There are certain biopics that don't necessarily need to be made, but turn out pretty great. Movies like Walk the Line, The Social Network, and Steve Jobs are films that definitely don't need to become cinematic experiences, but they were done so well and defied the biopic structure that they became great movies that FELT like they should've been told. Then, there are biopics that are probably very necessary to be told-- films like Milk, The Iron Lady, The King's Speech, Lincoln, and Schindler's List. These movies honor defining moments of history with influential people that not only provide information about these individuals, but it also mirrors what's happening in our current world at the time of the release. These movies range from exceptional to, honestly, quite bland. But, the story is what's important. Hidden Figures, to me, falls right in the middle. It is definitely a story that NEEDS to be told, but the way in which it is presented doesn't feel very fresh. It feels very formulaic.
Hidden Figures tells the tale of three African-American women working for NASA in the 60s. Already, this is an important story because that combination of words is something that was damn near unheard of. It's also important because we've heard hundreds of stories of shuttle launches and the US/Russia space-race, and John Glenn, and the Apollo missions-- but honestly how many of you can legitimately say you'd heard of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Hensen)? I know I hadn't... and it's a damn shame because her story is nothing short of inspirational. Johnson is a mathematician (or computer) working for NASA trying to figure out the math necessary to beat Russia into space. Her white male-dominated work environment doesn't necessarily lend to the best days. She's given math problems to solve with much of the information redacted by a racist and petulant co-worker, Paul Stafford (Jim Parsons), she has to run nearly 3/4th's of a mile to the nearest "colored toilets", work in tote, several times a day, and she's even given her own "colored coffee pot" to pour her coffee out of. And she's treated this way even though she's ten times smarter than any man in the room.
It's not until her work ethic begins to slip due to these acts of institutionalized discrimination that her boss, the director of the Space Task Group, Al Harrison (Kevin Costner) takes notice, and enacts rules to prevent the hardships and get Katherine's sole attention on her work. Also working for NASA are budding engineer Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe) and computer supervisor Dorothy Vaughn (Octavia Spencer) who have to fight against their own sets of white-driven hardships. These are very powerful women who fight the good fight to seek just infinitesimal improvements in equality in the workplace. And their story is definitely one that isn't wasted-- I just would've liked to have seen a little bit better script. Director Theodore Melfi, in only his second theatrically released film (his first is the very underrated St. Vincent) does a well enough job telling the stories of these fine ladies, but it's all just a bit too formulaic and cinematic, instead of realistic.
I'm sure the barriers broken by these women were moments of pure joy and exaltation, but I highly doubt they were as grandiose as they were in the film. The scene when Costner's character leaves work in the middle of the day to take a crowbar and smash down the "colored toilets" sign is a cinematic/biopic trope-- not something that happens in real life. Mary Jackson's speech to a judge about why she should be the first woman of color to attend an all-white high school may have been convincing in real life... but not mind-blowingly rousing as it is in the film. These are scenes created to add emotion and drama into a script that already has enough of that. Sure, a movie about women who are good at mathematics and engineering doesn't exactly lead to gripping visual storytelling on screen, but there are ways around that. Moneyball, for instance, was able to take a movie entirely about baseball stats and twist it in such a way that it was interesting-- not just for fans of the sport but anyone attending or watching the film. I didn't get a lot of that from Hidden Figures. I got more Remember the Titans scenes where poignant moments are accompanied by theatrical monologues and inspirational music. This weakens the movie because it takes away from the humanity of these women-- they're devoid of nearly all human flaws-- and they become less real, which is definitely not something you want to happen to a story like this.
It also felt formulaic. You will be able to see where the movie is heading as you watch it even if you aren't already familiar with the story being told. Fortunately, most of this is masked by the wonderful performances by three very strong actresses. Hensen stashes away her Cookie persona, and bumbles around behind a pair of squared glasses and grasps at your heartstrings every time she's taken advantage of, and more importantly, every time she rises above the injustices of the people around her. Monáe, in only her second film appearance, steals the screen from everyone else in each moment of the film she's in... much like her wonderful performance in Moonlight. And Spencer, still riding the Oscar from The Help reminds us why she needs to be in more films. Everyone, other than the actor portraying John Glenn who I just wanted to kick in his white teeth and perfect jawline, contributes nicely to the film to tell what is a very important story. Had it been able to break the formulaic biopic conventions a little more, the movie would've been a lot stronger. It reminded me a lot of the film The Blind Side. Had it not been for Sandra Bullock's strong performance in that film, it would've been dismissed as just another "based on a true story" story. A mediocre film is heightened by three ladies who give their namesakes the performances they deserved.
What Hidden Figures does do, however, for us today is remind us how far we've come as a country since the 60s as far as prejudice and adversity is concerned involving people of color. And, yet, now, in the current climate, how little we've actually come.
B-
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