The Right Stuff (1983)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Philip Kaufman

Writers:

Tom Wolfe (book)
Philip Kaufman (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 October 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | History

Tagline:

They were ordinary men and women who shared a common ambition and what they achieved together captured the imagination of the world [UK Theatrical]

Plot:

The original US Mercury 7 astronauts and their macho, seat-of-the-pants approach to the space program.

Plot Keywords:

Space | Astronaut | Space Program | Sound Barrier | Rocket

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 11 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Mon. July 20

10:00 PM

TCM

Cast

Sam Shepard	...	Chuck Yeager
Scott Glenn	...	Alan Shepard
Ed Harris	...	John Glenn
Dennis Quaid	...	Gordon Cooper
Fred Ward	...	Gus Grissom
Barbara Hershey	...	Glennis Yeager
Kim Stanley	...	Pancho Barnes
Veronica Cartwright	...	Betty Grissom
Pamela Reed	...	Trudy Cooper
Scott Paulin	...	Deke Slayton
Charles Frank	...	Scott Carpenter
Lance Henriksen	...	Wally Schirra
Donald Moffat	...	Lyndon B. Johnson
Levon Helm	...	Jack Ridley / Narrator
Mary Jo Deschanel	...	Annie Glenn

Runtime:

193 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Iceland:12 | Australia:PG | Finland:S | France:U | Ireland:12 | Norway:11 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Portugal:M/6 | Norway:12 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

California & Montgomery, Financial District, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Ladd Company, The

Trivia:

Original composer John Barry left the film because he found it impossible to understand what Philip Kaufman wanted from the score, citing a meeting where the director described his ideal score as "sounding like you're walking in the desert and you see a cactus, and you put your foot on it, but it just starts growing up through your foot."

Goofs:

Factual errors: The close-up of John Glenn's rocket eight seconds before launch is reversed.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: There was a demon that lived in the air. They said whoever challenged him would die. Their controls would freeze up, their planes would buffet wildly, and they would disintegrate. The demon lived at Mach 1 on the meter, seven hundred and fifty miles an hour, where the air could no longer move out of the way. He lived behind a barrier through which they said no man could ever pass. They called it the sound barrier.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Earthstorm (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Yablochka

Just about every element ties together well creating a nearly perfect movie

The Right Stuff takes place during the Cold War when America was trying its hardest in technological advancements to beat the Russians. The movie first starts out with Chuck Yeager(Sam Shepard) attempting to break the sound barrier. The movie continues with other story lines as professional pilots desperately try to get into the NASA space program, become the first Americans into space, and try to break some kind of record that will beat what the Russians had. The other real life people that this movie follows are Alan Shepard(Scott Glenn), Gordon Cooper(Dennis Quaid), John Glenn(Ed Harris), Gus Grissom(Fred Ward), and of course, their families.

The running time is very long at 3 hours plus, but it goes by very quickly. The first couple of hours go by as if they were 25 minutes, and the last hour is thrilling, as well as inspiring. There are several plot elements that really make this movie phenomenal. There is plenty of excitement as you see what the skilled pilots try to accomplish, there is plenty of humor, the cast is nearly perfect, and the score adds plenty of effect to the film. The result is a phenomenal, nearly perfect film, being one of the best films of the 1980's.

The plot is very interesting, as you see the lives of the pilots, the status of the American Government desperately trying to overcome the Russians with advanced technology, and the difficulties in trying to accomplish these difficulties. This is well worth your time, and it is a great movie.