Fake Moon Landing Conspiracy? My Wild Thoughts on AppleTV+’s Original Movie

Okay, Apple TV+ thought it could lure me with Fly Me to the Moon, a glitzy 2024 rom-com that sounds like Mad Men meets NASA trailer, and I fell for it. A-list leads? Check. A goofy premise about faking Apollo 11? Check.

So I expected a wild, high-concept ride. Instead, I got a bland orbit. The official synopsis even spells it out, Scarlett Johansson’s Kelly Jones is hired to fix NASA’s image, and when the White House panics, she’s told to “stage a fake moon landing” as a backup plan.

By movie end, a stray cat on the lunar set reveals the real live broadcast was shown instead. In other words, USA didn’t actually conspire to fool the world, the whole film screams that with a wink, but they actually did try - but were unsuccessful at it, wait what?. Surprise, truth wins!.. Awwww!, the maker (Apple and Compnay) really think audience is naive and stupid, maybe they are right to some extent.

The cast keeps this thing afloat. Johansson absolutely brings it as Kelly, part ad exec, part Don-Draper-in-mini-skirt (in Mad Men). She chews through every scene with that trademark star power (think marketing genius meets Mad Men sass).

Tatum’s Cole is the straight-arrow NASA launch director, earnest, charming in goofy sweaters, and maybe a bit miscast (AP even noted he’s so likable there’s zero suspense in anything he does.

Jim Rash steals every moment as the over-the-top director filming the fake landing his diva tirades are goofy and but not very funny. Woody Harrelson and Ray Romano pop up as expected as hazy Nixon-era suits, doing their one-note schtick.

Altogether, the supporting ensemble is fine, if underwritten. At least it’s not a kiddie cartoon, the PG-13 rating means grown-up language and even a little smoking.

So, if you want Moms and Dads guffawing at NASA behind-the-scenes bad-behavior, this delivers. Now, the million-dollar question: what on Earth is this movie trying to say? On its face, it plays like a cheeky nod to moon-landing conspiracy cultists. Hollywood’s definitely mining the “OMG NASA totally faked it?” meme explains the film literally depicts a fake moon-landing backup plan.

But as soon as you think it’s endorsing that rant, it slams on the brakes. Director Greg Berlanti flat-out says the point was to honor reality, he chose NASA’s blessing to remind viewers “why the truth matters”. By the time that black cat spoils the live fake setup, happily making the audience remember and realise yes, USA did really land on the Moon.

The conspiratorial setup is just a red herring. In fact, as one space expert flatly puts it, there’s “zero proof” of any secret hoax, the premise is all smoke and mirrors.

So really, the movie’s message is truth triumphs. I get the idea, pretend a fake plan existed, only to stress “hey, real mission accomplished!” The flip side is that it feels extremely unsatisfying.

I came in hyped, expecting NASA satire and rom-com sparks. Instead, it felt like a cute (if clunky) alternate-history prologue to a decently-made love story. The trailer’s selling point the fake Moon broadcast, doesn’t even surface until deep into the plot, so by then my excitement had fizzled. And revealing the twist as if it’s a big revelation feels a bit cheesy.

So where does that leave me? Orbiting disappointment. If you love Johansson’s snark, Tatum’s dad-core NASA geek, or Rash’s scene-steals, maybe you’ll chuckle along. But I can’t shake that foregone feeling – the real landing happens in history, and this movie’s joke about faking it never really landed with me. Apple’s flashy $100M space-bracelet feels more like high-end sitcom production at times.

The pop-culture winks (Kubrick jokes, 60s riffing, cat cameos) land somewhere between groan and grin. I wanted a crazy “What if?” alternate reality trip, but instead got a pretty decent retro rom-com that just happens to mention faking the Moon landing.

It’s entertainingly silly, but not the out-of-this-world thrill I was hoping for. In the end, Fly me to the Moon, is more like see me yawning back on Earth.

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