Ryan Gosling defends Neil Armstrong biopic 'First Man' leaving out American flag in moon landing scene
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
“First Man,” the Neil Armstrong biopic that tells the tale of the 1969 moon landing, has stolen the show at several international film festivals — but not everyone is happy.
The film fails to show one of the most integral moments of American history – when Armstrong plants the American flag on the moon, according to The Telegraph . Ryan Gosling, the Canadian actor who portrays Armstrong in the movie, defended the decision to not show the flag.
Gosling was asked at the Venice Film Festival whether omitting the scene was deliberate and the actor attempted to sidestep the question by responding that the moon landing “transcended countries and borders.”
“I think this was widely regarded in the end as a human achievement [and] that's how we chose to view it,” he told reporters. "I also think Neil was extremely humble, as were many of these astronauts, and time and time again he deferred the focus from himself to the 400,000 people who made the mission possible.”
Gosling said he didn’t think Armstrong “viewed himself as an American hero.”
Gosling jokingly admitted he might have “cognitive bias” being that he’s Canadian.
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"First Man" is a biopic film about Neil Armstrong's journey to ... and landing on ... the moon in 1969 that omits the fact that he planted the US flag there.
Definition of biopic
It’s a movie I won’t bother to watch. To leave out his planting the American flag which is still there is just a way of Hollywood liberals showing their contempt for America.
I don't think it is intentionally anti American. I think they wanted to make sure it would translate well over seas. I believe it was a financial decision. Not wanting to believe that other countries want to see "propaganda of American excellence". I am NOT saying I agree with that decision. It's bulshit. I just don't believe it was an anti American decision.
Unfortunately it does play into the cultural Marxism going on now in the US and Europe. Destroying any individualism a nation may have and paint it as a humanity achievement alone.
People have already rewritten novels and textbooks. Now, they are rewriting an historic event that specifically belongs to the USA.
The taxpayers of the USA paid for the moon landing and we deserve for our flag to be shown
That's definitely one fact, of many, that Ryan Gosling (age 37) and others do not understand.
If they went out of their way to avoid showing the American flag for artistic or political reasons, that's kinda shameful. We did that as a country. We were proud of our national achievement. So, we planted our flag. You better believe anyone else would have planted their flag, too.
We tend to nostalgize the space program the same way we do the "Age of Exploration." Looking back, we imagine that the astronauts - like (we imagine) Columbus - were on a delightful odyssey of pure science and exploration for its own sake - not for conquest or wealth. Such motivations embarrass us now.
While those pure science aspects were present, the space program was really about the Cold War struggle with the Soviet Union. Landing on the moon was a military triumph before it was anything else.
Based on that, I suspect it's more likely that studio executives told them to leave the flag out so the movie would sell more tickets in places like Russia and China. The global box office is a huge part of the economics of movie making, particularly China and the rest of Asia. Some movies even make the majority of their money overseas and studios make lots of little decisions to facilitate that. It's incomplete history, but the movie, at least, can be marketed as that delightful odyssey of yada yada yada.
Bit by bit, little by little, day after day, "they" are attempting to rewrite history. I don't think I need to define who the PC "they" is.
Let's not forget the historic statues and monuments that have either been removed or destroyed in the name of "PC".
Notice that there are no blame America first /American exceptionalism denier progressives here defending this.
I noticed and am not surprised.
Here's another article on the topic. Check the comments, too.
pffft, more manufactured outrage.
But, but, the flag, the flag. Boo hoo hoo.
Big fucking deal.
Thank you for contributing an anti-USA comment.
It was likely the director's call, not the actor's. Maybe the subject of the biopic had final approval over the script. This manufactured outrage is nothing more that a prequel to the white nationalist hysterics that will be on display when football season starts. Too bad the self proclaimed patriotism of some doesn't extend to their comprehension of the Constitution. No patriotic American will tolerate the assaults on the 1st amendment by the russian influenced rightwing.
Your comment is pure speculation bordering on ridiculous. BTW - Neil Armstrong died 6 years ago.
What assaults are you referring to? The press and the left has been spouting anti-Trump propaganda for two years now.
It's either some type of an authorized biopic, or it isn't. Manufactured outrage, try again.
Please don't encourage that person's attempt to derail. This seed has nothing to do with Trump or a political "wing".
Perhaps you can find out and report on it with facts instead of speculating.
I haven't seen manufactured or real "outrage". What I do see are some very real anti-USA/anti-American flag comments.
I never mentioned trump.
If you'd taken a closer look at my comment 9.1.5 you'd have seen that it was a reply to Greg Jones, not you. But, now that you've mentioned Trump, please don't do it again.
No thanks. I'll engage this nothing burger subject at it's own superficial level. I reject the judgements of what constitutes patriotism by those with such a limited comprehension of the US Constitution. I'd caution those that would imply the existence of some patriotic caste system, they just might find themselves on the bottom of that totem pole.
Are you paid to post these bizarre allegations? Or is it a hobby?
ie: still beating the wife?
Besides, everybody knows the moon landings were faked anyway.
Really? Perhaps you can explain your sweeping generalization.
The Feigned Rightwing Outrage of the Day #8,952...
Since I posted comment 8 , it's obvious that you are referring to me. Please specify exactly where I expressed "Feigned" or real "Rightwing Outrage" in comment 8. Here's a heads-up, JBB: You'll be hard-pressed to find evidence, because I am neither right nor left wing and as I've already told you and others on this site, it takes a tremendous amount of crap for me to become "outraged" over it. But, give it your best shot; I await your evidence.
Don't expect much. That pool is shallow.
I know, but I keep hoping.
If the outrage isn't important or genuine, then why was it crucial to not show the flag? After all, if it's no big deal, just show it.
Furthermore, if it wasn't important at the time, why did the astronauts plant the flag in the first place?
Perhaps those who didn't witness the USA's space accomplishments during the Cold War in real time can't understand or appreciate the importance, because no one taught them about Eisenhower's and JFK's Space Race with the USSR.
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Do NOT derail my seed with NAZI references as a way to equate the USA to NAZI GERMANY!! What a despicable thing to do!!!
OK, well surely you'd support showing a German flag to show that NASA technology is largely the product of German technology, right? It seems rather arrogant for the US not to give credit where credit is due.
America is a collection of people from all over the world. Your heritage and ancestry might be something else, but when you come here, you're American. At least that's the way it's supposed to be. Therefore the American flag is the appropriate one.
Seems rather dishonest for America to try to take credit for technologies which were largely invented by German rocket scientists who were the product of the German educational system. America simply doesn't value smarts like that anymore......instead our GOP leaders prize the uneducated folks who vote for them and the GOP does its best to make a good education unaffordable.
It takes a village. I don't see Germany landing anyone on the moon.
Apparently the US can't get anyone to the moon without the help of Russian rockets today.
So do tell. Who are these Americans that have gone to the moon on Russian rockets? For that matter name a Russian that has gone to the moon.
Pretty much all manned NASA launches these days use Russian rockets....that's how we get to the space station. We couldn't lift ourselves off the ground with our own bootstraps.
You know that the US isn't sending anyone to the moon, today, right?
We use little Russian rockets to get to the International Space Station. Sending a mission to the moon requires way more payload capacity and so far, no rocket has exceeded the capabilities of the old Saturn V rocket that actually did take men to the moon - not even the latest SpaceX rocket.
Next year, NASA is scheduled to unveil its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. That rocket is being designed to have the capability of taking men to Mars. No Russians required.
No bucks, no Buck Rogers.
NASA budget 1966- 4.4% of federal budget
NASA budget 2013- .49% of federal budget
Again you said that we could not get to the moon without Russian rockets. Prove your statement.
We did and we could again. Do some think we forgot how to build a Saturn V?
Maybe if you're Canadian - or under 45 or 50 years of age, you just don't get it. What do they call it when you try to portray or adopt a culture you don't understand? Oh yeah! Cultural Appropriation. I thought that was offensive, but I guess it's only so for some people and not others.
.
Okay?
What's sad is that if Armstrong planted the flag and then took a knee in front of it liberals would've thought it was brilliant.
No they would have wanted him fired immediately. They would have complained that he was a government employee and was praying on government time endorsing religion.
Oh yeah. I didn't think of that.
They must have absolutely hated it when our first astronauts made it into space and upon looking down on our earth they read Genesis One outloud on then world wide tv and radio. That was awesome!
Apollo 8, Christmas Eve 1968.
I wouldn't have cared.
Good poetry is good poetry.
In today’s NewsTalkers seeding that would be deleted or locked for “proselytizing”. It was a great moment in American history though just as the planing of our flag on our moon was.
Um, are you suggesting that we don't love him for what he did? For his achievement? For what he represented to the Human Race? Pretty dumb ass take.
The question is do you all love him for what he accomplished for America as a crowning American achievement done by America and Americans?
Buzz Aldrin was the second American to step onto the moon. He and Armstrong planted the US Flag. Here's his take on the movie:
I didn’t watch the Superman movie where he omitted “the America way” from his line and I won’t watch this movie where they omit the American flag either. Both are clearly political statements on the movie makers parts and my statement is not to show up for it.
That is fucking stupid. What Superman movie are you talking about, and you seriously won't go see a movie if it doesn't suck Uncle Sam's dick in some way?
Just show it man, make it be historically accurate.
I have a feeling there are some of our winger friends on this seed right now who could very well have been part of that "moon landing was faked" movement. What makes me think that? Well, this, for one: