HIDDEN FIGURES – Review

In some cases, the story is more important than the details. “Have I ever told you about the time that your uncle and I caught our biggest fish?” It’s a line we’re all familiar with, and while these individual stories may be slightly exaggerated for dramatic effect, the facts usually aren’t as relevant as the overall feeling that the story leaves us with. It’s these hard to believe but ultimately true tales that leave us with a smile.

HIDDEN FIGURES seems more keen on leaving the audience feeling the same way. In the end, this portrait of three strong and determined women is a true and amazing story, but the focus seems more on provoking emotions for dramatic effect than through genuine means. Despite the fact that the story feels simultaneously watered down while also feeling a bit overblown at times, at least the story is being told, which is better than not being told at all.

Adapted from Margot Lee Shetterly’s novel, HIDDEN FIGURES tells the story of Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer), and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae), three black women who defied expectations and social norms by working for NASA in the 1940s to the 60s. Through their knowledge of mathematics and physics and their determination to not let their sex or race get in their way, they helped put the first American into space.

Henson is given the most screentime and in turn, delivers the most endearing performance. The pressure of her job, as well as that of a single mother for three children, feels real and tragic. And yet, the fact that she has to hurriedly scurry across the parking lot to use a “colored bathroom” in another building (which they show repeatedly to an almost comedic effect) becomes a bigger point of contention than some of the more challenging issues that she had to face in the workplace. In fact, the most honest and genuine moment is when the film speaks the softest: Johnson is packing up her things and leaving the office after being let go, and as she walks across the room to leave, not a single man acknowledges her or looks up from their work. It’s a subtle moment in a film filled with messages seemingly projected over a loudspeaker.

While glossing over the significance or symbolism of the space race, director Theodore Melfi chooses to focus more on the hardships these three women faced. At every turn it seems like they are being told, “You can’t do that,” which they in turn reply, “I’m going to do it.” This scenario plays out time and time again and is punctuated at every step to the point that its effect on the viewer begins to wane (Vaughan can’t even go to the library with her child without facing hostility). For all the good intentions that HIDDEN FIGURES has in highlighting the struggles these women faced, you still get the feeling that you’re watching a Disney-fied version of history. Not a single cigarette is smoked in the film despite what history has proven, and the “N-word” has been completely ignored, along with any other form of expletive you could think of. The film passes its PG rating test with flying colors.

In the end, HIDDEN FIGURES is a nice film – the kind of film your grandma would like and would feel good about going to see while commenting afterward, “Look at how far we’ve come.” With that in mind, coincidentally, NASA only just named one of their buildings after Katherine G. Johnson in May of last year (long after filming had already begun). Even if the recognition comes late or if the story wasn’t necessarily told in the best or most precise way, I guess it’s good that at least people are hearing about the incredible story of these three groundbreaking women.

Overall rating: 3 out of 5
HIDDEN FIGURES opens in theaters everywhere Friday, January 6th.