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Rating: 
Summary: Must-have for those who want the real stuff
Review: For 30 years I've been searching for long-form uncut material on all aspects of the US space program , and now it is here!This material is not for everyone - but is priceless for an understanding of the U.S. in space. For the first time you can see the complete TV transmissions - as they were broadcast (some of them never were), and see all of the onboard 16mm film that was shot during the mission. Add to this the unique ways you can view the material - see the Apollo 11 lunar landing as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin describe the last moments from the post-flight debriefing... hear the Apollo 8 crew as they take the timeless "earthrise" photo. These moments are finally available without the filter of a documentary or dramatization. And they are finally available complete - not just a shot or two from this or that - but entire reels of footage from what you can learn so much. Highly recommended for those you know with serious space interest!
Rating:
Summary: A treasure of a gift to those interested in space...
Review: The four sets in this selection (each with 3 DVDs) were the best gift I've ever given my husband, who has been interested in space since he was very young. As someone who doesn't remember Apollo well (and has no memory of any of the stuff before it) I must admit they are a wonderful way to relive or explore that age of history. The Apollo 11 and Apollo 8 sets have all the TV that the astronauts did on the way to the moon, only a tiny part of which I had ever seen. I had no idea there was this much TV and film from the missions. Mostly one sees the same clip over and over but these sets opened my eyes. The Gemini set contains a very interesting documentary, plus interesting silent material (they feel like home movies!) on the first disc and footage from each mission on discs 2 and 3. I really didn't watch the two other discs, but my husband has been amazed at the quality and just loves it. The Saturn set also contains a show, plus two discs with close up pictures of the rockets launching... again, a huge hit! I think the big draw for the sets is: 1) you can see it all uncut, as it happened
2) there are lots of parts you've never seen before
3) it looks terrific on DVD I would also highly recommend them as a way to teach your children about space.
Rating:
Summary: Expensive, But Well Worth Every Cent
Review: This DVD set is rather expensive, but is one of the best ways that a serious space enthusiast can spend $150. Each of the sets is unique in that they essentially include all of the raw unedited footage of the programs and missions being covered, frequently from many angles and with many preflight and postflight activities included as well.
Without question my favorite sets of the "megapack" cover the Apollo 11 and Apollo 8 missions. The ability to see launch and rollout from numerous angles and to frequently hear inter-capsule and intra-capsule loop audio really emphasizes the timeline in a way that is not evident from reading transcripts.
The Gemini and Saturn sets follow slightly different formats, but are also very interesting. Please note that the Saturn set covers the early Saturn 1 and 1B models and not the Saturn V.
Spacecraft Films is to be highly commended for this series of DVDs. They are absolutely unique and absolutely critical for serious space historians. I didn't reach for the fast forward button once. I could not possibly recommend a DVD set more highly.
Rating: 
Summary: Facts and Figures Slow This Series
Review: This film is WONDERFUL if you are a die- hard astronaut/NASA buff. It has so many things you would be interested in: payload weights, thrust, details on how the rockets were developed... If you want "just the facts," this is your style. For the rest, please read the rest. I anticipated a comprehensive and enlightening series when I saw this DVD pack was being released. But every DVD I watched compelled me to use the remote's fast forward more. And more. And more. It's far from perfect. It truly needs work. The opening words from the videos' narrator almost lulled me to sleep. His approach had no sense of excitement or wonder, and his voice kept me from wondering much except, "Who chose this man?" Like I said, this movie has plenty of facts. But honestly, I felt like I were standing in a dark room at the Cape Canaveral museum filled with families who detoured from their Disney excursions. The problem was that the film lasted multiple times longer than the 10- to- 20- minute clips that the museums would show. I watched the 3- disc Apollo 8. And the 3- disc Gemini. And the 3- disc Saturn DVDs. It's a great movie if there are memorable moments and if the movie has high replay value. Well, the memories of the series is that it was....long. And I wouldn't rent any of them again, let alone buy them. Even if I could copy the films, I wouldn't waste a VHS tape on them. The producers didn't spend much time on any one item or scene. They just slapped a bunch of NASA footage in chronological order and left the narrator to babble on all these facts and figures, forgetting about focusing on the emotional side. Ken Burns would show the correct way to produce this, and I hope he does. Spacecraft Films couldn't hit the surface of the moon if they dropped a craft 10 feet from its surface, they missed so badly. Alternatives:
For All Mankind (dir: Al Reinert). A film (not a documentary) that presents a view of preparing, launching, and returning astronauts. Reinert used the best archival NASA footage and combined them into a 97- minute film that uses the voices of the actual astronauts, plus President John F. Kennedy. Reinert edited the footage of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo flights into a wonderful presentation as a single generic show of flight preparation, takeoff, lunar landing, and return. The added music by Brian Eno is timelessly beautiful. From the Earth to the Moon (prod: Tom Hanks, Ron Howard, et al). Some NASA footage is added, but much of the production is dramatic reenactments of the space race, complete with some gorgeous and realistic- looking special effects. If you aren't so bothered by actors portraying the astronauts and many fictional characters to dramatize the story, check it out. Even with the fictional drama added (which slightly bothers me -- why would they need to add drama to what are already dramatic moments?), the overall main story is correctly portrayed.
Rating:
Summary: Facts and Figures Slow This Series
Review: This film is WONDERFUL if you are a die- hard astronaut/NASA buff. It has so many things you would be interested in: payload weights, thrust, details on how the rockets were developed... If you want "just the facts," this is your style. For the rest, please read the rest. I anticipated a comprehensive and enlightening series when I saw this DVD pack was being released. But every DVD I watched compelled me to use the remote's fast forward more. And more. And more. It's far from perfect. It truly needs work. The opening words from the videos' narrator almost lulled me to sleep. His approach had no sense of excitement or wonder, and his voice kept me from wondering much except, "Who chose this man?" Like I said, this movie has plenty of facts. But honestly, I felt like I were standing in a dark room at the Cape Canaveral museum filled with families who detoured from their Disney excursions. The problem was that the film lasted multiple times longer than the 10- to- 20- minute clips that the museums would show. I watched the 3- disc Apollo 8. And the 3- disc Gemini. And the 3- disc Saturn DVDs. It's a great movie if there are memorable moments and if the movie has high replay value. Well, the memories of the series is that it was....long. And I wouldn't rent any of them again, let alone buy them. Even if I could copy the films, I wouldn't waste a VHS tape on them. The producers didn't spend much time on any one item or scene. They just slapped a bunch of NASA footage in chronological order and left the narrator to babble on all these facts and figures, forgetting about focusing on the emotional side. Ken Burns would show the correct way to produce this, and I hope he does. Spacecraft Films couldn't hit the surface of the moon if they dropped a craft 10 feet from its surface, they missed so badly. Alternatives:
For All Mankind (dir: Al Reinert). A film (not a documentary) that presents a view of preparing, launching, and returning astronauts. Reinert used the best archival NASA footage and combined them into a 97- minute film that uses the voices of the actual astronauts, plus President John F. Kennedy. Reinert edited the footage of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo flights into a wonderful presentation as a single generic show of flight preparation, takeoff, lunar landing, and return. The added music by Brian Eno is timelessly beautiful. From the Earth to the Moon (prod: Tom Hanks, Ron Howard, et al). Some NASA footage is added, but much of the production is dramatic reenactments of the space race, complete with some gorgeous and realistic- looking special effects. If you aren't so bothered by actors portraying the astronauts and many fictional characters to dramatize the story, check it out. Even with the fictional drama added (which slightly bothers me -- why would they need to add drama to what are already dramatic moments?), the overall main story is correctly portrayed.
Rating:
Summary: Comments from the producer
Review: When we set out to create this series of DVDs, we wanted to achieve something that all of the previous accounts of a documentary nature had not - to present this material without a filter, in a way to allow the viewer to see the maximum amount of material - both video and audio - in the best quality possible. In short, as lifelong students of the U.S. space program, we wanted to put together a collection the way we wished to see it - the way it happened. Most importantly, we set out to present the complete television transmissions and onboard motion picture film for individual missions - material that just hasn't been available before. This material is purposely left in its original form, albiet with new digital transfers, color correction where necessary and possible, and digital noise reduction. To do this we realized we would have to use certain unconventional methods. For example, we wished to present multiple angles of footage from rollout, suitup, etc. To do this required us to use different angles out of context, so that from time to time certain events were shown a couple of times so that the varied angles could be presented. Unless one realizes this was done to present multiple angles one might mistake it for material out of order. Nearly all of the 16mm film from EVA training, suitup, astronauts visiting the launch pad (all of which was re-transferred from the original using modern, digital telecines) was shot silent, and since we also wished to present as much audio as possible from mission events such as countdowns, we have married this audio to that footage. The result is the maximum amount of primary source material available on the subject and results in important audio from other events used on previously silent film. Lastly, especially for launch vehicles, we wanted to present the material we had only previously seen in short clips on documentaries, such as pad cameras, in its entirety. For those interested in the creation and flight of these vehicles, this material is fascinating, and filled with insightful information. Much of the material on these sets is presented, purposefully, the way it was shot. Some of the Hollywood storytelling created on this subject is wonderful, we love that, too, but as a chronicle of the greatest explorations of mankind the material deserved to be presented without such a filter. This is the way it happened, and it is amazing. Very soon in 2004, a six-disc chronicle of Apollo 15 and a three-disc edition on the Saturn V will be released.
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