Neil Armstrong And The Langholmites

Bluesky

Veteran shorts documentary-maker Duncan Cowles – who also showed an aptitude for long form with Silent Men – is at his most playful with his latest short, much of which is predicated on one of the first questions we all learn to repeatedly ask as children: “Why?”

It starts not with Neil Armstrong going boldly but a cow going, some might say, quite foolishly to heights not generally charted by bovines despite their Moon-jumping reputation. It’s an enjoyably quirky way to introduce an enjoyably quirky subject, featuring contributions from the enjoyably quirky townsfolk of Langholm, Dumfriesshire.

The town in the Scottish Borders is where Armstrong’s family came from and where he, three years after that Moon walk, went to become the burgh’s first “Freeman”, giving a speech which turned out to be pretty emotional. This is the launching point for the Scottish director’s humanistic and inquisitive film, which blends archive footage with conversations and question sessions with some of those who were there on the day.

The recollections are delightful and affectionate, while also emphasising the everyday self-deprecating loveliness you’ll generally find in Britain if you make it your business to chat to a stranger. Along with learning about where Armstrong drank coffee that day and what was played at the ceremony, we’re also introduced to Johnnie Armstrong, who is a teddy with history, a tartan maker who says his greatest achievement is is long marriage and another Freeman of the town.

There’s quite a lot of facts crammed into this winner of the Critics’ Circle Best Short accolade but Cowles always finds a way of making the film fun, forging connections unexpectedly or asking the right question at the right time. There’s a gentle humour at play that sees the funny side of people’s quirkiness while celebrating them for it rather than belittling them. As Cowles’ film asserts, there are many different definitions of greatness and, with this, he achieves one of them.

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