Hidden Figures (2016)

Hidden Figures is more than it pretends to be. Often movies about past racism or discrimination are congratulatory ("weren't they so bad then?") exercises. The best of these films instead connect the past to the present exploring the ways marginalization continues happening today. Hidden Figures, with its inspiring story, and powerful performances from its leads, accomplishes a minor miracle. It teaches us about ourselves while entertaining us with a kick ass story that was just meant to be told on the big screen.

Hidden Figures gets through some of the complicated layers of structural racism and sexism from its first scene. Our heroes are stuck on the side of the road, fixing their own damn car by the way, when a cop pulls up behind them. For many the sight of a police officer when you are stranded is a welcome sign of relief. The film shows us right away, without hitting us on the head with it, that this is not good news. The women skillfully manage the situation and turn a potentially dangerous situation into their own personal triumph, placating the cop, as they will placate many other white folks through the film, to get where they need to be.

Hidden Figures highlights many of the little way institutional racism and sexism underlines everything in 1960 America, showing us the daily impact. The audience feels each microagression. There isn't a scene where one ugly racist is confronted or defeated while the good white people cheer on our black heroes. There isn't a moment where a man hits a woman or puts her in her place. Instead, we are witness to daily, moment to moment big and little incidents which show us just how entrenched in our culture racism and sexism are. And it is all done with a lovely smile, a "may you have a blessed day," and an entertaining as hell story so that we can't help but enjoy ourselves.

There is an especially powerful arc about bathrooms which plays very well into today's issues. There was a time when people just believed it was natural for white people and people of colour to use different bathrooms. Yes it sounds ridiculous today but at the time folks walked around thinking it was normal natural. How will people look back at us 50 years from now with our prejudices?

Taraji P Henson is superb, cast against type, as the pioneering Katherine Johnson. She plays her with a constant integrity but also vulnerability, balancing a perfect performance, making her real. The film doesn't have time to give many other characters the depth it gives her but she is the centre of the film.

Hidden Figures is everything it should be and remains as entertaining and accessible as any audience would need it to be.

Hidden Figures
Starring: Taraji P Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kevin Costner, Kirstin Dunst, Jim Parsons
Director: Theodore Melfi
Writers: Allison Schroeder. Theodore Melfi