Aahana Swrup
In the Apple rom-com film ‘Fly Me to the Moon‘ the stakes are astronomical from the beginning. Launch director Cole Davis is preparing for the upcoming Apollo 11 moon landing mission while the Program remains dangerously underfunded. As a result, Moe Berkus brings in the famed Kelly Jones, the skilled marketing executive who can turn the Space Race’s relevancy in culture around. Nonetheless, things rapidly go south once the woman finds herself roped into selling the biggest lie of the century: a faked moon landing broadcast. Consequently, as Cole prepares for the real moon landing, Kelly constructs the perfect soundstage for Project Artemis—the nation’s backup for Apollo 11. Somehow, a stray black cat, Mischief, ends up becoming the catalyst for the potential destruction of both, raising the question about the feline’s own safety. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Mischief the Cat Saves the Day
Mischief, the cat, enters the narrative as a habitual headache for Cole Davis, who deals with the Apollo Program’s underfunded shortcomings by pinning the blame on the “unlucky” black cat that frequents the John F. Kennedy Space Center. Nonetheless, despite his hurried attempts to capture the cat whenever it shows up, the Launch Director never quite manages to catch up to it. Afterward, once Kelly Jones moves her office into the lot at the shabby Communications cabin, Mischief begins frequenting her space. Comparatively, Kelly’s side of the center proves to require much less running out of the cat.
For the same reason, Mischief never learns that the “No Trespassing” sign outside the top-secret warehouse under Kelly’s command is off-limits for everyone, including feline individuals. In the warehouse, Kelly and her covert crew are building the sound stage for the fake moon landing that Moe plans to use as a backup in case the real thing goes south. However, as the actual Apollo 11 mission nears, he reveals he plans to use the fake footage either way to leave no room for error in a feat that can be the most significant PR opportunity for the country.
Naturally, even Kelly—who has no problem selling an occasional white lie— can’t stand the dishonesty behind Moe’s actions. As such, she reveals the truth to Cole and teams up with him to ensure the real moonwalk footage makes it out to the public. With the help of their friends, the duo switches the controls so that the real moonwalk footage is broadcast to the public. However, Kelly keeps up the act as if the fake moonwalk is being recorded.
In the end, Kelly and Cole’s call ends up being the right one as Mischief, the cat, somehow ends up in the rafters right above the set. Therefore, the cat wreaks havoc on the set before landing on the fake moon. Thus, it ruins the simulation—which would have been a disaster if Kelly was actually broadcasting the fake footage. Therefore, even though Moe realizes Kelly and Cole had gone behind his back, he can’t blame them since his actions could’ve potentially ruined the country’s reputation forever. As for Mischief, the tumble down the rafters is nothing the cat can’t bounce back from. Ultimately, the cat bookends the film, running through a classified area—alive and well.
Read More: Fly Me to the Moon: Is the Movie Inspired by a True Story?
