Covering some 15 years, The Right Stuff recounts the formation of Americas space program, concentrating on the original Mercury astronauts. Scott Glenn plays Alan Shepherd, the first American in space; Fred Ward is Gus Grissom, the benighted astronaut for whom nothing works out as planned; and Ed Harris is John Glenn, the straight-arrow boy scout of the bunch who was the first American to orbit the earth. The remaining four Mercury boys are Deke Slayton (Scott Paulin), Scott Carpenter (Charles Frank) and Wally Schirra (Lance Henriksen). Wolfes original book related in straightforward fashion the dangers and frustrations facing the astronauts (including Glenns oft-repeated complaint that its hard to be confident when you know that the missile youre sitting on has been built by the lowest bidder), the various personal crises involving their families (Glenns wife Annie, a stutterer, dreads being interviewed on television, while Grissoms wife Betty, angered that her husband is not regarded as a hero because his mission was a failure, bitterly declares I want my parade!), and the schism between the squeaky-clean public image of the Mercury pilots and their sometimes raunchy earthbound shenanigans. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide