‘The Secret History of the Moon’: Movie Review
Beautiful and educational as usual, but forgettable
If all videos of John D. Boswell (channel: melodysheep) is a day at school, then his 2020 The Secret History of the Moon is like a break, a huge break, though obviously short. Unlike other Boswell shorts, this is a stylistic listicle stating the possible theories of how our glorious ill-fate Moon came from, and/or how it was created. Its title didn’t seem as heavy as the rest, because it is, and will only be to the palette of specific people. Which is great.
Undeniably, the visuals here are great, alongside the melancholic and superb score, as well as exceptional narrations from our female expert and male tale-teller telling the legend of the Moon. But sadly in this piece, just like the Giant Hypothesis Theory, there’s a huge flaw. The sound starts very suddenly, like pops. I pretty much dislike the black bars in the movie which rather than making it cinematic makes it feel cramped. Some of the visuals, particularly the GHT explosion one, is irritatingly cartoonish as if the fires blend with the magma and the rock. However it feels great the Boswell learned a lesson from Timelapse of the Future, about balancing the volume of voice and music.
Because of the listicle nature of The Secret History of the Moon, the movie is very much forgettable. Like Timelapse of the Entire Universe, I feel very amazing and very immersed throughout the movie, but the only thing I thought after watching it was: “Oh well, just a watched a movie.” Not to say it’s bad or anything, it’s just something inherent. And something new. It could be a bad thing, but it could also be otherwise; I feel like it expands the scope of the genres Boswell cover in his luxurious channel.
The Secret History of the Moon is a great but so-so supplement to Boswell’s filmography, and a light introduction to his heavy style. It’s not meant to be his best work, but in a lot of ways I wish he’d put more consideration into it; it felt like a piece he composed in a vacuum. If after watching it you want more of his works, you know what you gotta do. Look up.
GENRE: Documentary, animation
DURATION: 15 minutes
WATCHED ON: YouTube
AGE RATING: 10+
LANGUAGE: English
