THE RIGHT STUFF (Philip Kaufman, Warner Bros., 1983)

Like the astronauts that eventually formed the Mercury Seven, men picked for their overall excellence in every area, THE RIGHT STUFF (Philip Kaufman, Warner Bros., 1983) excels in every aspect of filmmaking. The story for the film is incredible and the narrative of the script good. The casting of the actors is remarkable, especially John Glenn (Ed Harris) and the the performances of each actor is quite good. The films overall direction is good, the cinematography is great. Technically the film probably couldn't have been made better than it was. The most remarkable aspect of the film and the one I find most fascinating is its inclusion of Chuck Yeager as a central piece in the narrative. How a film hasn't been done about this man mystifies me. The film tells the tale of seven men who had "the right stuff" to become our first astronauts. But rather than be a fluff piece, stylizing the actors as super human, it instead chose to show them as men. Men with families, men with faults and character flaws. Men that didn't always get along and who often were more about themselves than the greater good of the group. The toll taken on these men and their families was immense, from the constant public and media scrutiny to the very real possibility that death loomed with each mission. The film took care to show the families of the men and even delve into their problems a bit. Eventually we see the men coming together and forming a bond, a group that will only ever include those seven men. The film also provides a great balance of levity to offset the serious nature of the work being done by these astronauts. And great work abounds throughout the rest of the production. The direction chosen by Kaufman of which way to take the narrative and the inclusion of Yeager as a primary focus were good choices. Through excellent production design we are treated to an excellent portrait of American life from the post war years through the mid sixties. We also get to see extensive use of authentic airplanes whether it was actual planes, models or special effects. It all looked very authentic and very well done. Making the film look amazing was the sole purpose of cinematographer Caleb Deschanel. The film contains great aerial photography, very reminiscent of a film like WINGS (William Wellman, Paramount, 1927). Deschanel comes up with unique and innovative ways to show his action such as through reflections in sunglasses and other inanimate objects. The film is full of wide open vistas and great panoramic shots, creating a metaphor for space being the next great American frontier. After seeing Deschanel's name I had to read more on him. I knew he was a famous father, but it seems every time he DP's a film he gets nominated for an Oscar. What a talented man. And talented doesn't even begin to describe Chuck Yeager. A great film has the power to leave you thirsting for more knowledge about a topic, and Sam Shepard's portrayal of Yeager is such a case. Shepard gives a mysterious performance as Yeager. Daring to push the envelope every time and showing us ever so subtly that deeply felt slight when he was not selected to even proceed to the testing for the Mercury Seven. I had to read more on Yeager after seeing Shepard play him and all I can say is. Wow. What an American. Like I said before, how come no one has made a film about him mystifies me. Incredible man. Incredible group of men. Incredible story and remarkable film.