José Hernández’s remarkably impressive life and career definitely warrant a suitably exhilarating film.
Sadly, this one isn’t it.
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| José Hernández (Michael Peña, center), newly hired as an electrical and computer engineer at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, finds that his input is neither requested nor appreciated by his white colleagues. During meetings, he often doesn't even get a seat at the table. |
Die-hard NASA fans will be able to fill in the gaps, but casual viewers will wonder if key scenes wound up on the cutting-room floor.
That’s a shame, because all the performances are strong and heartfelt, particularly Michael Peña’s starring role as Hernández. The film also excels at its depiction of family dynamics, and the strong ties binding him with his parents, his cousin Beto (Bobby Soto), and (eventually) his wife Adela (Rosa Salazar) and her family.
That said, it could be argued that Abella spends too much time on these relationships, at the expense of a more thorough depiction of how José gets from A to B, and then to C and D.
The story begins in the late 1960s, as the families of 7-year-old José (endearingly played in these early scenes by Juan Pablo Monterrubio) and Beto (Leonardo Granados) divide their lives between home in La Piedad, Michoacán, Mexico, and work each year as farmworkers, moving from one California town to another. Education is scattered and inconsistent, as the boys shuttle from one school to the next.
On top of which, they’re often both exhausted, sometimes — in a poignant scene — falling asleep on their school desks.
Even so, young José has a thirst for learning, and receives encouragement from a teacher (Michelle Krusiec) who sees a spark in his eager gaze. “You’re a force of nature,” she tells him. “Nothing will stop you.”
José’s father Salvador (Julio César Cedillo) also has a telling encounter with a guidance counselor. “A tree doesn’t like to be uprooted and planted somewhere else every few months,” she points out. “It will grow, but it won’t thrive.”
Salvador and his wife Julia (Verónica Falcón) therefore decide, for the sake of their children’s stability, to stay in one place. (We’ve no clue what the parents subsequently do, in terms of employment, in order to make this happen.)
Then, whammo: The next scene finds José graduating from college (!).
That’s a helluva leap, from a grade school aptitude in math, to a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of the Pacific (followed by a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering at UC Santa Barbara, which this film also fails to mention). Would it have been so difficult to include a few scenes to show how José accomplished this?
Abella focuses more on representation and “silent” racism, when José begins his professional career at California’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. On his first day, needing to change a light bulb in his (closet-like) office, he approaches the section receptionist for help. “You’re the new guy, right?” she says, assuming he’s a janitor, while handing him a massive ring of keys.
Peña’s expression is marvelous, as José cheerfully sets her straight, adding just enough inflection to gently embarrass the woman.
He’s similarly overlooked by most of his condescending (white) colleagues, and relegated to scut work … until given the opportunity to demonstrate his intelligence and proactive nature.
On the personal front, following a meet-cute encounter with Adela, José discovers that their subsequent courtship must take place in her home, under the friendly — but watchful — gaze of her father (Gerardo Trejoluna). This leads to all manner of droll interactions, ultimately culminating in marriage.
Along the way, they share their secret dreams. She wants to become a chef, and open her own restaurant.
He wants to be an astronaut … which would fulfill a childhood fascination with space, that saw his younger self pretending that a corn cob was a rocket ship.
In pursuit of that goal, José and Adela move their rapidly expanding family to Houston, where he begins work at the Johnson Space Center … and soon endures the first of what will become a string of rejected applications to the astronaut training program.
(In another example of disregard for established fact, this film implies that Hernández tried once a year, over the course of a decade. In truth, he was turned down 11 times in three years.)
Garret Dillahunt is solid as Frederick “CJ” Sturckow, José’s initial point of contact with the training program, and eventual mentor. Sarayu Blue also has a telling scene as Indian-born astronaut Kalpana Chawla, veteran of a 1997 shuttle mission, who encourages José by saying, “The program needs more people like you and me.”
(Both Sturchow and Chawla are real-life astronauts.)
Abella, her co-writers and the entire cast definitely have their hearts in the right place. There’s no questioning the robust family bonds, the empowerment message, and the flat-out astonishing triumph of achievement over adversity … but the resulting film remains average at best.
Hernández deserves better.
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