Red Tails Discussion Thread

[DarthPipes]

Hadn't seen an official one so I'd thought I'd start it...

I really enjoyed the film. Though the aerial battles were stunning and the film really did shine when it was in the air. The cast was good and the movie was fun. Definitely a throwback to the old, patriotic war films.

It wasn't perfect to be sure. Some problems with the screenplay and the dialogue and I thought it could have benefitted from cutting 10-15 minutes out.

 

[od0_ital]

Saw it for free Thursday night, and the whole movie felt flat to me, beginnin' to end. Yes, there are some good actors in the cast, but they are all completely wasted, most of 'em only givin' one trait to portray as their "character."

And all through the movie, I kept thinkin' that HBO told a better story about the same group seventeen years ago! And if ya can't make a better movie than a cable channel, then maybe ya shouldn't be makin' your movie.

 

[shipinspace]

I was thinking of going to watch it in theater but after reading the reviews i change my mind and probably watch it online

 

[siskostemper]

This movie was exellent. Not perfect but high quality. The movie the airmen should have gotten years ago. For the small hollywood but huge for a movie with a black cast budget of $58 million. this movie shines. It doesn't cover the whole story like some would like it to but it covers the airmen as the heros they where and the surviving airmen are. The extra pride for me is learning that the largest group of them are from my hometown, with most of them coming from my old neighborhood. Several of the remaining airmen went on location to serve as advisisors. They have said this movie is very close to their real experiance and thats good enough for me. I recommend this movie.

 

[DarthPipes]

I'm glad the movie was patriotic too, unlike Captain America. Captain America ran away from anything patriotic like it was a plague.

 

[od0_ital]

I'm glad the movie was patriotic too, unlike Captain America. Captain America ran away from anything patriotic like it was a plague.

His costume was the freakin' flag!!!

WTF?!?

 

[DarthPipes]

I'm glad the movie was patriotic too, unlike Captain America. Captain America ran away from anything patriotic like it was a plague.

His costume was the freakin' flag!!!

WTF?!?

Yes but the director and Evans pretty much made it clear at every turn that they didn't want it to be a patriotic movie. Steve didn't even say at any point that he wanted to fight for his country, just "I want to fight." He wore a flag to be sure but the film did everything they could not to acknowledge it.

Here's a link to explain what I mean...

http://herocomplex.latimes.com/2011...ns-its-not-about-the-flag-its-about-the-hero/

 

[Sci]

I'm glad the movie was patriotic too, unlike Captain America. Captain America ran away from anything patriotic like it was a plague.

It's a movie called Captain America, starring a guy who wears a frickin' flag as his costume, and featuring an affectionate homage to World War II-era propaganda. It was perfectly patriotic, it just didn't feel the need to shove its patriotism down our throats.

ETA:

Interesting side-note: One of the screenwriters on Red Tails is Aaron McGruder, creator of The Boondocks TV series and comic strip.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

I dunno what movie you saw, but the Captain America I saw was appropriately patriotic. Steve Rogers did not "just want to fight." That would mean he was a psycho who liked to kill people for fun.

It was clearly established that he was fighting because he saw the threat to freedom and to America (which to him is the same thing, or should be) and fought only because there was no alternative, taking a huge risk in being an experimental subject with the supersoldier serum.

As for Red Tails, I've got that and The Tuskegee Airmen on my Netflix queue. It's not like we have to choose one or the other.

 

[Star Wolf]

I was thinking of going to watch it in theater but after reading the reviews i change my mind and probably watch it online

Its air to air combat. The thing that Lucas can do better then HBO, that fact alone makes it a theatre movie for me no matter what the reviews about how it handled 1944 segregation.

I understand they did composite characters. I do wish that Lucas would have gone the Band Of Brothers route. The Tuskegee Airman are not on the Rosa Parks level but they are heroes to their community.

 

[Hound of UIster]

I'm glad the movie was patriotic too, unlike Captain America. Captain America ran away from anything patriotic like it was a plague.

It's a movie called Captain America, starring a guy who wears a frickin' flag as his costume, and featuring an affectionate homage to World War II-era propaganda. It was perfectly patriotic, it just didn't feel the need to shove its patriotism down our throats.

ETA:

Interesting side-note: One of the screenwriters on Red Tails is Aaron McGruder, creator of The Boondocks TV series and comic strip.

He is also a big Star Wars fan. There is loads of SW references in the cartoon.

 

[DarthPipes]

I still think if they could have done a Captain America movie without calling it Captain America, they would have.

I was lucky enough to be at the NYCC in October when LFL did their Red Tales panel. McGruber was there, along with actors Michael B. Jordan and Leslim Odom. The highlight was Dr. Roscoe Brown, who was a squadron commander for the Tuskegee Airman. Great guy, told a lot of fascinating stories. He was the first American credited with shooting down a jet.

The Great Escape subplot was odd. There was a Tuskegee Airman named Alexander Jefferson who was a POW during the war. He wrote a book about his experiences a couple of years ago.

 

[Joel_Kirk]

I'm trying (or in the process of collaborating with a few sources) to get a certain producer to come down and speak with some fellow black students, but I'm noticing the reviews....and a track record of late.

With that said, I'm looking forward to more stories about the Tuskegee Airmen. I've seen the HBO film, which was interesting....

As for "Red Tails," I may actually see it next week with a group.

 

[FPAlpha]

I dunno what movie you saw, but the Captain America I saw was appropriately patriotic.

Keyword is appropriately. I'm glad it wasn't a movie made by Michael Bay or wouldn't see the movie for all the US flags waving in the wind interrupted by cheesy one liners.

As to Red Tails.. can't wait to see it. Love The Tuskegee Airmen and am a big fan of WW2 (or any pre-jet era) dogfight movies or scenes.. an era where skill is as equally important as the machine you are flying.

 

[Admiral2]

Saw it along with Haywire yesterday.


It's too bad George Lucas had to make the film on his own. With big studio backing from the onset he might have been able to get somebody like John Williams or James Horner to do the music, which sucked because the music was the only thing I didn't like about this movie. Everything else was what I expected from a Hollywood representation of a real-life military unit. There's some stylization, but otherwise it was a good war movie, and I always enjoy a good war movie.

 

[Harvey]

I don't think Terence Blanchard is a small time composer; he's worked on a number of Hollywood films (almost exclusively films by African-American directors). I can't comment on the score, though, since I've neither heard it nor seen the movie (yet).

 

[Admiral James Kirk]

I plan on watching Red Tails within the next week. With a 33% fresh critics rating and a 72% audience rating at RT it seems that George Lucas has once again succeeded at creating a movie that is not only critic proof but that speaks to audiences. A wonderful vindication for a wonderful filmmaker.

 

[Timby]

I plan on watching Red Tails within the next week. With a 33% fresh critics rating and a 72% audience rating at RT it seems that George Lucas has once again succeeded at creating a movie that is not only critic proof but that speaks to audiences. A wonderful vindication for a wonderful filmmaker.

He, uh, didn't make it outside of signing checks.

 

[od0_ital]

I plan on watching Red Tails within the next week. With a 33% fresh critics rating and a 72% audience rating at RT it seems that George Lucas has once again succeeded at creating a movie that is not only critic proof but that speaks to audiences. A wonderful vindication for a wonderful filmmaker.

He, uh, didn't make it outside of signing checks.

Which is an important part of any filmmakin' process...

 

[Harvey]

I plan on watching Red Tails within the next week. With a 33% fresh critics rating and a 72% audience rating at RT it seems that George Lucas has once again succeeded at creating a movie that is not only critic proof but that speaks to audiences. A wonderful vindication for a wonderful filmmaker.

He, uh, didn't make it outside of signing checks.

Apparently he directed some re-shoots while Anthony Hemingway was away working on the television series Treme (with Hemingway's approval). He's also been interested in the story and been trying to get the film made since the early 1990s, so I don't know if I'd say he had no hand in it outside of signing checks.