antoinecatry

It seems quite strange to discover this type of film over thirty years after hitting the screen, and yet, somewhat comforting to realize the sense of optimism they convey. This epic depicts homo Americanus from his victory over the sound barrier to the first steps of space conquest, till the end of the Mercury program. For the first time in my life, I have found Dennis Quaid convincing because his ham acting, playing to the gallery, fits the profile of the first astronauts : reckless, and a bit crazy. I particularly find amusing the scene when he is asked by the nurse to fill a tube on purpose of testing « sperm motility factor » ; from now on in my language « S.M.F. » will be the initials of something different from « sick mother... ». But the life of a star voyager does not only deal with the adrenaline surge, the film displays rather cleverly their share of sacrifices and all the money, love and time spent on becoming fearless. The « right stuff » was literally translated into French by « the hero stuff ». Even if the film fails in showing the universality of such a project, it truly demonstrates what makes a hero to humanity, despite the mockeries and hardships one's has to endure : perseverance and uprightness (see the John Glenn character). It is vital to rediscover The Right Stuff when, nowadays, a series of films are trying to revive the optimism of space travel, with different results in terms of quality and political subtexts.