--- title: "The Right Stuff: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-right-stuff/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-right-stuff" critics_score: 85 critics_reviews: 14 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Right Stuff (1983): what the critics said Critics' score 85 from 14 reviews: 14 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. The reviews are unanimous, with all fourteen critics positive and most placing the film near the top of their range. The praise clusters on Philip Kaufman’s handling of Tom Wolfe’s book: keeping its irreverent, ironic view of hero-making while still honouring the astronauts’ bravery. Sam Shepard’s Chuck Yeager is singled out again and again as the film’s quiet centre, and the flight footage is repeatedly called convincing enough to make speed and altitude feel dangerous. Several later critics treat it as the template every subsequent astronaut film has followed. The reservations are few and concern shape rather than substance. The New Yorker finds it a stirring but untidy film with structural weaknesses and little coherence, while Empire thinks it lacks a clear directorial voice and survives on its inherent drama, photography and score. Nobody disputes that the three hours are earned. The spread is narrow, from warm to rapturous, and even the dissenters still recommend it. ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 21 October 1983. Ebert calls the film one of the best recent American movies for its ambitious scope blending adventure, satire and social commentary, and for its strong performances that announce Kaufman's arrival as a major director. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-right-stuff-1983) ## Slant Magazine — Nick Schager Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 8 July 2003. The critic calls Kaufman's epic stirring and dynamic, noting how it ties the astronauts' quests for glory and personal fulfillment to the thrill of pushing limits and the fear of being second best. Special admiration is reserved for Yeager as the true pioneer, with the film blending irony, humor, and poignancy in its portrayal of the space race. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-right-stuff/) ## The AV Club — Scott Tobias Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 June 2003. The review lauds Kaufman's adaptation for its subversive, ironic take on hero-making and the space program, preserving the irreverent tone of Wolfe's book while celebrating the astronauts' bravery and Yeager's quiet heroism. It highlights the film's blend of intimacy, grandeur, and revisionist history as one of the decade's richest achievements. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-right-stuff-dvd-1798198628) ## The Guardian Rating A– / A. 2 July 2014. Philip Kaufman's 1983 film is a terrific historical drama about the early US space race and Mercury Seven astronauts, accurately reflective of complex reality while being beautifully filmed with wit, energy and balance. It singles out the authentic portrayal of test pilot Chuck Yeager and the pressures on the astronauts for particular praise. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jul/02/the-right-stuff-reel-history) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Arthur Knight Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 11 October 1983. The critic praises the film as a vivid and personal American epic that humanizes the Mercury astronauts and test pilots through their training, risks, and family struggles. Philip Kaufman's script and direction are credited for balancing heroism with toughness and humor while showcasing spectacular flight footage. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/right-stuff-review-1983-film-939667/) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby Rating NYT Critic’s Pick. 21 October 1983. Canby describes the adaptation as a rousing, funny film that is probably the brightest and best rookie/cadet movie ever made, singling out Sam Shepard's Yeager as the commanding figure and the remarkably convincing flight footage. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/21/movies/film-right-stuff-on-astronauts.html) ## Variety — Variety Staff Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1982. The review calls the film a humdinger full of beauty, intelligence and excitement that provides a fresh, entertaining look at the US space program, noting it tells its three-hour tale lickety-split under Kaufman's direction. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1982/film/reviews/the-right-stuff-3-1200425373/) ## Los Angeles Times — Sheila Benson Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 21 October 1983. Benson praises the brash, beautiful and deeply American film for its high-spirited combination of New Journalism style with movie resources, highlighting Sam Shepard's charismatic Yeager and the seamless extraordinary flying footage. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-archives-the-right-stuff-review-john-glenn-20161208-story.html) ## Time Out — CPea Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 10 September 2012. The film is a modern Western celebrating quiet virtue and heroism as test pilots and astronauts reach for the skies. Kaufman matches John Ford in his respectful poetic treatment of the subject while acknowledging the surrounding media circus. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-right-stuff) ## Empire — Rob Fraser Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. The film lacks a clear directorial voice but captures the moral ambiguity of the book, creating tension and making viewers root for multiple characters. It remains compelling thanks to its inherent drama, photography and score. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/right-stuff-review/) ## The New Yorker — Pauline Kael Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 1983. The critic finds the film a stirring, enjoyable mess that captures Kaufman’s enthusiasm for the subject and moviemaking. She singles out the lyrical heavenly flight sequences and strong cast performances, especially Ed Harris as John Glenn, for praise while noting structural weaknesses and a lack of coherence. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1983/10/17/the-sevens) ## Collider — Reid Goldberg Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 7 September 2024. None of the other NASA films matches the sprawling and intimately compelling quality of this epic; it stands as the premier cinematic account thanks to its docudrama approach and detailed character-driven ensemble. The film balances epic scope and technical spectacle with intimate storytelling focused on the astronauts and their wives. [Read the review](https://collider.com/the-right-stuff-nasa-movie/) ## /Film — Ben Pearson Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 19 July 2020. The film is the most influential movie ever made about astronauts and established the modern template for respectable history-based astronaut movies. It makes high-speed flight and space travel feel genuinely dangerous while highlighting the pilots' dedication and bravery. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/575403/the-quarantine-stream-the-right-stuff/) ## The Ringer — Adam Nayman Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 31 July 2017. Philip Kaufman's dazzling adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s book is a crowded three-hour epic with 134 speaking parts. Shepard projects a quieter kind of cockiness in his Oscar-nominated role as Chuck Yeager, turning the sound-barrier breaker into the strong, silent type and delivering an indelible image of frontier heroism. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2017/07/31/pop-culture/sam-shepard-obituary-the-right-stuff-e095427b770f) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-right-stuff.md