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Hidden Figures

It’s hard to believe that Katherine Johnson passed away this year! Wow, what a story she lived to tell.. As the first mathematician whose calculations sent NASA into space, she is a legend!! The first time I watched “Hidden Figures” I was taken back by Taraji P Henson’s acting abilities. Over the years I have watched her evolve and she continues to get better, but this was a different side and genre then I was used to seeing her play and she did so wonderfully. The scene where she explained her tardiness due to the distance of the bathroom really made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up… She has a way of taking that one scene and making the climax of the movie and making it unforgettable. The story itself about the colored women who were employed at NASA was empowering and just what the world needed at the right time. It came out after the Treyvon Martin case and a long list other police involved homicides and there were movies like “Selma”, and “The Butler”… stories African Americans were all too familiar with but “Hidden Figures” was a gem.. Something to be proud of with a cast to match!

               Octavia Spencer did it again… I love to watch her. She is that character that makes the movie. She was bold in this movie.. the complete opposite from what I remembered in her role in “The Help”, where at times she was a bit more vulnerable but still impressive. From a female gaze I noticed the “cattiness”, and how cruel us women can be to each other. These women portrayed strong characters that allowed their work to speak for themselves despite struggling with several disparities in their work environment. From a female gaze the story didn’t focus on the women overcoming racial issues or gender issues, the issues came up but were not the climax of the film. The female gaze is the determination the women had to succeed at their jobs. Their goal was not any different form their coworkers, yet they exceeded their expectations while overcoming several obstacles.