The Right Stuff Review

        It was only a matter of time before I talked about movies involving space flight. Now, the general opinion on NASA is that they’re mostly liked in the public perception. Like, you can’t go a day anywhere without seeing a person wear a NASA shirt with the iconic blue symbol. Something about the organization imbues a sense of wonder that we can put a human to space and on a celestial body. I don’t mean to wax poetic a government organization, but the untold stories of the pilots, astronauts, and the people behind the scenes are rife with stories to tell. With that, here's what I think of The Right Stuff. 

1. Trial and Error

        You probably aren’t aware of the missions NASA was doing before the Apollo moon missions. Well, to put it simply, the Mercury program was the country’s first attempt to put a man in space. We get to see that on display in the three-hour epic. To me, it never felt that it was dragging or slow in general. I’ll get into the specifics on why the film’s a classic. 

        Specifically, we start off by focusing on the fastest man to go Mach speed. Chuck Yeager is mostly relegated to supporting character but seeing him take of in an experimental aircraft just whizzing must’ve taken a lot of balls. We see a reason as to why Chuck takes up on that offer, since it’s established that a group of men wanted to break the sound barrier. 

        The only problem is that the preceding pilots have died. Compounding on the issue is that Chuck gets hurt before the launch but manages to power on through. Now that’s one act of setting up the overall theme of the movie. The other is seeing the astronauts as the movie progresses. I was surprised that some of the actors that I saw were unknowns at the time. Like seeing Dennis Quaid and Ed Harris bring a charisma to playing their astronaut roles. 

        Aside from that what the movie does so well and it ties with the overall theme of the movie is showcasing the perseverance. What I like is that most of the astronauts that we see don’t like each other. When we see them together, they’re mostly in little cliques or gossiping. It gives them depth and slowly unveils the caricatures that they’re just pilots/astronauts. 

        More so that we see just how much medical tests they are involved in. One in particular becomes a game for them to see who can last the longest. And of course, it has the humor of being in an unfortunate procedure where they’re rushing to go to the bathroom. The movie doesn’t shy away the methods and the trials/errors of what these guys went through. It’s rare for a movie to show that and it’s justified in its length. 

        Thinking about it more, this is like the aeronautical version of 2001: A Space Oddysey. Stay with me on this, but we start out small with Yeager breaking the sound barrier. Then we transition to recruiting the pilots and seeing the actual takeoffs. To me, it makes sense having the whole structure be like that since it can’t be just biased in the favor of NASA. We see the moments when the rockets don’t work, and the pilots getting chippy. It makes the whole journey be as is it is, since we see the evolution and the perseverance of trying to get a man in space. 

2. The Astronaut’s Lives

        As I mentioned before, the personal lives of the pilots and astronauts are the most interesting highlight of the whole movie. They’re just regular guys who are fortunate enough to be daring pilots and being able to go to space. One that I liked is John Glenn. He has the charisma and the leadership that makes him really endearing. More so that he and his wife are involved in one of my favorite scenes. 

        One of the launches gets delayed, Glenn’s wife is asked if the Vice President can talk to her. She says no. It’s revealed in the movie that she has a severe stutter. I love that Glenn manages to talk to her and say she doesn’t have to talk to anyone. Moreover, the person overseeing the mission gets in his face of going against orders. That whole scene to me represents that the astronauts have balls even in the face of a temperamental politician. 

        I can go on with why the seeing these guy’s personalities are the best aspect, since what sells it is when they’re inside the space capsule. Just seeing them react into being in space and going up into the atmosphere. Well, except one who alleges that he the blast doors had malfunctioned. Even though he bust opened the doors so that the water doesn’t get in and drown him. 

3. Overall

        I can go on about the whole movie, but I’d rather keep it to the point. It’s one of the best space exploration movies. Albeit one where it shows just how these guys managed to have the right stuff to go up.