Fly Me to the Moon (2008)

19% of critics liked it
(81 reviews)
28% of users liked it
(6,683 ratings)

Christopher Lloyd, Kelly Ripa, Nicollette Sheridan, and Tim Curry lend their voices to director Ben Stassen's (Haunted Castle and Encounter in the Third Dimension) animatedchildren's fantasy about three preteen flies who hitch a ride into space on the Apollo 11 moon mission. The year is… More Christopher Lloyd, Kelly Ripa, Nicollette Sheridan, and Tim Curry lend their voices to director Ben Stassen's (Haunted Castle and Encounter in the Third Dimension) animatedchildren's fantasy about three preteen flies who hitch a ride into space on the Apollo 11 moon mission. The year is 1969, and Americans all across the country are buzzing about the first manned mission to the moon. Even the insects aren't immune to the excitement, as evidenced by the enthusiasm of adolescent flies Nat (voice of Trevor Gagnon), IQ (voice of Philip Daniel Bolden), and Scooter (voice of David Gore). Over the years, Nat's grandpa (voice of Lloyd) has often recalled the time he hitched a ride on Amelia Earhart's airplane during the famed aviator's cross-Atlantic flight, and now Nat's dreams of recreating that feat on a much larger scale are finally set to come true. But while the three young flies only believe that they'll be gone for a few minutes, the fact is that they'll be drifting through space for almost an entire week. Just as they're about to sneak aboard the ship, the flies are spotted by a keen-eyed NASA ground control official and stored in a test tube for future study. Later in the flight, when the ship's engine malfunctions, the only ones capable of fixing the problem are the three tiny stowaways. But their mission isn't accomplished just yet, because grandpa's old flame Nadia (voice of Sheridan) has just arrived from Russia to warn him that a tiny fly-spy named Yegor (voice of Curry) has been assigned the task of traveling to Cape Canaveral and sabotaging the computer flight plans. Should Nat, IQ, and Scooter fail to act in time, Yegor's mission could spell disaster not only for the three thrill-seeking flies, but the entire U.S. space program. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Directed By: Ben Stassen
Written By: Domonic Paris, Dominic Paris
Genres: Animation, Kids & Family, Science Fiction & Fantasy

In Theaters: Aug 15, 2008 Wide
Studio: Summit Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Walter V. Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle
It's clear that animators can now achieve levels of visual depth that were previously impossible.
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
As for the space stuff, well, George Lucas need not lose any sleep.
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald
A tougher endurance test than anything NASA could cook up.
Derek Adams, Time Out
And while it may not teach sprogs anything about insects - these ones have human eyes and four limbs - director Ben Stassen has made a fair fist of portraying the Apollo mission with some accuracy.
Nathan Lee, New York Times
Fly Me to the Moon bills itself as the first animated feature created expressly for 3-D. Too bad it wasn't created expressly for, you know, pleasure or art.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
You can skip it in all three dimensions.
James Luxford, The National
It is a family story meant for younger viewers, and passes by without too much effort.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
Without much else beyond its 3-D design going for it, this adventure grows old very fast.
Joseph Proimakis, Movies for the Masses
sti molis 85lepti diarkeia tis, na einai peripoy misi ora poly megali ki allo toso aneyri, kai s' olo to ypoloipo tis na dikaiologei tin yparksi tis se aithoysa mono os oriaka asteia, haritomeni, i diaskedastiki entelos paidika kai meta bias aksiologi na
Paula Nechak, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Unfortunately, the flies aren't so compelling.
Pete Hammond, Boxoffice Magazine
Fine family entertainment with a particularly strong message for the small fry.
Liz Braun, Jam! Movies
No amount of fiddling with funny glasses in the theatre will keep you from noticing a weak storyline.
Brent Simon, Screen International
One of the strangest misfires in recent animation history.
Frank Lovece, Film Journal International
G-rated, 3D animated adventure of three plucky young flies who hitch a ride on Apollo 11 plods rather than soars. And maggots with faces aren't cute.
Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall
Despite some astonishing visual sequences, a flimsy script and frankly awful character design ground this film before it can blast off.
Matthew Turner, ViewLondon
Without the special effects, this would be a routine and occasionally dull adventure, but the 3D animation is simply astonishing and the film is worth seeing for that alone.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Michael E

Its not one of the worst animated movies ive seen but it was stupid
Leigh R

It was cute enough to watch once, but mostly kind of boring.
Nani V

Cute movie.
A.D. V

Abysmally dull "family" film not recommended for anyone over 5. And the 3D sucks too.
Bradley J

While it is an interesting film, Fly Me to the Moon is too childish, flatly written and dull for adults and too tedious and slow for kids. Overall Rating: 16
Barry L

I made the mistake of watching this and I have to say it was nothing special. The story line is weird, the plot odd and the poo references I could have done without...watchable to by no means Pixar.
RJ M

Billed as the first fully computer animated movie made in 3-D, it tells the story of three flies that stowaway on board Apollo 11's historic flight to the moon. That's the whole plot. If that were the whole focus of the movie, they couldv'e pulled off a fun little… More
Billed as the first fully computer animated movie made in 3-D, it tells the story of three flies that stowaway on board Apollo 11's historic flight to the moon. That's the whole plot. If that were the whole focus of the movie, they couldv'e pulled off a fun little movie. Unfortunately things get bogged down with too many extra characters and subplots involving Russian flies that try to sabotage the mission back at ground control on Earth. That gets in the way of a genuienly fun little adventure about the other flies and their journey to outer space. It's as if the filmmakers realized that the movie they made wasn't long enough for theatrical release, and went back and shot a bunch of filler material. There's a good 60 minute movie here, stretched out to 90 minutes. Of course the whole gimmick of the movie is the 3-D factor. The earthbound scenes contain the typical "comin' at ya" shots, including a flies point of view as he zips through fields, junkyards, etc. But I give the movie an extra half star because the 3-D scenes involving the space mission are quite remarkable, and provide a "you are there" feel that isn't possible in a 2-D feature. But since the movie was made for digital 3-D theaters, it's obvious it will be in 3-D on video. My advice...wait for it.
Jason S

Not as good as I thought it would be. Boring in spots but very cute in others. Not very funny though and really probably for little kids only. 3D was fun in spots.

Read all 8 featured audience ratings

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Cast

Christopher Lloyd
as Grandpa
Kelly Ripa
as Nat's Mom
Nicollette Sheridan
as Nadia
Tim Curry
as Yegor
Trevor Gagnon
as Nat
Philip Daniel Bolden
as IQ
David Gore
as Scooter
Ed Begley Jr
as Poopchev
Adrienne Barbeau
as Scooter's Mom
Robert Patrick
as Louie
Buzz Aldrin
as Buzz Aldrin
Sandy Simpson
as Commander Armstrong
Eddie Frierson
as Commander Aldrin
David Cowgill
as Commander Collins
Steve Kramer
as Leonid
Mimi Maynard
as IQ's Mom
Lloyd Scher
as Mission Control 1969
Phil Proctor
as Senior Official
Nicholas Guest
as Fly Buddy #1
Archie Hahn III
as Fly Buddy #2
Lyannanne Zager
as Fly at Launch
Manville Zager
as Butch
Scott Manville
as Butch
Cam Clarke
as Ray
Michael McConnahie
as American Newscaster
Doug Stone
as Russian Newscaster
Max Burkholder
as Mom's Maggot
Jessica Gee
as Maggot #1
Mona Marshall
as Maggot #2
Barbara Goodson
as Maggot #3
Toby Stone
as Mosquito
James Frederick
as Horsefly #1
Jeffrey Braer
as Horsefly #2
Greg Berger
as Pale Russian Flies
Sophie Simpson
as Katie
Lorraine Nicholson
as Polly
Auguste Paris
as Kid Fly at the Party
Michael Consuelos
as "Party Mold" Kid Fly

See more (38)

Fly Me to the Moon (2008)

Critic Reviews

Featured Audience Ratings

Michael E

Leigh R

Nani V

A.D. V

Bradley J

Barry L

RJ M

Jason S

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