A middle of the road drama

Rating: 5/10 (4 June 2017)

A perfectly fine and inoffensive middle of the road experience that inexplicitly got nominated for a Best Picture Oscar at this year's Academy Awards, Hidden Figures ends up being a workmanlike telling of an extraordinary feel good true story, that would serve up far more emotion and resonance in a documentary format.
From the films beginnings right through to the story's end, Theodore Melfi's film never does anything to distinguish itself from the usual Hollywood fare that delves into race issues and trials over adversity stories that made themselves apparent in the American era of rampant racism and lack of social acceptance.
Not every film dealing with such heavy topics needs to be dour and downtrodden and while Hidden Figures poppy qualities such as Pharrell William's often intrusive soundtrack and the almost comical scenes of Taraji P. Henson's maths genius Katherine G. Johnson racing to the bathroom across what seems like an entire complex or Kevin Costner's kind hearted white boss Al Harrison smashing down a coloured bathroom sign with an audience watching on, feel more light-hearted than occurrences of much meaning and fail to distinguish themselves from the pack. Which means there really isn't much of substance to be found in a true life tale that has an abundance of it at its core.
Focussing largely on Henson's Katherine (who often steers into an overacting zone) and her racially tense appointment to an important computer office tasked with sending America's first manned spacecraft into space, those expecting the trio that includes Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae to get amongst the action will be disappointed as they are relegated to caring friend side characters that ad very little to proceedings at all.
Taking nothing away from what Johnson achieved in her time at the NASA complex, it would've been great for Melfi to pay more screen time to Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson's plights as black American woman that to achieved great things under duress and racism as it feels as though we've been short changed from their plights as Johnson gets the bulk of the important scenes.
The relegation of these characters in Hidden Figures displays a glaringly obvious fault with a film that is clearly looking to be a crowd pleaser over a real memorable and moving one, which is a real shame for a story that deserves a lot more than this unfairly praised event.
Final Say –
Hidden Figures will make you feel good but it isn't the sum of its parts when all the critical and commercial success is bought into the equation.
While this perfectly average film has its heart in a good place and has a nice glossy sheen, you can't help but feel that this Hollywoodized experience is far less heartfelt and moving than it should've been and ends up being the year's worst Best Picture entrant by a country mile.
2 ½ bashed down bathroom signs out of 5