The story and character development were phenomenal in The Right Stuff. With such a long running time, it can be so easy for a movie to get dull in some parts. But I was honestly involved throughout the entire film. The filmmakers did a good job of interspersing drama with comedy, more character-driven scenes with sweeping shots of the flying airplanes and rockets. It is a movie that is both visually appealing and well-written. I really did love the moments of comedy; it made these incredibly amazing astronauts more relatable and more real. At times, however, it could also be very intense. Like a lot of the space movies that have come out recently, such as Gravity or The Martian, The Right Stuff illustrated how scary space can really be, how in any second you could die. This movie definitely had some of those thrilling moments that keep you interested.
I've mentioned this before but I'll say it again: characters are everything in a movie. It could have been very possible to make these American heroes like John Glenn and Alan Shepard completely likable and near-perfect human beings. But instead we learned each character's flaws and fears, their shortcomings as well as talents. I especially loved the focus that was brought to the wives of the astronauts. John Glenn's wife Annie had a stutter, which made her scared to talk in public and all of a sudden people wanted to film and interview her all the time. Trudy, Cooper's wife, revealed the trouble in the marriage before he even became an astronaut. The movie did a good job of portraying the differences in each marriage, but overall how difficult it was to be not only an astronaut's wife, but also a pilot's wife.
There were some great technical aspects to this as well. The interspersing of actual historical news footage into the movie was well done. The shots of the sky when pilots were flying or of space when the astronauts were orbiting Earth were also incredible. They filmed it at times so it was from your point of view. It felt like you were swerving through clouds or looking down on Earth. There was also some interesting coloration whenever there was trouble aboard a spacecraft. It resembled the panic and maybe what the astronauts actually saw if they were close to blacking out. It all added to the thrill factor. I also really enjoyed the score. I don't know what it is with space movies and great music, but I'm loving it. Bill Conti won an Academy Award for his Right Stuff score, and he certainly deserved it. Also, fun fact: he did the music for Karate Kid. So he is doubly awesome.
I love history and I am also interested in space, so this movie was perfect for me in that way. The movie isn't flawless historically; there are some changes within characters and timing issues. The director Philip Kaufman tried to stick to the book as close as possible, but no book is perfect in historical accuracy. Even with the flaws, The Right Stuff is a great introduction into American history during the Cold War or history of the Space Race. Or if you just want to see a dramatized version of the stories you already love, this movie is great as well.
What I think I love most about this movie is that it is thoroughly American. From the story itself to the music and direction to the acting, it's a very American film. It shows that Americans aren't perfect or the best at everything. We weren't the first ones to go into space; in fact, we only got really serious about space travel after Sputnik was launched. But there is an ingenuity and an innovation in American science and invention. When we want to do something, we do it. Those seven original American astronauts were not perfect. They were not supermen. But they were determined and smart and tried their best. Honestly that's what made them heroes. And for this reason, I don't think a film like The Right Stuff could be made today. But I am glad it was made.
And just for kicks, here is a great scene from a Frasier episode which guest-starred John Glenn.
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