The Right Stuff

There are movies and then there are Motion Pictures this is the latter. "The Right Stuff" is the kind of movie that no movie enthusiast should forgo. To me it is an all-time top 20 movie. And it is - by far - the best Motion Picture about the american space program ever made and that includes "Apollo 13". "The Right Stuff" is magnificently cool and so is its starpacked cast: Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, Dennis Quade, Sam Shepard, Barbara Hershey, Fred Ward, Lance Henriksen, Pamela Reed and... and... and... This is about the very beginnings of american space exploration, starting with those early super sonic flights by Chuck Yeager, making him the fastest man on earth. But when Project Mercury Space Program started he wasn't among the pilots chosen for the program, officially because he wasn't college trained but the real reason was probably more like those in charge fearing they would be unable to control him, since he could think for himself. As it turned out so could the pilots actually chosen for the program and once they got past that initial chock of being thrust straight into rockstar-fame without having done anything to deserve this, they actually began asserting them selves, forcing a shift in power towards the astronauts, of which they were the first. These were true pioneers, taking enormous and incalculable risks to reach speeds and altitudes never before reached by man (with the exception of Gagarin and Titov). They probably didn't do it to better the lives of mankind, but look at the impact: P.C's, sat-phones, sat-tv, sat-navigation, velcro, more precise weather-forecasts and a much greater understanding of what makes our home planet tick, yes even the polarized glasses in your Ray-Bans are byproducts of space exploration or have been developed much faster as a consequence of those early programmes. The movie however deserves your consideration not just as lesson in history but as an extremely entertaining, hilarious, well acted, well directed, beautifully shot piece of Motion Picture history, telling that early tale in a gripping and heart-warming manor. Pauline Kael of "The New Yorker" called it Astonishingly entertaining and great fun to watch. The Academy agreed and awarded it 4 Oscars. Now, who am I to argue...

excellent movie , Sam Shepard terrific

I used to own the DVD for this film, and it had all the earmarks of an old DVD. The video was grainy and looked low res. The audio was decent but far from dynamic. Watching on my projector, I pined for the day I would be able to watch this film as it was meant to be seen. Then the Blu Ray was announced and I got excited. I get a strong feeling from this release that instead of "dialing it in" some tender loving care was taken with this film. This does not feel like one of the lousy Warner Bros Releases where everything is just "okay". No, this feels like the Steven Spielberg collection where the film is fine-grain and the sound shakes the room. The presentation even on the packaging is impressive with gorgeous artwork/photographs and even a letter from the film maker. Honestly this release is almost buying for the packaging alone. The film itself is a woefully under-rated classic that should have swept the Academy Awards. It's filled with incredible optical effects and practical effects and great widescreen photography. The performances are incredible and Sam Shepard's performance is the stuff of legend. His final scene in the film is that of an iconic hero. The writing, music, and production quality are all stellar. And this film is filled with iconic moments, like the sun moving across John Glenn's face as he orbits the Earth (which I'm now remembering was imitated in the classic anime Wings of Honneamise). Whether or not you want to own this film will depend on your appreciation for docu-dramas and how much you love the history of space exploration. Personally I enjoy this massive epic more every time I see it. Finally this wonderful film can be enjoyed the way it was meant to be.

After 34 years this movie is as appealing to me now as it was in the early 80's. Considering back then the dark ages of broadcast technology, is no stereophonic TV'S, local FM stations would run stereo simulcast of the soundtrack. Here I was trying to synch up the recording on my VCR with my cassette tape deck. (I realize every millennial reading this is right now scratching their heads). All kidding aside, this is one of the finest films ever made, it is a great look at the people who made Project Mercury a success, and an important success at that. Had this program failed our dreams of going to the moon would have died right there. When I see this film I can still remember the pride every American felt during each and every flight that went up. We were a nation with a purpose, and despite any other problems we came together for this purpose. This film is very loyal to the book, even though the book has more detail, you'd need a 10 hour film to go into all that, but it does get the storyline correct and that means it was faithful to the history too. I highly recommend this film. Better still, read the book first, it's long but a fast read, and funny too. There are sections that will have you laughing to tears. Here's trivia. The director of photography, or cinematographer is the husband of the actress portraying Annie Glenn, John Glenn's wife. They are Caleb and Mary Jo Deschanel. They are the parents of Emily Deschanel of Bones and zoey Deschanel.

The Right Stuff (Two-Disc Special Edition) (1983) is a fine and very entertaining film, but not a terribly accurate documentary about Project Mercury which I rate at four stars. This version of the DVD includes a very interesting special on the shuttle flight of John Glenn in his senior years. Much of The Right Stuff was accurate and very entertaining. However, several technical facts were just plain wrong: 1) Never was there any question about a chimp or an astronaut being first aboard a US rocket. A chimp had to go first. 2) John Glenn was never going to orbit the Earth seven times and his "Go for at least seven orbits" meant that his orbital elements would support such a flight. 3) John Glenn was brought down after three orbits, just as planned. 4) The team of capsule designers was not made up of German rocket scientists. The discussion concerning a capsule window took place with an Amercian designer and probably under very different circumstances. 5) Von Braun never negotiated capsule design with John Glenn or any of the astronauts. Dr. Von Braun was a propulsion engineer and as Carpenter said during his interview, he was almost always correct. 6) Gus Grissom should not have been portraid as a "bumbling hatch blower" and was eventually cleared of all responsibility for the sinking of Liberty Bell 7. The Gus character did not give due credit for his abilities as a test pilot or an engineer (or provide him proper honor in his subsequent death aboard the Apollo 1 disaster).

In a superb adaptation from Tom Wolfe's book, The Right Stuff is a dramatic and highly entertaining journey through America's early space program. Examining the roles of test pilots and continuing on to the recruitment and training of future astronauts, a nice historical perspective is given showing the triumphs and failures experienced by NASA during their race with the Soviets in attempting to be the first country to get men into space. Beyond supplying the usual dramatic Hollywood fare, The Right Stuff also spends ample time revealing honest insights into the lives and emotions of the seven Mercury astronauts and their families making the whole viewing experience even more intimate and realistic. At just over 3 hours in length, I have to give credit to the producers in that the movie never gets boring and doesn't lag during this whole time and there is a lasting appeal throughout the movie. Further praise is merited in the fact that the stellar cast and their acting performances are nothing short of outstanding. As to the DVD content itself, in comparison to the first release of this movie (it was a 2 sided disc needing to be flipped over during the middle of the movie along with no special features to speak of), this 2 disc special edition set is like a breath of fresh air. Disc one contains an all new digital transfer and remastered 5.1 soundtrack offering a terrific improvement. Disc two has over 3 hours of excellent bonus material to include a 90 minute biography on John Glenn, 3 documentaries, 13 additional scenes, an interactive space timeline with footage from NASA archives, and scene specific commentaries with cast and crew members. I highly recommended The Right Stuff to everyone and this special edition set would definitely be a welcome addition to any DVD collection anywhere.

This is a truly excellent film. It covers a period of time in America's history: the space race with the USSR. It is remarkably good work by everybody on and off camera. No one character dominates the storyline. It's the sort of film that you can watch on numerous occasions and discover something else to like.

Epic films have a tendency to collapse under their own weight. The directors have a tendency to concentrate on visual style and production value so much they neglect the screenplay and character development. Epics like Ben-Hur, Lawrence of Arabia and Patton are rare. All too often, epic films turn into a bloated critical and financial disaster. Philip Kaufman's The Right Stuff avoids all of these pitfalls and tells the stories of the very human figures involved in the birth of the U.S. space program. Covering the period from Chuck Yeager's historic, but, at the time, overlooked breaking of the sound barrier in 1947 to the end of the Mercury program in 1963, The Right Stuff inspires awe through its stunning visual effects and scope while still maintaining its characters' humanity. The recreations of the early space flights are stunning with visual effects that still hold up well today. In addition, Kaufman obtained permission to film many sequences at AMES-NASA in California, adding realism and scope that no set designer would likely be able to match. Kaufman recreates the era perfectly -- clothes, cars, etc. feel just right. And Bill Conti's musical score, one of the most memorable in film history, is exhilirating. It's a flawless production that doesn't miss a single technical step. All of this, however, would be meaningless if Kaufman had cardboard characters to work with. But he instead portrays the characters as human beings with human flaws. Chuck Yeager is racked with self-doubt and regret over his non-participation in the space program. The astronauts are not Charlton Heston types -- clean cut cardboard cutouts with impeccable moral values. These astronauts womanize, drink heavily and sometimes behave as if NASA is a big frat party. Showing these flaws, however, does not alienate the audience and instead makes us identify with and sympathize with them. The astronauts' wives are each given their own identity with their own insecurities and fears. The film, however, is not a soap opera. In fact, The Right Stuff is very funny in some sections. The film has the confidence in its vision and doesn't fall into the trap of solemn sobriety that bogs down so many other epics. The cast includes Scott Glenn as Alan Sheperd, Ed Harris as John Glenn (a dead ringer if I ever saw one), Sam Sheperd as Chuck Yeager, Barbara Hershey as Glynnis Yeager, Dennis Quaid as Gordon Cooper, Fred Ward as Gus Grissom, Veronia Cartwright as Betty Grissom, Pamela Reed as Trudy Cooper and cameos by Kim Stanley, Eric Sevareid and Chuck Yeager himself. Each part is perfectly cast. The Right Stuff is three hours and 13 minutes long, but doesn't feel like it's that long at all. It's one of the most memorable films of all time and makes you proud to be an American. It's certainly the most human epic I've ever seen. It's a shame that the film didn't win more recognition from either the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences or the American Film Institute (I would certainly rank this film higher than Dr. Zhivago). Like Roger Ebert said, The Right Stuff is a great American film. The DVD is clear, with great sound. My only complaint is that halfway through the film, the viewer has to turn over the DVD to side B. This, however, is probably made necessary by the film's length. Otherwise, however, it's a fine DVD.