Right Stuff

Right Stuff

Philip Kaufman's intimate epic about the Mercury astronauts (based on Tom Wolfe's book) was one of the most ambitious and spectacularly exciting movies of the 1980s. It surprised almost everybody by not becoming a smash hit. By all rights, the film should have been every bit the success that Apollo 13 would later become; The Right Stuff is not only just as thrilling, but it is also a bigger and better movie. Combining history (both established and revisionist), grand mythmaking (and myth puncturing), adventure, melodrama, behind-the-scenes dish, spectacular visuals, and a down-to-earth sense of humor, The Right Stuff chronicles NASA's efforts to put a man in orbit. Such an achievement would be the first step toward President Kennedy's goal of reaching the moon, and, perhaps most important of all, would win a crucial public relations/morale victory over the Soviets, who had delivered a stunning blow to American pride by launching Sputnik, the first satellite. The movie contrasts the daring feats of the unsung test pilots--one of whom, Chuck Yeager, embodied more than anyone else the skill and spirit of Wolfe's title--against the heavily publicized (and sanitized) accomplishments of the Mercury astronauts. Through no fault of their own, the spacemen became prisoners of the heroic images the government created for them in order to capture the public's imagination. The casting is inspired; the film features Sam Shepard as the legendary Yeager, Ed Harris as John Glenn, Dennis Quaid as "Gordo" Cooper, Scott Glenn as Alan Shepard, Fred Ward as Gus Grissom, Scott Wilson as Scott Crossfield, and Pamela Reed and Veronica Cartwright are superb in their thankless roles as astronauts' wives. --Jim Emerson

PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Year:
1983
193
11,130 Views

Share your thoughts on Right Stuff's quotes with the community:

1 Comment
  • Stuart Polansky
    Stuart Polansky
    The bar tender at Pancho's Happy Bottom Riding Club was the real life Chuck Yeager!
    Jack Ridley and the voice of the narrator were both none other than Levon Helm, drummer and singer from "The Band", also famous for singing "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down". 
    LikeReply 25 years ago
    • Malbuff
      Also, the girl at Pancho's who tries to hit on Yeager as he goes out the door after his wife is O-Lan Jones, Sam Shepard's real wife.
      LikeReply4 years ago

Quote of the Day Today's Quote | Archive

Would you like us to send you a FREE inspiring quote delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:

Citation

Use the citation below to add this movie page to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"Right Stuff Quotes." Quotes.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 23 Nov. 2024. <https://www.quotes.net/movies/right_stuff_quotes_9574>.

Know another quote from Right Stuff?

Don't let people miss on a great quote from the "Right Stuff" movie - add it here!

Quiz

Are you a quotes master?

»
"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not."
A Michael Jackson
B Vincent van Gogh
C Kurt Cobain
D Franklin Pierce