Crowd-pleasing historical biopic led by three wonderful actresses

Rating: 9/10 (13 January 2017)

HIDDEN FIGURES (2016) *** 1/2 Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, Mahershala Ali, Aldis Hodge. Historical biopic centering on a trio of black women (Henson, Spencer and Monae all at the top of their games) who are enlisted into NASA for their mathlete skills to aid in the 1960s space race in getting the US astronauts into orbit. While director Theodore Melfi (who co-adapted the screenplay with Allison Schroeder based on the book by Margo Lee Shetterly) manages to use essential filmmaking trappings along a made-for-TV production he brightly puts the spotlight rightly on his trio of strong, smart and assured women who took one giantess step for womankind in their fields of physics, engineering and mathematics with deft aplomb. Costner lends concrete support as the bluffly gruff yet fair head of the awesome task force enabled to make a dream a reality.