Gagarin: First in Space (2013)

Instant Favorite.

Admirable film.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Well made film with top production, brilliant photography, excellent actors but without ambition to be more than propaganda cliché about glorious time and bravery. Relationship between team member who are also is direct rival are unrealistic idealistic.This film would be suitable for showing in Russian schools with purpose to raise national pride or for people who need only basic information about Yuri Gagarin and this historical event. Just a pity, with this team of filmmakers, it could be a masterpiece.

Is it propaganda? Yes in the same way as The Right Stuff or Apollo 13 are propaganda but this does not detract from the massive technical achievement of the Gagarin's flight.At that moment the USSR was vastly in advance of US in space technology.This would change but nothing can change the events of April 1961.The film is very well made with breathtaking and realistic special effects and fine acting especially by Yaroslav Zhalnin... his Gagarin is intense intelligent and determined.I imagine he an Neil Armstrong were cut form similar cloth.Overall this film is a fine drama not afraid to discuss the political games in play.Worth a view especially for anyone interested in space and as a antidote to the endless mindless CGI fueled science fiction we see in our cinemas.

This is a well constructed biopic. The narrative style is very evocative and non-linear, making a very compelling story. The portrayal of the pilots and engineers align to those in real life.It also communicates the difficulties, technical challenges and personal rivalries of the space programmes. With space travel being part of life for so many years, it is easy to forget how little anyone knew about the affects of space on people. Even now there is much to learn.The film also captures the competition between the Soviet Union and the United States, and how achievements in space were such a source of national pride.The scenes are well framed and shot, the direction is tight and the acting is well done. There are a few cheesy moments, which provided comic relief.Overall, this is an intelligent film about an engaging person, and should be of interest to anyone interested in the space race or space travel today.

Hands down, this is one of the best movies about space exploration. It is as close to the real events as it can be, no special effects, just a plain story of a country boy, who become an icon of 20th century.Gagarin was a talented pilot, so were many others, but what set him apart was his demeanour towards his friends and colleague in the space training.His life path wasn't easy, born to a family of humble peasants, who were pretty beat up by the life after the decimating WWII, he wasn't nurtured as a dreamer or even given any aspirations in his life.It remains a mystery how Gagarin became such an eternal optimist. His own father refused to believe that it was his son orbiting around the Earth.This disconnect haunted Gagarin most of his life, and therefore made the movie a true drama of human life and a triumph of a daring explorer, as Gagarin by chance found himself.If you are looking for a Hollywood flick- look elsewhere, this is a very exact historic drama of a life of a person, who risked everything to be first of a kind, and it will keep you in suspense to the very end.