RED TAILS MOVIE, A Triumphant Entertaining Multi Story of American History

The hushed silence that greeted the opening line of the movie Red Tails, at the theater where I watched it was sure intended, given the true two stories behind the movie.

“Blacks are mentally inferior by nature, subservient, cowardly… and therefore unfit for combat.  - 1925 Army War College Study” – Opening line of the movie     

When the caption above appears on screen before you, that embarrassing but knowing “we are all one people” moment which people like to reassure themselves of evokes itself. It appeared George Lucas, the brain behind Red Tails and its debutant movie director, Anthony Hemingway were aiming for that reaction.

 

George Lucas, a movie making legend, whose Star Wars movie franchise is an industry on its own got a cliché response when he pitched the movie idea to movie studios- literally told that black people based movies did not sell. That studio response actually reflected the movie story line culminating in triumph.   http://bit.ly/ym7foL

The Real Tuskegee Airmen at the White House

You know that old story, questioning the capabilities of people with certain skin pigment at a time when, the kind of melanin compound inherited from your parents was the difference between an opportune and inopportune life. That resulted in the Tuskegee Airmen Experiment creating the first African American aviators called the Tuskegee Airmen. These gallant men triumphed as did the movie about them.

Red Tails is a must watch movie, historically relevant as any movie extolling gallantry, service and sacrifice by a people for their country trying to help save the free; reflecting other unsung stories of heroic and sacrifice.

Tthe story of the first ever African American military unit, the10^th Calvary regiment a.k.a Buffalo Soldiers so named by the American Natives because of their valor for one….. Yes, that one immortalized by Bob Marley’s song Buffalo Soldier, Dreadlock Rasta, ……stolen from Africa, brought to America, fighting on arrival, fighting for survival.” ..They were ill equipped but overcame.

 

Ironically, while the Tuskegee Airmen fought for the right and succeeded gallant to fly for their country, another experiment similarly based on skin pigmentation but hideous and most degrading was being rout on their fellow blackmen. Simply called the Tuskegee Experiment, it was to see if a destructive bug that affected a “superior” skin pigment people would affect an “inferior” skin pigment. It never ended in glory http://www.cdc.gov/tuskegee/timeline.htm

More comparable to the Tuskegee experiment in hard work, low expectations but also ending in triumph was the story of the African American Army Corp of Engineers. These black men came  from the 93rd Engineer General Service Regiment, the 95th Engineer General Service Regiment, the 97th Engineer General Service Regiment and worked on that crucially needed highway in Alaska. 

The military at the time saw them inferior and an Army War College stated, “African Americans were "careless, shiftless, irresponsible and secretive" and "unmoral and untruthful." Commanding officers were instructed to "handle" their African American subordinates "with praise and by ridicule." http://to.pbs.org/wRa0S9


 Like the Tuskegee Airmen, they were initially set up as an all African American unit and were denied good equipment or given hand me down equipment initially; all based on a “smart and intelligent” principle. Chest out, putting brains and shoulder to the tasks proved themselves good at taking risks, going far beyond their expectations and triumphed

Terrence Howard as Col. Bullard

But why you should go watch Red Tails is not simply because of the rich double stories behind it. Expect nothing but adventure, humor and drama from a powerful cast of brawny colored men with brains. Spoiler warning, there is a good dose of romance in there.

Terrence Howard, always a natural in military uniform à la Ironman delivered some powerful lines in the movie including; “We count our victories by the bombers we get to the target, by the husbands we return to their wives and the fathers we return to their children”.

Cuba Gooding jnr as Major Major Stance (Red Tails)

Cuba Gooding jnr was intense as usual and the exploits of David Oyelowo’s character Lightning, reminded me about a childhood story of a certain Ghanaian aviator who reportedly flew his Head of State under a bridge and was demoted. I have always wanted to ask this officer who became president of his Black African country that question but always forgot when I had the opportunity.

Daniela Ruah as Sofia (Red tails)

What is an adventure movie full of action without a girl to soften the heart of the hero? Daniela Ruah who played the role of Sofia the Italian love interest of Lightning filled that chocolate vanilla role romantically.

Emerging Hollywood star Nate Parker, who has been played some Jim Crow Law era movie roles with distinction; remember the Great Debaters and Secret Life of Bees easily nailed his character, Martin "Easy" Julian . 

The cast of Red Tails

Other notable stars in the movie include R&B Star Neyo and, Methodman. A few cheesy dialogues in there but great movie; a date, family and or friends; or going solo movie.