Watching ‘Hidden Figures’ (Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe), and Recalling Life Lessons From One’s Own Past

MASTER MINDS: Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe), Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson) and Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) have a reason to smile – they are the brains behind major operations at a NASA facility in “Hidden Figures.” Photos courtesy of 20th Century Fox.

BY VW

IT is difficult to watch "Hidden Figures" as just a movie.

Indeed, it is extremely difficult, because I am witnessing history and recalling childhood memories, which have spawn several observations.

Based on Margot Lee Shetterly's book of the same name, "Hidden Figures" tells the story of mathematician Katherine G. Johnson who was instrumental in the success of NASA’s Project Mercury and other space missions, as well as the story of two other black female mathematicians working at a segregated NASA facility in Hampton, VA.

The film opened in limited release on 25 Dec. and widely on 6 Jan. and stars Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe as the title characters.

"Hidden Figures" is set during Jim Crow, a period that is all-too often forgotten in this culture where too many folk believe we live in a post-racial society. Of course, that notion was obliterated, the recent presidential campaign being a glaring and disturbing example to the contrary.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I am black. I do not identify as African-American. In vogue since the mid ‘90s, African-American is the latest appellation for certain Americans of African descent. Heretofore, dating to circa mid-'60s, we were black. Before that we were Colored, which was preceded by Negro, for instance.

To aid the understanding of foreigners and/or those in places like New York City who have had little exposure to Americans of African descent who did not grow up/were not born in one of the five boroughs or the TriState area, when I invoke the moniker black, I mean that my West African ancestors - like the African-American characters in "Hidden Figures" - were snatched from West Africa and brought and enslaved in what we now know as the United States of America.

My African ancestors were not dropped off on a Caribbean island, therefore while I am black, I am not Dominican, Haitian, Jamaican or Puerto Rican, for instance.

Now an “official” supervisor, Dorothy (Octavia Spencer) leads her ladies to the NASA computer lab.

It is on the backs of my African ancestors and those of the "Hidden Figures" characters that this great country was built. It was they who were on the frontlines of the movements that have made our republic reasonably livable for all non-European people - particularly those of African descent - and a good deal of European-descent Americans.

The experiences of the women in "Hidden Figures" reflect stories that I grew up hearing in the home of my grandparents who raised my brother and me. They often spoke with visitors to our home about the struggles they and others faced and still did.

When I was as young as 10, I was programmed to believe – like the hidden figures – that I would have to be twice as good at a job as a white person to be considered equal. Though started at home, this teaching continued at school, starting in 7th grade.

I did not grow up in post-civil rights America with the notion, either overtly or covertly, that there is inherent superiority in whiteness or that blacks get jobs, not because they are competent, but because of Affirmative Action, regardless of their level of competence.

On the contrary, I was generally socialized to believe that black people were often overqualified and were passed over for jobs by less-qualified whites. That black women, in particular, knew better than anyone else how to run whatever office in which they were employed. So often, they would train a white male who would become their boss.

This is the workplace that is so much in evidence in "Hidden Figures." Do note that I do not believe in the inherent superiority, inferiority, competence or incompetence of any ethnic group.

Meanwhile, another observation. The events in the film are unfolding in the early '60s. Some of the most explosive developments of the Civil Rights Movement have yet to take place. The March on Washington has not been organized, nor the Montgomery boycott. Roe vs. Wade is not yet law. Abortion is illegal. It is very much a WASP man's world.

Except for NASA and a very few other places, women in the workplace were mainly secretaries or cleaning ladies. The former must adhere to a strict dress code. In this environment, it is not at all exceptional for John Glenn (Glen Powell), for the time, a progressive in the main, to refer to Katherine Johnson as a girl. Not only is she just as educated and older than he, she is a widow with three children.

Katherine, is in the current vernacular, a grown-a_ _ woman. To paraphrase Walter Cronkite, "That's the way it was."

Mary (Janelle Monáe) and other Hampton, Virginia residents watch and worry as the Project Mercury mission experiences a snafu.

"Hidden Figures" is a tad too reverent and wants a more brisk pace. However, without exception, the performances are solid, particularly TPH as Katherine, the “computer” who wrote the schematics that launched JG into space and back safely down to earth. Fans of "Empire" may be surprised to learn that girlfriend is an actor with a capital A and was thus long before that popular series.

My only real quibble with the film is that it focuses too much on the lead-up to the Mercury mission and the white characters, particularly that of Al Harrison (Kevin Costner) at the expense of more of the interior lives and interior struggles of the three protagonists.

These dynamic women are living under Jim Crow, state-sanctioned discrimination, racism and separatism. It's highly doubtful that they returned home and uttered nary a word about the overt unfairness they endured at the office.

Undoubtedly, Katherine complained – perhaps bitterly even – at least once about the half-mile journey she was required to make several times a day just to relieve herself. No doubt, all three railed against various indignities at some point.

A final and striking observation about "Hidden Figures" is that it offers a depiction of black womanhood in the guise of a lady. It is one of three films to open recently about which this claim can be made. The others are "Loving" and "Fences."

Katherine (Taraji P. Henson) reads to her daughters after a long and challenging day at the office.

How gratifying it is to see black women on the big screen who share a marked resemblance to the kind of women I – and no doubt, countless others – knew growing up and with whom I am still acquainted. Yes, the hyper-sexualized, hypo-intellectualized vixen and the coarse, crass, corpulent neck-roller are a sad reality. But far more black women are class and dignity personified.

It is utterly possible for black women to deal with stressful situations without elevating their voices and raining down an avalanche of expletives. They can calmly explain why they are not where they are not expected to be. Certainly, sisters make cool, reasoned arguments to attain what should be rightfully theirs anyway.

And when they are laboring under extreme righteous indignation, they have the wherewithal to express it and remain every inch a lady, though their hair is a mess.

The film brings these women, and so much more, out of the background, to front and center. Hidden figures no longer.


Now an “official” supervisor, Dorothy (Octavia Spencer, front and center) and the ladies she supervises at the NASA computer lab.

“Hidden Figures” is rated PG for thematic elements and some language; visit http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/hidden-figures to learn more about the film.

In Theaters: "3 Days to a Kill" and "In Secret"

Kevin Costner and Hailee Steinfeld in "3 Days to Kill." Photo from "3 Days to Kill" Facebook page.

MIX a dash of the cheeky humor of a James Bond film, the weariness of “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold,” one sappy storyline, several likable characters, loads of bad guys, and the copious car chases, shootouts and shoot-em-ups that have become de rigueur for action films of the last 15 years or so and … voila! … the recipe for “3 Days to Kill.”

In Kevin Costner's latest film, opening today in U.S. theaters – should this be described as a comeback or simply a return after sporadic sabbaticals? – he is government spook Ethan Renner. Here's a spy who really does want to come in from the cold. (See video below).

Ethan craves a simple life with his heretofore neglected wife Christine (Connie Nielsen) and daughter Zoey (Hailee Steinfeld). To prove his dedication to the cause, he has agreed to take care of Zoey while Christine takes herself off to London for a job.

Meanwhile, the bad guys are still out there generally menacing society. Only Ethan, of course, can put out of commission a really, really bad, bad guy. Really, really bad, bad guy is a terrorist, of course. Sure, Ethan can have his wish to be with his family, that is if he pulls off one last job for the agency, of course.

Ethan can only have life – literally – if he takes this job, one he'd rather pass on. Conveniently, he has a terminal illness. The one hope for reversal is an experimental drug. This is the carrot that agency bottle-blonde handler Vivi Delay (Amber Heard) dangles in front of Ethan to keep him on the hook. Take the job; get the drug, of course, of course. He has three days to lock this down, hence the title.

“3 Days to Kill” is an action film. To that end, one does not expect sterling dialogue, and one does not get sterling dialogue. Neither should one expect sterling acting, and one does not get sterling acting (it is what it is in what it is) in this effort directed by McG aka Joseph McGinty Nichol, a former video director who rose to real fame on the strength of directing the “Charlie's Angels” films.

Indeed, “3 Days to Kill” is an action film. To that end, the action scenes on the streets of Paris are thrilling and breathtaking, if somewhat familiar. It should be noted that Luc Besson, who knows a thing or thirteen about this business, is a producer of the film. This, no doubt, explains in part its Parisian setting.

Action-film fans have one to love, because this population can't get enough of chases and shootouts. The rest of the moviegoing public should just hold on tight during the loud, bumpy ride.

Oscar Isaac and Elizabeth Olsen in "In Secret." Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions.

Sustaining more than its share of bumps is another one opening today, “In Secret.” It is in English and is the umpteenth remake of Émile Zola's classic novel, Thérèse Raquin. It concerns love, betrayal and murder in a lower-class milieu of 1860s Paris. (See video below).

Jessica Lange takes on the role of Madame Raquin who forces her niece and the heroine, Thérèse (Elizabeth Olsen), into marrying the girl's first cousin Camille (Tom Felton). Camille is also the son of the Madame. All is as ill as it is going to be until Therese claps eyes on the painterly Laurent LeClaire (Oscar Isaac), Camille's friend and colleague. Then, all gets worse.

“In Secret” is beautifully photographed by Florian Hoffmeister. The demure lighting often clashes with the action. The film is melodramatic and relies too heavily on silence as dialogue. It is the female characters who are at the center of this work. EO's Thérèse is overly worldly, not the seeming innocent that she should be. One believes, however, that she is quite capable of a malevolent act.

JL, trussed up as a brunette with a severe middle part, puts in a solid performance as the odious aunt. Yet, there are moments when she oversells the evil – there's that melodrama – bringing to mind Faye Dunaway in “Mommie Dearest.” “In Secret” also suffers from slow pacing. Not a good thing when the ending is known.

Here's a one for consumers of the period drama.

“3 Days to Kill” is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality and language; visit http://www.bit.ly/1fFuNXv to learn more about the film.

“In Secret” is rated R for sexual content and brief violent images; visit http://www.bit.ly/1p1AqXQ to learn more about the film.

'Man of Steel' Has Selective Memory and Action Aplenty

A film franchise reboots and the result is “Man of Steel,” the latest in the “Superman” series.

“Man of Steel” goes back to the future, revisiting Krypton, the homeworld of the humanoid infant Kal-El aka Clark Kent who would be snatched from the jaws of death and relocated to Earth’s heartland and raised by Smallville, Kansas couple, Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane). (See video above).

The Zack Snyder-directed film, which opens in the United States, today has amnesia as it regards its critically-acclaimed predecessor, “Superman Returns” (2006), which also had its amnesia around what came before it.

This most recent attack of (selective) memory loss, though, has everything to do with the disappointment of Warner Bros. over box office receipts of “Superman Returns.” They were around $400 million with an “M” worldwide instead of the $500 million that the Suits were hoping for.

Mind-boggling for sure, but it’s the film bidness where greed is good. “Man of Steel” is fair, with moments of an exquisite abundance of action and obscene absences of story. Those ramped-up action sequences, meant to appeal to young males, will very likely get Warner Bros. the results it desires.

“Man of Steel” has a cast nearly as strong as its hero. KC has gotten good notices as Clark’s father. Amy Adams shines as Lois Lane. Other principals onboard for the ride are Russell Crowe as Jor-El, Laurence Fishburne as Perry White and Michael Shannon as General Zod.

“Man of Steel” is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, and for some language; visit http://www.manofsteel.com/index.html?home to learn more about the film.