The Right Stuff

1983
PG
3h 13m

IMDb RATING

7.8/10

66K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer3:31

Historical Epic Adventure Biography Drama History

The U.S. space program's development from the breaking of the sound barrier to selection of the Mercury 7 astronauts, from a group of test pilots with a more seat-of-the-pants approach than ... Read allThe U.S. space program's development from the breaking of the sound barrier to selection of the Mercury 7 astronauts, from a group of test pilots with a more seat-of-the-pants approach than the program's more cautious engineers preferred.The U.S. space program's development from the breaking of the sound barrier to selection of the Mercury 7 astronauts, from a group of test pilots with a more seat-of-the-pants approach than the program's more cautious engineers preferred.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.8/10

66K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

4,423

375

See production info at IMDbPro

Won 4 Oscars
- 12 wins & 16 nominations total

Trivia
According to NASA, the mysterious "fireflies" observed by John Glenn on his first orbital flight were actually condensed ice crystals from the small hydrogen peroxide rockets used for altitude control illuminated by sunlight. Upon uses many of them formed a particulate cloud around the spacecraft and many attached themselves to the skin of the vehicle as well.. A This was confirmed by astronaut Scott Carpenter on the next Mercury flight when he banged on the craft's side, causing more of the flakes to break free and become visible.

Goofs
During the second funeral sequence, Gordo Cooper is wearing decorations on his service dress uniform denoting service in the Korean War. In reality, Cooper was the only member of the "Original Seven" who was not a combat veteran.

Quotes
[first lines]
Narrator: There was a demon that lived in the air. They said whoever challenged him would die. Their controls would freeze up, their planes would buffet wildly, and they would disintegrate. The demon lived at Mach 1 on the meter, seven hundred and fifty miles an hour, where the air could no longer move out of the way. He lived behind a barrier through which they said no man could ever pass. They called it the sound barrier.

Alternate versions
ABC edited 5 minutes from this film for its 1986 network television premiere.

Connections
Edited into Waiting for Superman (2010)

Soundtracks
Southwestern Waltz
Written by Vaughn Horton (uncredited)
Performed by Bob Wills
Courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.

User reviews226

Review

Featured review

"The Right Stuff": That Is Exactly What This Film Has

Outstanding film from 1983 that was honored with four Academy Awards and is often called the second-best film of the 1980s behind only Scorsese's "Raging Bull". The movie is a 190-plus minute extravaganza which honors the U.S. Mercury 7 Astronauts. The all-star cast includes Sam Shepard (as Chuck Yeager in an Oscar-nominated role of a lifetime), Ed Harris (John Glenn), Scott Glenn (Alan Shepard), Fred Ward (Gus Grissom), Lance Henriksen (Walter Schirra), Dennis Quaid (Gordon Cooper), and Donald Moffat (Lyndon Baines Johnson). The film is solid in so many respects. It is meticulous and tries to go for drama and humor and succeeds in everything it wants to do. Veronica Cartwright, Barbara Hershey, Pamela Reed, Kathy Baker, and Mary Jo Deschanel are also along for the ride as several of the wives who attempt to keep their heads about them while they fear that their husbands are losing theirs. "The Right Stuff" is a historical lesson told in a way that is so clever and convincing that few will find fault with anything when it comes to the story-telling. Writer-director Philip Kaufman easily does the best work of his career with this masterpiece. Look for Cincinnati Bengal Hall-of-Famer Anthony Munoz in a cameo appearance. Arguably the best film of the 1980s and should have been the Best Picture Oscar winner over "Terms of Endearment" in 1983. 5 stars out of 5.