American cinema as a vector of official propaganda.

But behind the glamour, the glitter, the marketing and the war of images, To The Moon also pays a warm tribute to the 400,000 people mobilized, behind-the-scenes workers, engineers, technicians, on the Apollo project, some of whom also acted as consultants on the film. “It was essential to have the testimony of those who experienced this event up close,” assures the director (…) They told us stories we could never have imagined.”assures the director. Thus, This perfectly entertaining romantic comedy ultimately maintains the myth of the “American dream.”

Gender : Comedy, Romance
Director: Greg Berlanti
Actors: Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Jim Rash
Country : UNITED STATES
Duration : 2h11min
Exit : July 10 2024
Distributer : Sony Pictures Releasing France
Synopsis : Tasked with restoring NASA’s public image, the dazzling marketing expert Kelly Jones disrupts the already complex task of mission director Cole Davis. When the White House decides the project is too important to fail, Kelly Jones is tasked with staging a fake moon landing as a plan B, and the countdown truly begins…