Red Tails!

Saw it this morning.

The good:
The obligatory love story didn't get in the way too much, I thought it was pretty well done, even if it was cliche. I mean, the only thing keeping the poor guy alive was the fact that she hadn't said yes to his marriage proposal yet.
The acting was, overall, very good, There were a couple scenes that were great.
It was basically entertaining
It's still an absolutely great story.

The bad:
The same shifty eyed German all over the place.
Breaking the laws of physics over and over and over again
CGI was cartoonish.
At one point they were talking in front of a P-40 and I could see all the way through the cowling. I don't even think the airplanes on the ground were real.

The ugly:
A lot of cheesy dialogue, seriously, the writing seemed lazy.
They probably searched google for "fighter pilot quotes" and came up with:
"Every time I close the canopy of my plane, its like closing the lid on my own coffin" - A Luftwaffe pilot near the end of the war.... oops.

Worth going to see? I guess it was an okay way to spend a morning.
 
USMCmech said:
I don't really understand your point.

What I was saying is that the story, dialog, characters were so cheesy that it discredits the memory of the actual Tuskeggee airmen. This story deserved so much more than Lucas gave it. I don't really know what goes on in Hollywood, but even I could have written a better script.

The HBO movie had an all black cast, and was a much better movie. George Lucas could have bought it straight from HBO, inserted some new CGI dogfights, and that would have been a much better movie that both entertained and honored the real veterans.
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I mean to say as someone else did that Hollywood does typically make movies for (insert segment) enthusiast. Look I roll my eyes every time a commercial airline pilots in a movie are still wearing their hats in flight, but I don't storm out in protest. Or when a character in a movie boards a commercial flight and you see them board say a 737 but at takeoff or mid-flight they cut to stock footage of a MD-11.

My best friends mother has her PH.D in Anthropology, and she literally makes watching any movie with primates less enjoyable. Because she's always saying stuff like those two apes hate each other and don't live in the same habitat. And her favorite, is always stating that Hollywood always uses female Orangutangs for male Orangutangs.The car ride home after watching Rise of the Planet of the Apes, was horrible. This movie wasn't made for pilots, sorry some of you all need to really get over yourselves already. It was made to make money first, but also entertain and educate.

Example: As I was in line yesterday to see Underworld, a black mother had her elementary aged son with her and they were in line. From their conversation (I gather) the mother picked him up early from school after he got an A on a test in a hard subject. The mother's words to her son were as followed. (Insert boys name) this movie is to show you that you can do anything that you put your mind too, like how you got an A on your test. And also to show you that when people tell you that you can't do something, call you names and even against adversity if you don't give up, you can truly do anything. She then went on to explain some history of the movie to her son. Also how her and her son now enjoy more freedoms in today's world then the character in the movie, and how even against all of their adversity the movie characters faced they still triumphed. She then said if they could do all that you're about to see with all their many obstacles, what's stopping you and how far can you go in life?

I've already said but it's worth saying again that is the heart of the movie. Whether black, white or Asian (insert any race/ethnicity) the message is don't let anyone else define your success, or limitation. Others will simply show up to be entertained and watch a movie, maybe they'll also come out with the message also.But this movie wasn't made for a niche audience, that being pilots... it was made for a general audience, and they typically don't care about more than half the stuff many of you are complaining about.

Get over yourselves!
 
Fine way to spend a morning, I suppose, but for 90% of the people seeing it, it's all they'll ever know of the 332nd, the War they fought, the reasons they fought it, the hurdles they faced to even get a chance to fight it, etc. I suspect it doesn't deserve to be "Spaceballs: The Toilet Paper" next to the stories of those men. And we should all be ashamed of that. Again, if you're really interested, just type "Tuskegee Airmen" or "332nd FG" in to youtube and you'll get a great story that everyone will cheer for. For free! Now that's Positive, isn't it?
 
Maximillian_Jenius said:
Despite knowing all of the many hurdles George Lucas had to jump through just to get this picture made. Simply due to the fact that the film mostly was an all black cast, I just want to say. Thanks for the super classy dig!
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Jesus, Max. I've broken bread with you in person, which is why I feel okay to say...WTF?

This is a BAD MOVIE. It doesn't have anything to do with the cast being black or white. It was a BAD SCRIPT and a BAD MOVIE.

The actors are BETTER than this. Black OR White.
 
I saw it this afternoon. It was pretty lame in my opinion. Entirely too much CGI and the script seemed very half assed and cheesy at times for someone of Lucas's caliber. The other one was a lot better. Its a shame, this one could have had so much potential.
 
I thought it was good, as others have said corny dialogue but it was more good than bad. It even featured my favorite deity Black Jesus.
 
Maximillian_Jenius said:
I've already said but it's worth saying again that is the heart of the movie. Whether black, white or Asian (insert any race/ethnicity) the message is don't let anyone else define your success, or limitation. Others will simply show up to be entertained and watch a movie, maybe they'll also come out with the message also.But this movie wasn't made for a niche audience, that being pilots... it was made for a general audience, and they typically don't care about more than half the stuff many of you are complaining about.
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First off, let me reemphasize that I LOVE the story of the Tuskegee Airmen. Without them, Truman doesn't force the integration of the military and without that the Civil Right movement never happens. This story is important for every American to understand.

I'm not the guy who picks apart the minor flaws in aviation movies. I did notice several, but I wouldn't care at all if the story is good. I don't care that the read Red Tails only flew C models (not Ds in the film) or that the props in the movie were clearly 3/4 scale replicas, or that there were few B-17s based in Italy (mostly -24s), or that the dogfights were not accurate. Yes, my experienced eye catches these details, but they do not effect the story. None of that matters if there are strong characters and a good story (which HBO did very well).

In this case the movie was made to honor black pilots in WW2. Yet, it assumes that no one in the audience will believe that these pilots were courageous, intelligent, professionals. Instead it has every blackface cliche in the book. The script was filled with cheesy dialog that even great actors like Terrance Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr. couldn't save. Don't forget the prison escape scene that was cut directly from "The Great Escape".

"Flyboys" was a really bad movie about WW1 pilots, "Firebirds" was a bad movie about army helo pilots, "Stealth" was a terrible movie about navy pilots, "Top Gun" was a cheesy movie about Navy pilots, "Always" was a sappy movie about tanker pilots, "Pearl Harbor" was a bad movie about the start of WW2, and "Red Tails" is a bad movie about the Tuskegee Airmen.

I admire the filmmakers good intentions, but the execution was done so poorly that this movie actually dishonors the memory of some true American heroes.
 
I saw it today, and really enjoyed it. I tried not to over think it, rooted for the good guys, and watched some pilots act like pilots.

It's not going to inspire anyone to cure cancer, feed the hungry, or anything dramatic like that.. but it might inspire somebody to look up the actual history of the pilots of the 332nd. That, in turn, might get them thinking. Who knows what might happen then?

As for the cheesy cliches... well, war isn't exactly an enjoyable process. You've got to drum up a little human drama for the average civilian to not nod off and drool on themselves. Film makers are competing for audience share of a population that watches Jersey Shore.. and Beavis and Butthead have repeatedly made it clear that they're smarter than JS.
 
Not going to waste my time except maybe when it comes on HBO. I'm hearing historically inaccurate but that's typical I suppose, of Hollywood. I suppose they kept to the no bombers lost, first to shoot down the Me-262 jet, etc, BS.
 
http://movies.yahoo.com/news/underworld-sinks-teeth-box-office-25m-165642869.html

"Opening in second place was "Red Tails" from executive producer George Lucas, about the Tuskegee Airmen who were the first black fighter pilots to serve in World War II. It made an estimated $19.1 million, according to 20th Century Fox, which was well above expectations; the studio had hoped to reach double digits, said Chris Aronson, executive vice president of domestic distribution.
"I believe what George Lucas has stated all along: This is an important story and a story that must be told. It is a true story of American heroism and valor and audiences have really responded to this message," Aronson said. "People want to feel good about themselves, they want to be uplifted. We have enough hard crud going on in this country right now. Times are tough, and if we look back and are told a story of some really fantastic deeds, that's really compelling moviegoing."
Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian said a grassroots effort to get groups of people into the theaters to see "Red Tails," along with positive word-of-mouth, helped its strong showing. The film saw an uptick from about $6 million on Friday to $8.65 million on Saturday."

I'm so glad that the world isn't filled with pilots (ugghhh). People voted with their wallets, and it was a strong victory. I can't wait to see this movie tomorrow!
 
It was as entertaining and realistic as Flyboys. There were parts of it that felt real, but overall I think it was dumbed down to the point of being annoying. While the CGI was very cartoonish, it allowed for a lot more action sequences, however unbelievable the maneuvers may have been. I mildly enjoyed the movie just on entertainment value, but I much prefer "Tuskeegee Airmen."
 
Speaking of cheesy airplane movies, I think you could make a lot of money with an aviation movie that is brutally factual and real. It's kind of on my bucket list to create/produce a highly realistic alternative to where a group of passengers are faced with the cliche of safely landing an airliner. However, it would be very, very realistic and they'd fail spectacularly. With the right budget I'd bet I could make it so crazy that some people are afraid to get on an airplane from that point on. Its not a morbid motivation, but more a middle finger to every cheesy flying movie ever made.

I plan on seeing Red Tails either tomorrow or Tuesday. I'm hoping its worth the $17 to see it in IMAX.
 
ChasenSFO said:
... a group of passengers are faced with the cliche of safely landing an airliner. However, it would be very, very realistic and they'd fail spectacularly. .
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it would go great until the last mile on an ILS where they would lose it, because it gets more difficult due to the increased sensitivity.
 
The dialogue was horrible and Lucas left so much of the story on the cutting room floor. This goes without argument. However, today's kids are too young to remember the original movie and unfortunately won't consider a movie worthy of their weekly allowance if it isn't filled with a bunch of CGI crap.

For the effort I give Lucas credit and ask everyone to go see it just to show Hollywood that they were wrong. Lucas spent his own money to make this film because the powers that be told him no one would want to watch a movie about black pilots from WW2 (which we already know is asinine because of the prior success of the first movie). I personally was disappointed that Benjamin O Davis wasn't the commander in this story and that the story didn't focus on more missions or the real struggle these guys went through just for the opportunity to die for their country. I think it should have been a true remake of the first.
 
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