Since the mark made by Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” (and growing public interest in space exploration thanks to figures like Elon Musk), a new crop of space-related films has seen the big screen in recent years — some disappointing, like “Gravity,” and others above average, like “The Martian.” As of recent, “La La Land” and “Whiplash” director Damien Chazelle (with executive production in the hands of Steven Spielberg) delivered “First Man,” the Neil Armstrong (played by Ryan Gosling) biopic detailing his personal journey through familial tragedy towards the success of the Apollo 11 mission and landing on the moon.

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For a film that depicts the primary objective of getting as far away from humanity as anyone has ever been, “First Man” is deeply personal; every scene is focused intently on Armstrong’s perspective, and Gosling portrays his emotions with exacted subtlety as we follow his character arc. Other performances similarly impress. As secondary lead, the UK actress Claire Foy plays Janet Armstrong with unquestionable acting. There are three words of dialogue where her Midwest accent recedes to reveal her native cross-Atlantic dialect (which it also does in less apparent ways throughout), although this is perhaps the single blunder of the film.

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“First Man” could be summarized adequately in one word: theatrical. Chazelle, as his previous work should indicate, has constructed what would better be called an on-screen production than a film. Plot development becomes less verbose as it gets closer to its conclusion, and the musical score similarly becomes a more dominant force of effect on either side of the story’s climax. To cultivate this momentum however, certain moments of immersive detail that were seen at the beginning are absent from the latter, creating minor disconnect in what the audience may come to expect versus what happens, but which is all traded off for consistent engagement that remains concise and focused on the story being told.

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While constructed deliberately to be technically compelling in every change of scene and development of story, “First Man” is foremost not for the spectacle of its circumstances or the detail of the history on which it was based, but for the emotional gratification of its protagonist and intimate proximity to his moment-to-moment conditions. Cinematography follows suit. If Neil is in a claustrophobic space, so is the camera. If Neil looks upon a vast expanse, so do we. There remain minor and necessary exceptions of course, but the majority of our vantages are directly related to Armstrong’s.

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The final result is a “based on a true story” movie that avoids many of the follies of others in the same category. As an audience, we do learn quite a bit about the history of the Apollo and Gemini space programs, but as individuals we watch in awe of Armstrong’s composure and resilience — the one constant amongst the chaos and uncertainty of that which unfolds before us, and the vehicle by which a lesson in resolute individual transcendence is conferred.