Showing posts with label Jim Parsons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jim Parsons. Show all posts

Saturday, February 18, 2017

MOVIES: SISTERHOOD OF WHIZ WOMEN BEHIND NASA’S SPACE LAUNCH IN “HIDDEN FIGURES”


Prepare for a soaring, inspiring and mentally-challenging ride in the Oscar-nominated movie “Hidden Figures” starring Kevin Costner, Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson, Janelle Monae, Jim Parsons and Kirsten Dunst.

At last, the story of a visionary trio of women who crossed gender, race and professional lines on their way to pioneering cosmic travel comes to the screen in “Hidden Figures” that uncovers the incredible, untold yet true story of a brilliant group of women who changed the foundations of the country for the better -- by aiming for the stars.  The film recounts the vital history of an elite team of black female mathematicians at NASA who helped win the all-out space race against America’s rivals in the Soviet Union and, at the same time, sent the quest for equal rights and opportunity rocketing forwards.

Katherine G. Johnson (played by Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Monae), the chance to use their knowledge, passion and skills opened up just as the demands of their work in NASA.  Whenever NASA is in need of numbers, they call on their team to solve all mathematical problems being faced at such time.  Director Theodore Melfi explains:  “For NASA, at that moment in time, brains were more important than race or sex.  These were brilliant women who could do the math they needed, who were hungry for a chance, who really wanted the opportunity to change their lives – so who else were they going to turn to?”

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

MOVIES: KEVIN COSTNER BREAKS CHAINS OF DISCRIMINATION IN THE HIGHLY-INSPIRING “HIDDEN FIGURES”


The legendary Oscar winning actor Kevin Costner stars in the highly-inspiring movie based on the lives of real women who dared the odds in “Hidden Figures” along with Golden Globe winner and Emmy nominated Taraji P. Henson, Oscar winner Octavia Spencer, Grammy nominated Janelle Monáe , Golden Globe nominee Kirsten Dunst and Jim Parsons with a powerful score from multiple Grammy winning musician/composer Pharrell Williams.

In “Hidden Figures” Costner plays the head of NASA’s Space Task Group, (the fictional) Al Harrison, who needs the best possible mathematicians regardless of gender or race.  Harrison wants Katherine Johnson (Henson) to work on John Glenn’s mission, because she has the skills needed to calculate the astronaut’s trajectory, which entails writing new formulas, making sure Glenn returns to Earth safely. As the movie unfolds, we discover that although Johnson is working on the mission, she is given little credit and is hamstrung in her endeavors because of endemic prejudice.

During the turbulent 60s, battling discrimination at home and in the workplace, Katherine Johnson, (Golden Globe winner and Emmy nominated Taraji P. Henson) Dorothy Vaughan (Oscar winner Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Grammy nominated Janelle Monáe), all stellar mathematicians, were undeterred in their pursuit of academic excellence. Instrumental in helping America to eventually win the space race, they broke down barriers, laying the groundwork for future generations.