The text I chose to review is both a movie and a novel. Most are probably familiar with the Theodore Melfi directed film, Hidden Figures, starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Jenelle Monáe available on Netflix. However, some audience members might be surprised to find out this film is based on a true story written by Margot Lee Shetterly, an American non-fiction novelist and civil rights activist. In this review, I’ll focus more on the film aspect of the story, which most major movie reviewers agree accurately depicts at least 74% of events described in the novel (Information is Beautiful, n.d.). As with most films, a few scenes from the book had to be cut for the sake of time and some characters were modified to make the script’s message clearer.
This film is a stark reminder of the social injustice African American women have faced throughout history. In the 1960s, space exploration became a race between the United States and Russia. Top engineers, chemists, and astrophysicists across America were hired by NASA to build the space shuttle that eventually flew Neil Armstrong and his crew to the moon. Behind the scenes of this historic moment were a group of female African American mathematicians who are credited with uncovering a potentially fatal error made by the computers designated to calculate Apollo 11’s landing coordinates following its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere. Despite being vastly underestimated and discriminated against by white co-workers, the women performed exceptionally well earning them executive positions at NASA, but more importantly, exposing racial injustices in the workplace.
Othering and racism are two themes we have discussed throughout the semester. This movie does an excellent job of demonstrating both through various examples reflected by the individual story of each character. I was shocked to learn that black employees were forced to work outside of NASA’s headquarters in their own separate building. At one point in the film Katherine Johnson, played by Taraji P. Henson is asked by a supervisor why she takes such long bathroom breaks. Embarrassed, Johnson points out that the nearest “colored” bathrooms are a half-mile away from her desk. Computer labs and the research center libraries were divided into a West wing for whites and an East wing for blacks. White employees had better computers, up to date information, and resources that would have been critical for mission planning. Lack of access made it incredibly challenging for Johnson, Vaughan, and Jackson to keep up with their co-workers. Despite all odds, the women taught themselves several highly advanced skills to include computer coding and rocketry.
I believe society has come a long way since the 1960s because of people like the Hidden Figures. Their life experience exposed the dangers of othering and pervasiveness of racism. The creators of this film clearly wanted to demonstrate the power of human potential and what can be accomplished when we choose to work together. As we have learned from Spivak, everyone deserves a voice weather it be an oppressed people in a country thousands of miles away or an individual co-worker we interact with daily. For anyone looking for an inspiring story that can lead to a conversation about identity, injustice, and race this is definitely worth your time. Given our enhanced understanding of these concepts, I think you will find the film fulfilling as well as educational.
Works Cited
Agar, J. (2017, February 14). Hidden Figures takes us back to a time when computers were people, women, and black. Retrieved from The Conversation : https://theconversation.com/hidden-figures-takes-us-back-to-a-time-when-computers-were-people-women-and-black-72303
Information is Beautiful. (n.d.). Based on a True True Story? Retrieved November 30, 2020, from Information is Beautiful: https://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/based-on-a-true-true-story/
Melfi, T. (Director). (2016). Hidden Figures [Motion Picture]. United States: 20th Century Fox.