The Right Stuff (1983)

Directed by

Philip Kaufman

Genre

drama film, adventure film, historical film

Country

United States

Runtime

3h 04m

Rated

PG

Rating

7.4 of 10 from 978 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

The film follows military test pilots pushing the limits of flight and later the first American astronauts selected for Project Mercury. It shows their intense training, personal struggles, and the public and political pressures surrounding the early space program.

sweepinginspiringnostalgicpatrioticimmersivehumorousdramaticlong

What happens

The Right Stuff is a 1983 American epic historical drama film written and directed by Philip Kaufman and based on the 1979 book of the same name by Tom Wolfe. The film follows the Navy, Marine, and Air Force test pilots who were involved in aeronautical research at Edwards Air Force Base, California, as well as the Mercury Seven, the seven military pilots who were selected to be the astronauts for Project Mercury, the first human spaceflight by the United States. The film stars Sam Shepard, Ed Harris, Scott Glenn, Fred Ward, Dennis Quaid, Barbara Hershey and Kim Stanley (in her final film); Levon Helm narrates and plays Air Force test pilot Jack Ridley. The Right Stuff was a box-office bomb, grossing about $21 million (domestically) against a $27 million budget. However, it received widespread critical acclaim and was nominated for eight Oscars at the 56th Academy Awards, four of which it won. The film was a huge success on the home video market. In 2013, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." The film was ranked #19 on the American Film Institute's most inspiring movies. The film was later expanded into its titular franchise, including a television series and a documentary film. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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