APOLLO 10 1/2: A SPACE AGE CHILDHOOD
Starring: Milo Coy, Jack Black, Glen Powell, Zachary Levi, Josh Wiggins, Lee Eddy, Bill Wise, Natalie L'Amoreaux, Jessica Brynn Cohen, Sam Chipman, and Danielle Guilbot
Director: Richard Linklater
JOSEPH
I’m not really sure what to make of Richard Linklater’s newest endeavor, Apollo 10 ½. On one hand, it feels like an audiobook come to life, with the drawings playing out in front of you. It’s almost dreamlike in that sense. However, the marketing materials and trailer both imply that this is a story about a boy going to space, not so much a Boomer’s recollection of his childhood. It’s definitely more the nostalgia of the latter than the fantasy of the former, and it blends the two aspects in a confusing way. Overall, it’s probably better for older crowds, but it still wasn’t bad.
QUENTIN
While I don’t think writer/director Richard Linklater’s latest will appeal to younger generations, the nostalgia and rotoscoping animation mostly won me over. It’s essentially The Sandlot meets Dazed and Confused, highlighting what it was like to be a 10-year-old in 1969, which I found extremely relatable despite being born in 1981. As for the child astronaut fantasy, Linklater could have cut the entire underdeveloped plotline and not missed a beat. Ultimately, if you can’t see pieces of your childhood here (riding down the highway in the back of a pickup truck, playing baseball in the street), you’ll probably think Apollo 10 ½ is pretty lame.
