To the Moon (Fly Me to the Moon)
U.S.A./U.K. 2024

Opening 11 Jul 2024

Directed by: Greg Berlanti
Writing credits: Keenan Flynn, Bill Kirstein, Rose Gilroy
Principal actors: Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Woody Harrelson, Ray Romano, Jim Rash

Just in time for a breezy summer romcom, Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum bring their Hollywood glam to Fly Me to the Moon. The film is oozing with 1960s’ nostalgia when the US was awash with optimism, innocence, and charm.

Kelly Jones (Johansson) is the female version of Mad Men’s Dan Draper, a marketing executive who could, as they used to say, in the politically incorrect ’60s, sell ice to the Eskimos. In this case, she has been hired to sell NASA and the Apollo 11 moon landing to the entire world. Moe Berkus (Woody Harrelson), a shady Nixon White House operative, has a plan dubbed Project Artemis to broadcast Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon, even if he has to fake it. He has some serious blackmailing files on Kelly, so she reluctantly plays along. To produce a “backup version”, Kelly hires flamboyant director Lance Vespertine (Jim Rash) to set up an exact replica of the lunar landing site, in a remote warehouse on NASA property at Cape Kennedy. Even if the moon landing fails, actor-astronauts will be filmed, in a simulation, making the landing as there is no way the US will let the Soviet Union beat them to the moon. (Conspiracy theorists will just love this.)

Where is the romance in the romcom? Handsome, boy-scout-serious-war-hero launch director Cole Davis (Tatum) falls for Kelly to prove that well-worn axiom—opposites attract. True to the Doris Day/Rock Hudson era, sparks may fly, but the audience will have to accept the eroticism of a squeaky-clean Hallmark movie. We know it will happen…but when will they finally kiss? As part of the fun, Scarlett Johansson’s real-life husband, Colin Jost, plays Senator Cook in the film. But he’s no distraction; Kate only has eyes for hunky Cole.

The actors all do splendid jobs in their campy roles. Ray Romano and Anna Garcia are the perfect sidekicks to their bosses. Mary Zophres’s costumes including Cole’s knit shirts and Kelly’s sailor dress bring back the nostalgic look of an earlier era. Shane Valentino’s production designs range from real-life-fake lunar designs to a remarkable retro diner, reminiscent of Edward Hopper’s painting, Nighthawks. This is a fun movie to watch, if you are looking for an amusing distraction this summer. Just keep an eye out for that black cat. (Pat Frickey)