Editing To Fly! (section)

== Reception ==

=== Box office ===

''To Fly!'' is regarded as the first [[Blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbuster]] IMAX film.{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|227}}<ref name=":7" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Champlin |first=Charles |author-link=Charles Champlin |date=February 7, 1985 |title=IMAX brings you larger than life |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-02-07-ca-5450-story.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=July 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230725094629/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-02-07-ca-5450-story.html |archive-date=July 25, 2023|quote=They made the first notable IMAX film, "To Fly," which premiered at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum in 1976 and is still playing.}}</ref>}} Over one million people watched it during its first year at the NASM, with approximately 80% of its 485 seats occupied.<ref name=":44" /><ref name=":4" /> Initially, Collins had projected three and a half NASM visitors to view it.<ref name=":35" /> By 1980, it amassed more than 6.3 million viewers, with an average seat occupation of 77%,<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|226}} growing to 6.5 million by 1983.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 1983 |title=Flying high at the Smithsonian |volume=37 |page=12 |work=[[Changing Times (magazine)|Changing Times]] |publisher=[[Kiplinger]] |issue=3 |id=[[ProQuest]] [https://www.proquest.com/docview/199075388/6C286CF4B4974773PQ/1 199075388]}}</ref> Over 15 million people have watched it at the museum;<ref name=":3" /> 4 million of which were in its three years,<ref name="Globe">{{Cite news|last=Arnold|first=Gary|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1979/04/05/graceful-globe-trotting/a58c5fb1-051e-4221-8f3d-6ed549f6e5bf/|title=Graceful Globe-trotting|date=April 5, 1979|access-date=August 22, 2023|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|archive-date=August 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230822074717/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1979/04/05/graceful-globe-trotting/a58c5fb1-051e-4221-8f3d-6ed549f6e5bf/|url-status=live}}</ref> then 4.5 million the following year.<ref name=":18" /> By 1982, around 100 million audiences were recorded across the US.<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|226}} By 1991, over 100 million people have viewed ''To Fly!'' at schools and on television.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Weybret|first=Marty|date=June 27, 1991|title=For movie crew, Lodi a Dutch treat|page=3|work=[[Lodi News-Sentinel]]|publisher=Horizon Publications|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19910627&id=5JszAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wTIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=929,535893|url-status=live|access-date=July 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721094632/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19910627&id=5JszAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wTIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=929%2C535893|archive-date=July 21, 2021|via=[[Google News]]}}</ref> In 1996, ''[[CBS This Morning]]'' dubbed ''To Fly!'' "the longest-running ticketed film in one location in history" and reported that it accumulated over 300 million views worldwide.<ref name=":14" /> From 2000 to 2012, there was an audience addition of 1.5 million at the NASM.<ref name=":1" /> Overall, the film is the longest-exhibited documentary and [[sponsored film]] in the world.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6" />

Museums like the NASM and NMPFT used early earnings of the film to underwrite expenses,<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Third Five Years of the 8th AF News, 1985-1989|year=1990|page=173|publisher=8AFPX Division of the [[Eighth Air Force]] Historical Society|editor-last=Woolnough|editor-first=John H.|location=[[Strasburg, Pennsylvania]]|oclc=23660412}}</ref> maintain theaters, and/or fund IMAX films.<ref name=":35" /><ref name=":27" /> It grew from $20&nbsp;million in 1993—thus being the 14th highest-grossing independently distributed film in the US and Canada (excluding erotic films)—<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 17, 1993 |title=In winner's circle |url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/in-winner-s-circle-109686/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208233646/https://variety.com/1993/film/news/in-winner-s-circle-109686/ |archive-date=February 8, 2023 |access-date=August 30, 2023 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |publisher=[[Penske Media]]}}</ref> to $100&nbsp;million in 1999.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Olson |first=Eric J. |date=January 4, 1999 |title=Giant screens poised for big impact |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |volume=373 |issue=7 |page=9 |issn=0042-2738}}</ref> Up to 2000, it earned $50 million in the NASM alone.<ref name=":22" /> ''To Fly!'' was the third highest-grossing IMAX documentary as of 2002, earning $113&nbsp;million, behind ''[[The Dream Is Alive|The Dream is Alive]]'' (1985, $150&nbsp;million) and MFF's ''[[Everest (1998 film)|Everest]]'' (1998, $114&nbsp;million).<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Nicole |first=Sperling |date=April 23, 2002 |title=Imax's hopes for DMR loom large: Technology could help boost selection of giant-screen films. (Money) |magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |publisher=[[MRC (company)|MRC]] |volume=373 |issue=2 |page=13 |issn=0018-3660}}</ref> It gained a net addition of $2.7&nbsp;million up to early 2003,<ref name="Voyages" /> then a gross $900,000 throughout the year,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chautard |first=Andre |date=January 4, 2004 |title=Nature's movie mogul |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jan-04-ca-chautard4-story.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831100301/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jan-04-ca-chautard4-story.html |archive-date=August 31, 2023 |access-date=August 31, 2023 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> and another $11.3&nbsp;million up to 2011.<ref name=":36">{{Cite web|last=Rose|first=Michael|date=June 19, 2011|title=Taking IMAX to the Max: Greg MacGillivray Is the Grandmaster of the Giant Screen|url=https://www.documentary.org/feature/taking-imax-max-greg-macgillivray-grandmaster-giant-screen|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122064121/https://www.documentary.org/feature/taking-imax-max-greg-macgillivray-grandmaster-giant-screen|archive-date=November 22, 2021|access-date=November 22, 2021|publisher=[[International Documentary Association]]|location=[[Los Angeles]]}}</ref> In between that, ''[[The Numbers (website)|The Numbers]]'' reported over $86.6&nbsp;million within the US and Canada and $34.1&nbsp;million elsewhere, totaling at $120.7&nbsp;million. This meant the film became the second-highest-grossing 1976 film behind ''[[Rocky]]'', which earned $117.2&nbsp;million, and above ''[[A Star Is Born (1976 film)|A Star is Born]]'', which earned $63.1&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite The Numbers|id=To-Fly|title=To Fly!|access-date=December 19, 2021|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208234051/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/To-Fly#tab=summary|archive-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref> MFF reported an overall $135&nbsp;million gross as of December 2019,<ref name=":9" />{{Rp|page=3}} thus being the company's second highest-grossing documentary film after ''Everest''.<ref name=":3" />

=== Critical response ===
{{Quote box
| quote = Can you really call yourself a Washingtonian if you haven't seen ''To Fly''?
| author = —John Kelly
| source = ''[[The Washington Post]]'' (2016)<ref name=":6" />
| salign = center
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''To Fly!'' was well-received by many film critics;<ref name=":47">{{Cite news|date=March 19, 1980|title=To Fly!: Movie Gives Feelings of Flying On Seven-Story Screen|page=11C|work=The Gaffney Ledger|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91308924/|access-date=December 28, 2021|via=[[Newspapers.com]] {{Open access}}|archive-date=December 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211228162912/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91308924/the-gaffney-ledger/|url-status=live}}</ref> John Alderson of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' summarized that "the subject charms its imagination, while the IMAX format goes right to the brink of sensory overload".<ref name=":26" /> Contemporary critics called it underrated and electric,{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="Voyages" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":7" />}} with David Handler of the [[Newspaper Enterprise Association]] dubbing it "the ultimate [[Psychedelic film|film trip]]".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Handler |first=David |date=March 26, 1982 |title=The longest-running hit film in nation: 'To Fly' |work=[[The Desert Sun]] |agency=[[Newspaper Enterprise Association]] |issue=200 |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=DS19820326.2.160&srpos=1&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-To+Fly%21+IMAX+1976-------1 |url-status=live |access-date=November 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129013040/https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=DS19820326.2.160&srpos=1&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN-To+Fly%21+IMAX+1976-------1 |archive-date=November 29, 2021 |via=[[California Digital Newspaper Collection]]}}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' called it an icon of the city<ref name=":18" /> and a must-watch to all Washingtonians.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last=Kelly|first=John|date=January 10, 2016|title=A long time ago, big reels of film came to Air and Space Museum. No more.|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-long-time-ago-big-reels-of-film-came-to-air-and-space-museum-no-more/2016/01/10/164b7736-b658-11e5-a842-0feb51d1d124_story.html|url-status=live|url-access=limited|access-date=July 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021200641/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-long-time-ago-big-reels-of-film-came-to-air-and-space-museum-no-more/2016/01/10/164b7736-b658-11e5-a842-0feb51d1d124_story.html|archive-date=October 21, 2020}}</ref> The film was cited by scholars and authors as examplifying the role of screen size in amplifying a film's [[kinesthetic]] thrills.{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lombard|first1=Matthew|last2=Reich|first2=Robert D.|last3=Grabe|first3=Maria Elizabeth|last4=Bracken|first4=Cheryl Campanella|last5=Ditton|first5=Theresa Bolmarcich|date=January 10, 2006|title=Presence and Television: The Role of Screen Size|journal=[[Human Communication Research]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|volume=26|issue=1|pages=75–98|doi=10.1111/j.1468-2958.2000.tb00750.x}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Frome|first=Jonathan|date=2006|title=Representation, Reality, and Emotions Across Media|url=https://www.academia.edu/2619922|url-status=live|journal=Film Studies|publisher=[[Manchester University Press]]|volume=8|issue=1|pages=22|doi=10.7227/FS.8.4|eissn=2054-2496|url-access=registration|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211127090724/https://www.academia.edu/2619922/Representation_Reality_and_Emotions_Across_Media|archive-date=November 27, 2021|access-date=November 27, 2021|via=[[Academia.edu]]}}</ref><ref name=":16" />{{Rp|225}}<ref name=":10" />}} Some called ''To Fly!'' one of the best IMAX films,{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":25" /><ref name=":7" /><ref name=":23">{{Cite web|last=McKerrow|first=Steve|date=May 8, 1993|title=Maryland Science Center brings hit IMAX movies back|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1993-05-08-1993128113-story.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622113351/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1993-05-08-1993128113-story.html|archive-date=June 22, 2021|access-date=November 20, 2021|website=[[The Baltimore Sun]]|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Graeber|first=Laurel|date=May 31, 2002|title=''FAMILY FARE''|page=44, section E|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/31/movies/family-fare.html|url-status=live|url-access=limited|access-date=November 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180128095525/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/31/movies/family-fare.html|archive-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref>}} with guides like the ''[[Michelin Green Guide]]'' and one by ''[[BioScience]]'' calling it a must-watch for those planning to visit the NASM.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=September 1, 1976|title=People and Places — NASM: Space Scholars Welcome|journal=[[BioScience]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|volume=26|issue=9|pages=586|doi=10.2307/1297286|jstor=1297286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=[[Michelin Guide|Michelin]] Must Sees Washington D.C.|year=2011 |publisher=[[Michelin]]|isbn=978-1907099465|edition=4|publication-date=October 26, 2011|pages=40}}</ref>

The cinematography was praised for its innovativeness and vertiginous aesthetics,{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="Chernitsky" /><ref name=":50" /><ref name=":26" /><ref name=":24" />}} equated to theme park rides and [[epic films]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 7, 1983 |title=IMAX — TO FLY! |pages=26 |work=[[The Guardian]] |location=[[London]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97718927/the-guardian/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316033314/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97718927/the-guardian/ |archive-date=March 16, 2022 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] {{Open access}}}}</ref><ref name=":30" /> which was further amplified by Segall's score.<ref name=":25">{{Cite news|last=Whitehead|first=Donna|date=October 8, 1992|title=New IMAX film invites the audience 'To Fly!'|page=19|work=[[Norwalk, Connecticut|Norwalk]] News|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/norwalk-news-oct-08-1992-p-19/|url-status=live|url-access=subscription|access-date=November 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120083523/https://newspaperarchive.com/norwalk-news-oct-08-1992-p-19/|archive-date=November 20, 2021|via=[[NewspaperArchive]]}}</ref> ''[[The Tampa Tribune]]'' rated the film three out of four stars, deeming the Horseshoe Falls and barnstorming scenes the best.<ref name=":30">{{Cite news |date=March 27, 1998 |title=Come "Fly' with MOSI; This pioneer showcase for the biggest of screens remains a visual thrill for all ages |page=5 |work=[[The Tampa Tribune]]|issn=1042-3761}}</ref> The opening scene was praised for being banal which effectively shocks audiences during the giant-screen transition.{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":18" /><ref name=":32" /><ref name=":26" />}} Donna Whitehead of ''Norwalk News'' called it intimate and stellar, and the ending uplifting.<ref name=":25" /> [[John Russell (art critic)|John Russell]], an art critic for ''[[The New York Times]]'', credited the cinematography to the audiences' immersion in the story, which progressively improves throughout the film. Critics called it poetic and [[paean]]-like, citing its expressive depictions of nature and aviation.{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":45" /><ref name=":24" /><ref name=":7" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Finehout |first=Robert M. |date=January 1985 |title=Public relations film: Larger than life |journal=[[Public Relations Journal]]|issn=1942-4604 |volume=41 |issue=1 |pages=4–6|quote=A paean to aviation from gas balloon to moon landing...}}</ref>}} The film's vintage-contemporary duality was credited by ''The Gaffney Ledger'' for its nostalgic weight.<ref name=":47" /> Nathan Southern of [[AllMovie]] gave the film four and a half stars out of five, deeming it a visually vivid historical insight and "one of the greatest unsung landmarks of American documentary".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Southern|first=Nathan|title=To Fly! (1976)|url=http://www.allmovie.com/movie/to-fly-v146451|url-status=live|access-date=November 18, 2021|website=[[AllMovie]]|publisher=[[RhythmOne]]|archive-date=January 17, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117081459/http://www.allmovie.com/movie/to-fly-v146451}}</ref> As the filmmakers intended, Alderson likened the space sequence to that of ''2001: A Space Odyssey''.<ref name=":26" />

The narration was praised as personal and meditative,<ref name=":7" /> though others found it cursory<ref name=":32" /> and superfluous. Some critics panned Ezekiel's character as banal and mawkish, and the omissions of [[List of aviation pioneers|real-life aviation pioneers]] were noted, alongside how in some shots the balloon appears to be immobile.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |date=March 27, 1998 |title='Grease' makes a well-oiled return Series: what's new on screen |edition=State |pages=10 |work=[[St. Petersburg Times]] |id=[[ProQuest]] [https://www.proquest.com/docview/263266080 263266080]}}</ref><ref name="Card" /> Filmmaker Mark R. Hasan thought the Betamax audio lacks quality in the dialogue, though he noted the film is highly degraded on videocassette from the original, and said ''To Fly!'' excels starting from the barnstorming scene.<ref name=":17" /> While some praised its effectiveness for inspiring audiences<ref>{{Cite web|last=Smith|first=Jeremy|date=November 18, 2021|title=Film gimmicks that worked (and a few that didn't) - Slide 20|url=https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/film_gimmicks_that_worked_and_a_few_that_didnt/s1__34078445|url-status=live|access-date=November 20, 2021|website=[[Yardbarker]]|publisher=Playmaker|archive-date=July 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726162635/https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/film_gimmicks_that_worked_and_a_few_that_didnt/s1__34078445}}</ref> even in smaller formats,<ref name=":17" /><ref name=":32" /> others found its panoramas to be boring, similar to other IMAX films that are said to overexploit immersion as a [[Movie gimmick|gimmick]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Heritage|first=Stuart|date=October 14, 2010|title=Why Imax is still the way forward for cinema|url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/14/imax-cinema-3d|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207092457/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/14/imax-cinema-3d|archive-date=February 7, 2019|access-date=July 1, 2021|website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Daly |first=Sean |date=December 11, 2004 |title='Fighter Pilot': Hang Onto Your Popcorn Bucket |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2004/12/11/fighter-pilot-hang-onto-your-popcorn-bucket/727ae4c2-3490-46df-9def-ebb63b5401d2/ |access-date=August 28, 2023 |archive-date=August 31, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831101858/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2004/12/11/fighter-pilot-hang-onto-your-popcorn-bucket/727ae4c2-3490-46df-9def-ebb63b5401d2/ |url-status=live }}</ref> With familiarity to the later catalog of "more intrepid" IMAX films, the ''[[St. Petersburg Times]]'' found ''To Fly!''{{'s}} impressiveness debatable for many modern first-time viewers. Because of this, the newspaper graded it C in a 1998 review.<ref name=":5" /> Meanwhile, documentarian Ross Anthony graded it B+, or two and a half stars out of four, noting that he would have graded it A in the 1970s, and deemed ''To Fly!'' "amusing and informative (on a basic level)".<ref name="Card">{{Cite web|last=Anthony|first=Ross|title=Flight Game: To Fly|url=http://rossanthony.com/T/tofly.shtml|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804233337/http://rossanthony.com/T/tofly.shtml|archive-date=August 4, 2017|access-date=August 15, 2021|website=Hollywood Report Card}}</ref>

=== Audience response ===
[[File:To Fly! balloon.png|left|thumb|upright=1.4|As the squared scene transitions to this one, audiences were heard exclaiming in awe.|alt=A hot-air balloon ascends to a clear sky]]

The Smithsonian reported a diverse demographic of audiences,<ref name=":14" /> who were reportedly "astonished" by ''To Fly!''{{'s}} IMAX vertiginous shots. Shouts and gasps were heard in screenings,<ref name=":32" /><ref name=":26" /> especially during the opening sequence—where people exclaimed in awe—as well as at the Blue Angels and hang-gliding scenes.<ref name=":18" /><ref name="Moon">
Mansfield, Paul (January 17, 1998). "I reached for the moon - and touched it". News. ''[[The Times]]''. No. 66101. [[London]]: [[News UK]]. col S, p.27.</ref> Others, however, screamed in fright and "hastily" left the theater during its vertiginous scenes; journalist [[Douglas Preston]] attributed this to nausea.<ref name=":16">{{Cite book|last=Griffiths|first=Alison|title=Shivers Down Your Spine: Cinema, Museums, and the Immersive View|date=June 11, 2013|publisher=[[Columbia University Press]]|isbn=978-0231129893|chapter=From Daguerreotype to IMAX Screen: Multimedia and IMAX at the Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>{{Rp|225}} For some, uncontrollable dizziness lingered long after the film had finished,<ref name="Moon" /><ref name=":42" /> equated by ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine with [[airsickness]].<ref name=":3" /> Vomit bags were unavailable, making the film inaccessible for people with vertigo.<ref name="Moon" /><ref name=":46">{{Cite news|last=Himowitz|first=Michael J.|date=July 1, 1976|title=Aerospace Museum Makes Fancy Out Of Flight|volume=133|page=3|work=[[The Baltimore Sun|The Evening Sun]]|issue=64|location=[[Baltimore]]|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91307380/|access-date=December 28, 2021|via=[[Newspapers.com]] {{Open access}}|archive-date=December 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211228162918/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91307380/the-evening-sun/|url-status=live}}</ref> Later, the NASM added pre-entry warnings about potential dizziness and [[motion sickness]].<ref name=":10">{{Cite book |last1=Geiger |first1=Jeffrey |title=Cinematicity in Media History |last2=Littau |first2=Karin |date=November 30, 2013 |publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]] |isbn=9780748676149 |pages=140 & 143}}</ref> On the contrary, some people noted they were able to watch ''To Fly!'' without getting scared due to it being illusionary.<ref name=":1" />

Many who watched the film returned with their children to rewatch it, akin to a generational tradition.<ref name=":1" /> Similar remarks were made by [[Carl Sagan]], who remained astonished after seeing it more than five times at the NASM.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Sagan |first1=Carl |title=[[The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark]] |last2=Druyan |first2=Ann |publisher=[[Random House]] |year=1995 |isbn=0-345-40946-9 |pages=348 |oclc=32855551 |author-link=Carl Sagan |author-link2=Ann Druyan}}</ref> Several pilots credited the film for propelling their interest in aviation,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pimentel |first=Dan |date=May 8, 2023 |title=Capturing the Essence of Flying |url=https://www.flyingmag.com/capturing-the-essence-of-flying/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230509032450/https://www.flyingmag.com/capturing-the-essence-of-flying/ |archive-date=May 9, 2023 |access-date=August 30, 2023 |website=[[Flying (magazine)|Flying]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Virts |first=Terry W. |title=How to Astronaut: An Insider's Guide to Leaving Planet Earth |publisher=[[Workman Publishing Company]] |year=2020 |isbn=978-1523512041 |at=First page of "Making Movies" |author-link=Terry W. Virts}}</ref> including astronaut [[Terry W. Virts]] to whom ''To Fly!'' is his first, and among his most memorable, childhood IMAX films.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ziv |first=Stav |date=May 10, 2016 |title='A Beautiful Planet' Whisks Viewers to Space for 45 Minutes |url=https://www.newsweek.com/beautiful-planet-whisks-viewers-space-45-minutes-458109 |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624033256/https://www.newsweek.com/beautiful-planet-whisks-viewers-space-45-minutes-458109 |archive-date=June 24, 2021 |access-date=July 1, 2021 |website=[[Newsweek]]}}</ref> Dan Moran of the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' said it is among the few films that kept Pictorium audiences awake instead of asleep.<ref name=":29">{{Cite web|last=Moran|first=Dan|date=June 12, 2018|title=The Pictorium, Great America's IMAX pioneer, bids a sudden and quiet departure|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/lake-county-news-sun/opinion/ct-lns-six-flags-great-america-pictorium-st-0613-story.html|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622015114/https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/lake-county-news-sun/opinion/ct-lns-six-flags-great-america-pictorium-st-0613-story.html|archive-date=June 22, 2021|access-date=November 30, 2021|website=[[Lake County News-Sun]]|publisher=|location=[[Gurnee, Illinois]]|agency=[[Chicago Tribune]]}}</ref> The [[2011 Virginia earthquake]] coincided with ''To Fly!''{{'s}} Horseshoe Falls scene at Lockheed Martin; projectionist Keith Madden and audiences assumed the shaking they felt came from the theater's [[subwoofer]]s rather than an earthquake.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Madden |first1=Keith |last2=Trenner |first2=Pat |date=October 4, 2011 |title=Is it Real, or is it IMAX? |url=https://www.airspacemag.com/daily-planet/is-it-real-or-is-it-imax-96193008/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210306121333/https://www.airspacemag.com/daily-planet/is-it-real-or-is-it-imax-96193008/ |archive-date=March 6, 2021 |access-date=November 28, 2021 |website=[[Air & Space/Smithsonian]] |location=[[Washington, D.C.]]}}</ref> Modern expert hang-gliders were surprised at the hang-gliding stunt by Wills, described as dynamic yet on an "impossibly simple craft".<ref name=":34">{{Cite web |last=Glenshaw |first=Paul |date=August 2019 |title=Born in the 1960s, The Sport of Hang Gliding Still Hangs On |url=https://www.airspacemag.com/airspacemag/rise-and-fall-of-hang-gliding-180972601/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210407230622/https://www.airspacemag.com/airspacemag/rise-and-fall-of-hang-gliding-180972601/ |archive-date=April 7, 2021 |access-date=November 28, 2021 |website=[[Air & Space/Smithsonian]] |location=[[Washington, D.C.]]}}</ref>

Responding to the film's popularity, Bill McCabe of the DuPont Aerospace Enterprise said that because humans have a supposedly innate interest in flying, the film has a universal appeal.<ref name="WHYY">{{Cite web |last=Wilmore |first=Bill |date=March 20, 2011 |orig-date=June 25, 1996 |title="To Fly" Segment featured on Channel 12 WHYY |url=https://digital.hagley.org/VID_2011320_B03_ID06_01 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211220124550/https://digital.hagley.org/VID_2011320_B03_ID06_01 |archive-date=December 20, 2021 |access-date=December 20, 2021 |publisher=[[WHYY-TV]] |via=[[Hagley Digital Archives]]}}</ref> Several educators categorized it as [[educational entertainment]],<ref name=":40" /> though with less interest among field trip groups than other IMAX documentaries.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baca |first=Ricardo |author-link=Ricardo Baca |date=August 1, 2011 |title=A MEGA experience |work=[[Corpus Christi Caller-Times]] |publisher=[[Gannett]] |issn=0894-5365 |id=[[ProQuest]] [https://www.proquest.com/docview/2569233136/3EA18E0C94F34178PQ/1 2569233136]}}</ref> The audience response prompted the Smithsonian to write a tagline on their website: "''Feel'' the Earth Drop Away Beneath You".<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|229}} "Feel" was later changed to "Watch". In 2013 to commemorate its 37th anniversary, a new poster artwork was created with the tagline "Go where dreams have wings", and in 2016, a 40th-anniversary one-minute [[Trailer (promotion)|trailer]] was released.<ref name=":13" /> MacGillivray opined that the film's "unpretentiousness and lightheartedness" makes it a form of [[escapism]] and its unconventional ending makes it "more profound and in a way, more lasting".<ref name=":1" />

=== Accolades ===
By 1992, ''To Fly!'' had received 11 awards.<ref name=":25" /><!-- WILL LOOK FOR MORE SOURCES -->
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="width: 99%;"
|+ List of accolades received by ''To Fly!''
! scope="col" |Awarder
! scope="col" |Category
! scope="col" |Recipient(s)
! scope="col" |Result
! scope="col" class="unsortable" |{{Abbr|Ref(s)|References}}
|-
! scope="row" |[[CINE]]
|Golden Eagle Award
| rowspan="8" |''To Fly!''
| {{won}}
| rowspan="8" style="text-align:center;" |<ref name=":3" />
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" |[[Chicago International Film Festival]]
|Best Film Award
|{{won}}
|-
|Special Jury Award (Cinematography)
|{{won}}
|-
! scope="row" |[[Berlin]] Inforfilm Festival
| rowspan="2" |''{{Abbr|N/A|not available}}''
| {{won|place=First}}
|-
! scope="row" |Bicentennial Festival of Films on Aeronautics and Space
| {{won|place=Grand}}
|-
! scope="row" |Festival of the Americas
|Special Jury Award
| {{won}}
|-
! scope="row" |[[Columbus International Film Festival]]
|Chris Bronze Plaque Award
| {{won}}
|-
! scope="row" |Information Film Producers Association
|Best Documentary of the Decade
| {{won}}
|}