The Right Stuff (1983)

“T

he demon lived at Mach 1 on the meter …” That was the sound barrier, which was eventually broken by the X-1 rocket, helmed by test pilots whose names were of little significance at the time – though their lives were of great consequence to spouses and relatives when they died during various experimental flights. After yet another crashed flight, war hero Chuck Yeager (Sam Shepard) is the next candidate in line for the “honor.” Some scientists don’t believe the sound barrier can be broken, as if a brick wall in the sky, while Yeager doesn’t think it’s even a real boundary. That doesn’t help his wife Glennis (Barbara Hershey), though, as she’ll be the next woman to worry about the lofty ambition potentially taking her husband from her.

“Punch a hole in the sky.” In October of 1947, Yeager succeeds, in a somewhat anticlimactic fashion, reminiscent of “The Spirit of St. Louis,” due to the fact that the results are both well-known and telegraphed in advance. Nevertheless, the aerial photography and the editing prove to be moderately more stimulating; there’s a certain excitement to be found in the high-speed daredevilry. The feat soon draws further attention from across the country (and the world, despite a press lockdown based on perceived threats from unsteady allies like Russia), including from Gordon Cooper (Dennis Quaid) and Gus Grissom (Fred Ward), who head to Edwards Air Force Base in 1953, where every ace wants to go to continue pushing the envelope. But in order to keep finding successes, dozens of deadly failures also accrue.

As the film follows the accomplishments of the military as pilots break records, fly faster and faster, and eventually get into a space program, all in a rather standard historical, biographical, documentary pattern, it also stops to dwell on personal relationships and family life, which are put under major strains. The probability of facing mortality is exceptionally high – something few of the wives can tolerate from their seemingly fearless husbands. Yet even these dramas are largely understated; they’re just not that paramount to writer/director Philip Kaufman’s interests in covering Air Force milestones, which is evident in the minutes designated to love stories versus genius inventions and the NASA projects.

“It’s called Sputnik!” Dates (fortunately, all chronological) and locations routinely flash onscreen to document the changing times and the coming achievements, chronicled with tremendous details, alternately supplemented by black-and-white footage, archival imagery, military videos utilizing expensive equipment, and reenactments of exhaustive physical testing (for the sake of measuring stresses on the human body in the upper atmosphere). These sequences, like many before and after, are educational, but also lightly humorous – a helpful additive to keep things engaging, especially as the focus isn’t on brevity. In its efforts to track so many breakthroughs and cover so many years, “The Right Stuff” certainly doesn’t rush, running well over three hours long.

“Sounds dangerous. Count me in.” Far too brief, intermittently used, thunderous music at the start by Bill Conti (a few notes of which would be repurposed for the even more adventurous theme of “The Rocketeer” by James Horner) aids in the pacing and thrills (inexplicably, it’s never repeated), but the bulk of “The Right Stuff” deliberates at length on the various trials and tribulations and political components of the space race, very much zeroing in on personal and commercial aspects. Any scene of action is limited; blander drama regularly trumps suspense, even if that’s a crucial part of NASA’s tumultuous journey to reaching the stars. As a result, numerous moments feel redundant, which is particularly detrimental for a picture that moves unhurriedly through ordinary biographical material over such a long-winded runtime.

At least the production is informative, straightforward, and an admirable dramatization of a monumental era and program and its key players. It is, however, more often academic than entertaining. To its credit, the cast is exceptional, coming across as genuine and likable (rather than exaggerated and chauvinistic), boosted by convincing star turns by Scott Glenn (as Alan Shepard) and Ed Harris (as John Glenn), as well as supporting roles by Pamela Reed, Lance Henriksen, Jeff Goldblum, Mary Jo Deschanel (whose small part is one of the most affecting ones), and more. Where excessive attention to technical elements (some of the space effects are wanting, even for ’83), minor historical episodes (including the purposeful yet over-the-top lionization of the astronauts), and the less significant pieces of marriages and reputations might prove tedious, the acting tends to salvage some of the sense of wandering. By the end, utilizing wiser incidents of tension and bravado to heighten the finale, “The Right Stuff” is a comprehensive study of the evolution of flight from the ’40s to the mid-’60s – a less theatrically depicted chapter of the industry (the Mercury series), considering the later absorption with the moon landing missions. “They’ll all give 100% when the time comes.”

– Mike Massie