X
  • 2022
  • TV-MA
  • Netflix
  • 2 h 8 m
  • 2022
  • TV-MA
  • Netflix
  • 2 h 8 m

Summary For the first time, Oscar-winning directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (Free Solo, The Rescue) point their lenses to the sky, covering the inspirational rise of SpaceX and Elon Musk’s two-decade effort to resurrect America’s space travel ambitions. Offering rare access inside the first crewed mission launched from U.S. soil...

  • 2022
  • TV-MA
  • Netflix
  • 2 h 8 m
  • 2022
  • TV-MA
  • Netflix
  • 2 h 8 m

Return to Space

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
56
User Score Mixed or Average Based on 14 User Ratings
5.4
My Score
Hover and click to give a rating Saved

Where to Watch

Summary For the first time, Oscar-winning directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (Free Solo, The Rescue) point their lenses to the sky, covering the inspirational rise of SpaceX and Elon Musk’s two-decade effort to resurrect America’s space travel ambitions. Offering rare access inside the first crewed mission launched from U.S. soil...

Where to Watch

Top Cast

View All

Elon Musk

Self -Chief Engineer SpaceX

Bob Behnken

Self - NASA Astronaut

Douglas Hurley

Self - NASA Astronaut

Jim Bridenstine

Self - NASA Administrator

Tim Dodd

Self - Host 'Everyday Astronaut'

Kiko Dontchev

Self - Sr. Director Launch & Recovery SpaceX

Lori Garver

Self - Former NASA Deputy Administrator

Hans Koenigsmann

Self - VP of Build and Flight Reliability SpaceX

Gwynne Shotwell

Self - President and COO SpaceX

Lars Blackmore

Self - Sr. Principal Mars Landing Engineer SpaceX

Karen L. Nyberg

Self - NASA Astronaut

Megan McArthur

Self - NASA Astronaut

Balachandar Ramamurthy

Self - Director of Flight Safety SpaceX

Anna Menon

Self - Mission Control Specialist SpaceX

Jessica Anderson

Self - Manufacturing Engineer SpaceX

Neil Armstrong

Self - Retired Astronaut, Apollo 11 Commander

Jeff Bezos

Self - Space Entrepreneur

Richard Branson

Self - Virgin Galactic Founder

Eugene Cernan

Self - Retired Astronaut, Apollo 17 Commander

Mike Hopkins

Self - NASA Astronaut

View All Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
56
57% Positive
4 Reviews
43% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 7 Critic Reviews
56
57% Positive
4 Reviews
43% Mixed
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
79
Apr 18, 2022
While space travel has always required idols, Return to Space would benefit from a more nuanced portrayal of the controversial figure accused of hoarding money and upsetting the stock markets with his tweets—even if said figure might eventually put us all on Mars.
By Aurora Amidon FULL REVIEW
75
Apr 7, 2022
Chin and Vasarhelyi make a solid case for why space exploration should continue, and the benefits we could reap from it, provided it doesn’t keep our heads perpetually lost in the clouds.
By Matt Fagerholm FULL REVIEW
70
Apr 7, 2022
It’s a return to dramatic accounts of blastoffs, followed by soul-filling footage from beyond our sheltering atmosphere and implacable gravity; a portrait, by reflected light from fiery boosters, of one of Earth’s most curious (in every respect) overachievers; and a testament to failing upward—far, far upward.
By Joe Morgenstern FULL REVIEW
70
Apr 7, 2022
The film is a relatively smooth blend of optimism for a rejuvenated emphasis on human exploration in the beyond, and branded content promoting a controversial businessman.
By Robert Abele FULL REVIEW
58
Apr 8, 2022
Return to Space is a bit too neatly packaged and overly idealistic about what SpaceX might mean for space travel. By turning their focus up to the stars, the filmmakers, unfortunately, ignore the myriad issues that private space travel creates on earth.
By Christian Gallichio FULL REVIEW
42
Apr 7, 2022
The film’s scattershot focus — in stark contrast to the breathless immediacy of “The Rescue” — and advertorial tone diminish the sheer thrill of watching the company land an orbital class rocket for the first time.
By David Ehrlich FULL REVIEW
40
Apr 7, 2022
Glowing with grandiose pronouncements and uplifting sentiment, Return to Space, a draggy documentary about America’s first manned spaceflight since 2011, could be easily repurposed as promotional material for Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
By Jeannette Catsoulis FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Mixed or Average Based on 14 User Ratings
5.4
50% Positive
7 Ratings
7% Mixed
1 Rating
43% Negative
6 Ratings

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Mixed or Average Based on 14 User Ratings
5.4
50% Positive
7 Ratings
7% Mixed
1 Rating
43% Negative
6 Ratings

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

 View All
Production Company Little Monster Films
Release Date Apr 7, 2022
Duration 2 h 8 m
Rating TV-MA
Genres
View All Details

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards
• 1 Nomination
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards
• 1 Nomination

Related Movies

Hoop Dreams

98
Universal Acclaim

Man with a Movie Camera

96
Universal Acclaim

Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)

96
Universal Acclaim

I Am Not Your Negro

95
Universal Acclaim

Woodstock

95
Universal Acclaim

Collective

95
Universal Acclaim

Amazing Grace

94
Universal Acclaim

Stop Making Sense

94
Universal Acclaim

We Were Here

94
Universal Acclaim

Faces Places

94
Universal Acclaim

David Byrne’s American Utopia

93
Universal Acclaim

Shoah: Four Sisters

93
Universal Acclaim

Our Body

93
Universal Acclaim

Sherpa

93
Universal Acclaim

The Decline of Western Civilization

93
Universal Acclaim

Brother's Keeper

93
Universal Acclaim

Crumb

93
Universal Acclaim

One More Time with Feeling

92
Universal Acclaim

Sugarcane

92
Universal Acclaim

The Act of Killing

92
Universal Acclaim

De Humani Corporis Fabrica

92
Universal Acclaim

Menus Plaisirs - Les Troisgros

92
Universal Acclaim

Related News

DVD/Blu-ray Releases: New & Upcoming

DVD/Blu-ray Releases: New & Upcoming

Jason Dietz

Find a list of new movie and TV releases on DVD and Blu-ray (updated weekly) as well as a calendar of upcoming releases on home video.

  • movie
2024 Movie Release Calendar

2024 Movie Release Calendar

Jason Dietz

Find release dates for every movie coming to theaters, VOD, and streaming throughout 2024 and beyond, updated weekly.

  • movie
May 2024 Movie Preview

May 2024 Movie Preview

Keith Kimbell

Get a look at the most notable movies debuting in May, including a Mad Max prequel, a Planet of the Apes sequel, and a promising Ryan Gosling-led action-comedy.

  • movie
Every Zack Snyder Movie, Ranked

Every Zack Snyder Movie, Ranked

Nick Hyman

With the arrival of Zack Snyder's latest Rebel Moon chapter on Netflix, we rank every one of the director's films—from bad to, well, less bad—by Metascore.

  • movie
Every Guy Ritchie Movie, Ranked

Every Guy Ritchie Movie, Ranked

Nick Hyman

We rank every one of the British director's movies by Metascore, from his debut Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels to his brand new film, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.

  • movie