One Minute Movie Review: Red Tails

George Lucas produced this fact based tribute to the famed Tuskegee Airmen, who became one of history's greatest examples of courage, heroism, brotherhood, and valor in the face of war and racism. He hands off this incredible undertaking to Anthony Hemingway, a virual nobody, who makes his directorial debut with this film. His lack of experience is well demonstrated in his inability to take this extraordinary story of bravery and flesh it out on the big screen. What should be a cinematic experience filled with tragedy and triumph, adversity and victory, emotion and guts, becomes a mechanical, two dimensional, action yarn with very little passion with a focus on special effects over character or plot substance. There is no foretelling of the struggle these "the Lonely Eagles," faced in even forming their noble outfit, or a deeper take on their fight against bigotry, instead moments of real meaning and authenticity are sprinted through leaving a void where a true connection with the audience should be. Even the beautifully written speeches given to Terrence Howard, fall flat and uninspired, not because of their text, but their lack luster delivery. There is alot of genuine talent in this movie; however no one demonstrates it, whether that is the script or director's fault, is left for the viewer to decide. Most of the dialogue comes off simplistic and even juvenile, rather than provoking and real. The Red Tails, undoubtably, were an enormous factor in our victory, in the skies above during WW2 and this picture validates that, but without the spirit and power their success so richly deserves. It is a shame that this miss happened under the watch of the man who brought us such spectacular visions as Star Wars and Indiana Jones. 3 out of 5 Kernels: in the right directorial hands, this could have been a truly Epic.