Red Tails Directed by: Anthony Hemingway Starring: Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr, Bryan Cranston Rating: NR Release Date: January 20, 2012
TRAILER SCORE: 5/10
Thoughts by TSR: The story behind Red Tails is a fascinating one. African-American members of the American military are so often the unsung heroes of the wars that are fought. Then why does Red Tails still feel like a slap in the face to me? Like I said, I'm very much interested in the story, but there's something so disappointing with what they choose to show us in this trailer.
For starters, Cuba Gooding Jr who, even when relegated to a few barebones lines, still barely manages to make it through his lines is enough to make me not want to watch the movie. Luckily, Terrence Howard picks up the slack, but it doesn't change the fact that the dialogue is the most heavy-handed, cliche-ridden dialogue I've had the misfortune of hearing committed to film. Even the film's "inspirational" score wreaks of recycled material. It's the same musical swells and decrescendos we've come to expect from the war epic.
Still, my interest in the material wins out. I may not be happy with the presentation, but the fact of the matter is Red tails speaks to an important time in American history and an interesting one too. How they managed to beat the life out of it is beyond me, but considering I don't see a story like Red Tails getting too many second chances, I'll probably end up giving this the benefit of the doubt and checking it out.