The Right Stuff (1983)
These days “astronaut” has lost some of its luster as a job title, but in the Kennedy era it was something straight out of science fiction. While Philip Kaufman’s reverent take on Tom Wolfe’s novel can be occasionally plodding, it is beautiful to look at and does capture the madness of men willing to be put in a tin can and shot on a rocket into space. Also, Sam Shepherd plays Chuck Yeager like a laconic 20th century cowboy to great effect.
