I can always tell if a cadet saw the movie on Starship Troopers or Caine Mutiny, and is trying to snow me. On The Right Stuff, it's pretty tricky to tell.
Here is some 'Right Stuff' trivia. William Goldman ( screenwriter for The Great Waldo Pepper, A Bridge Too Far, The Princess Bride, Harper & Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid to name a few) was supposed to do the screenplay for 'Stuff.' In his Adventures in the Screen Trade, Goldman tell some tales!
He was really excited to be able to write a great script about the excitement, wonder and courage of the American space effort. However, when he started talking to director Philip Kaufman, he found Kaufman planned on doing the film as the failure of America to get it right! Kaufman wanted to show that the best of America had passed us by.
Goldman left the project in disgust only to find out later that 'Stuff' was to be written by... Yes, Philip Kaufman!
While the film did survive to be better than Goldman's fears as it more focused on Yeager's part rather than the actual Seven, it does have many scenes that make fun of the American endeavors. Such as the two black suits (Jeff Goldblum & Harry Shearer) played for poking fun at US efforts.
IMHO While parts of The Right Stuff do hit the mark, I found the film more of a bummer in contrast to Tom Wolfe's epic book.
BTW get a copy of Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade. It is an enjoyable roller coaster read on the highs and lows of Hollywood...