DVD Recommendation Hidden Figures Starring Taraji P Henson
The award winning film Hidden Figures, directed and co-written by Theodore Melfi, is a fact based drama about the struggles of well educated African American females who worked for NASA during the Space Race. The film is based on a book, of the same name, by Margot Lee Shetterly, and centers around a trio of strong women who endured despite being held back due to their skin color and gender. Each of the three principal characters, Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) and Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer), has a chance to shine as their unique stories unfold.
Katherine Johnson works as a "computer" in a segregated section of NASA and receives a promotion to the Space Task Group after the Russians successfully launch astronauts into space. The United States is falling behind their Soviet counterparts and pressure is placed on the leader of the group, Al Harrison (Kevin Costner), to catch up. Johnson is an expert in analytic geometry and is a huge help to the team, but does not always receive the proper credit for her efforts. She also loses valuable time each day by walking to another building in order to use the "colored" bathrooms. Despite her challenges, Katherine remains positive and is a huge asset to the group and that does not go unnoticed by Harrison.
Mary Jackson works under Dorothy Vaughan and discovers a flaw in the heat shield of the space capsule. Encouraged, she then seeks out to earn a degree in engineering, but realizes that the closest school she can attend is segregated. Undeterred, Jackson pursues her dream and has her day in court, which is memorable for both her and the judge. Meanwhile, Vaughan continues to do the work of a supervisor, but does not officially have the title or the commensurate pay. She lobbies for the job to her supervisor, Vivian Mitchell (Kirsten Dunst), but is rebuffed on more than one occasion. Nevertheless, she continues to work hard and even teaches herself how to operate a new IBM computer that baffles other NASA employees, thus placing her in an enviable position.
Hidden Figures is a fast paced, well written and extremely well acted film. In addition to the aforementioned actors, the outstanding supporting cast features Jim Parsons, Mahershala Ali, and Glen Powell. Theodore Melfi pays great attention to detail and takes viewers on a trip back through time to the 1960s when things were different in some respects and the country still had a long way to go on race and gender relations (and there continues to be much work to do). The costumes, hairstyles, set design and even the vehicles all add a degree of realism to this considerable effort that has a happy ending for its three female protagonists. Considering the film is based on well documented true events, that is not a spoiler and should not dissuade you from seeing this remarkable film.
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