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By: - 11th June 2012 at 09:29 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Did you see an earlier but still recent film of the same story "The Tuskegee Airmen"? How do they compare?
By: - 11th June 2012 at 09:32 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I liked it
By: - 11th June 2012 at 09:42 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Did you see an earlier but still recent film of the same story "The Tuskegee Airmen"? How do they compare?
I was under the impression that they were one and the same.:)
Jim.
Lincoln .7
By: - 11th June 2012 at 09:54 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I'm sure those German pilots came straight off the set of Star wars..... Show them no mercy!!!!
Posts: 1,067
By: - 11th June 2012 at 10:15 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Like DazDaMan has said, it is a little corny, but what Hollywood aviation blockbuster movie isn't... I myself thought it was pretty entertaining! Would love to see where they had the unlimited supplies of ammo in those P40's mind :-D
I'm sure those German pilots came straight off the set of Star wars..... Show them no mercy!!!!
By: - 11th June 2012 at 11:22 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
If you can go into the film and think "inspired by" rather than "based on" actual events, then you're going to have a reasonably good time.
Think "based on Commando comics" would be more accurate :diablo:
CGI decent, film terrible
Cheers
Dave
By: - 11th June 2012 at 12:45 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Red Tails
Well i thought it was better than expected. Having worked on it, and seen how some of the scenes were put together, I thought the finished article was good.
Mind you, any film that contains B-17s is worth watching.
No Pink Lady appearance though, the scene that was filmed using it was 'chopped', as were a few others.
Definately worth a watch on the big screen.
By: - 11th June 2012 at 16:13 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Thumbs Up From SFF
**SPOILER ALERT**
Red Tails. For me, a contradictory film in terms of satisfaction, but the bottom line is I’m still glad it was made. Thanks to the forum I was well briefed on what to expect, and I watched the film in,
‘I want to be Entertained and I Understand It is Not Made For Anoraks Like Me’ mode.
I thought that the aerial sequences were by far and away as good as I have seen in terms of flight dynamics, I was convinced! The general look of the aircraft was believable, and the opening sequence of B-17 vs 109 combat thrilling and terrifying, as close as I can imagine to actually being there. They’ve paid plenty of attention to what is possible in the air. I accept that close formations of the attacking aircraft throughout the film was for ‘movie magic’, and the spectacle of the evil Nazi pilot who popped up regularly was classic Commando comic – hilarious – ‘Die, African American Scum’ or similar, he just couldn’t be any ‘badder’.
The detail of the flying kit and general props looked to my untrained eye to be good, but were aircraft and support eqpt really positioned so close to the runway? It seems to hard to believe the film makers would have got that wrong, but again, maybe for ‘movie magic’ a little license was used.
Beautiful sound effects – ten our of ten. Those P-51 gun ports, the DBs, the Allisons, and the Merlins were spot on. And I was happy with the music score, although there was a bit of ‘made for TV’ feel to it for my taste.
A little bit ‘over the top’ on the explosions perhaps? Never have I seen a ‘Jerry’ airfield demolished so spectacularly by strafing fighters – impressive! And the same goes for the destroyer, aflame from stem to stern. Perhaps the target audience expects this from every encounter? Or at least the film makers assume they do… I read an interesting article recently outlining how younger audiences are largely bored by the whole movie experience because it is ‘receive only’ and not ‘interact with’. If this is so, perhaps it’s a good thing that Red Tails was made before it’s too late.
On a non-anorak note, I think it’s a really good thing that this story has been told again. I hope particularly that that some will draw strength and inspiration from what they see. I totally agree with the view about inspiring people, especially young people. For me, this far outweighs any reservations I have about the script.
By: - 11th June 2012 at 17:19 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Did you see an earlier but still recent film of the same story "The Tuskegee Airmen"? How do they compare?
The Tuskegee Airmen is a decent enough dramatic made-for-TV film, focusing more on the political and training aspects, and with a heavyweight cast of actors playing the titular airmen (Laurence Fishburne, Cuba Gooding Jr etc). What it lacks in budget, it makes up with dramatics. The aerial sequences, though limited, are very nicely done, with some very nice footage of Stearmans and Harvards, in addition to the Mustangs and Buchon.
Really, though, the two films are not exactly comparable. One's a low-budget dramatic story, the other is a big-budget action-adventure. They just happen to be based on a similar source material - namely the exploits of the 332nd FG.
They do, however, compliment each other quite nicely, and would make a solid few hours' worth of entertainment together.
(It must be pointed out, though, that the only character in the HBO film that actually existed was Col. Benjamin B.O. Davis - the rest were fictitious or composites of real characters.)
By: - 11th June 2012 at 18:24 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
the CGI developers have actually paid some attention to how an aeroplane is supposed to move!
They spent time at VNY climbing all over a real P51 taking photos, measurements etc. There must have been at least 12 of them there for 2 days. I spent a while showing them what NOT to touch, poke, push, press, pull etc & them left them to it. Found them to be trustworthy lot, (unlike that blithering idiot Ben Affleck who will probably never be allowed near anything mechanical again without adult supervision at all times...there are still people involved with P40's who want to beat him senseless....)
Ed Shipley spent some time with the CGI guys explaining how the P51 moves etc. He said he saw some of the rushes where they had a P51 doing things a real one couldn't, so he told em how it was in real life & they changed it.
By: - 11th June 2012 at 20:45 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Redtails
Saw it yesterday in Glasgow with the Mrs and two others sharing the cinema!
For the record, Mrs Rabbit Leader thought it was good too (that's high praise).
Overall, I thought the CGI was outstanding with just one moment when a Mustang pulls an impossible Xfighteresque loop letting the side down......certainly a big step up from the wholly unrealistic flying sequences in Pearl Harbour.
I think I saw silver models of a Beaufighter and possibly a Hampden on the General's desk in the scene in the Pentagon....am I right?
Now, time to get out the Battle of Britain DVD and set the mood for Flying Legends.
Rabbit Leader
By: - 11th June 2012 at 21:15 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I think I saw silver models of a Beaufighter and possibly a Hampden on the General's desk in the scene in the Pentagon....am I right?
And a Spitfire. I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice that!
Having seen the Mustang "loop" already, I let it slide. It didn't detract any from my experience of watching the film.
By: - 11th June 2012 at 21:20 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
I went to see it on the day of release and actualy i realy enjoyed it. Yes there where a few moments where you could clearly see the CGI's (Dakota on the ground shots) but overall it was a good film.
O and i also spotted the silver models on the desk, very nice.
By: - 12th June 2012 at 06:58 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Yes, we spotted the Beaufighter and Hampden, good to see some British silverware. I wonder where from, Stafford MU perhaps?
Mmm, the notorious P-51 back-flip! There were also two P-51s tail chasing a 109 at one point which looked oddly 'wrong', as if they were skidding round the sky akin to being held as models by children. Small beer compared to the overall spectacle.
Interesting also to see CGI Stukas at the baddie ('Boooooo!') airfield.
By: - 12th June 2012 at 08:36 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
History it is not, entertainment it is.
My first thought was it was the script of the old John Wayne movie "Flying Tigers" updated to the Red Tails.
Wartime propaganda bad guy types, a buddy picture with one being the guy who just can't seem to follow the rules, a love story that serves no real purpose etc.
Very little blood and gore considering 30mm cannons were involved in body shots.
I watched it with my little guy on pay per view and he loved it like my oldest son loved Top Gun. It was airplanes and that's all that mattered to him.
As for the history, I'll teach my youngest son that part :)
By: - 12th June 2012 at 08:38 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
And a Spitfire. I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice that!Having seen the Mustang "loop" already, I let it slide. It didn't detract any from my experience of watching the film.
Hampden, Beaufighter and Spitfire on the General's desk. Even worse was the large photo of three TBF Avengers behind his desk :)
Did you notice that each of the 6 main pilots had different flying helmets and goggles? I imagine so as to help identify them when the oxygen masks were on during the flight scenes. They were all nicely outfitted accurately, but all different.
By: - 12th June 2012 at 09:17 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Found them to be trustworthy lot, (unlike that blithering idiot Ben Affleck who will probably never be allowed near anything mechanical again without adult supervision at all times...there are still people involved with P40's who want to beat him senseless....)
Oh! Did he poke and prod things that maybe he shouldn't have?? Either way, kind of backs up my opinion of the guy! :diablo:
Regards;
Steve
By: - 13th June 2012 at 10:36 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
Yes a good film it won't be too long till it's on sky movies and it will be recorded.
CGI id rather have many more films made this way than there is at present, plus some nice women in the movie!!
By: - 13th June 2012 at 11:20 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
CGI isn't there yet, good but not quite. Models and sets still look more natural than CGI, perfect example is the revised scenes from Star Wars which look less convincing than the models that were built.
Red Tails was entertaining and killed a couple of hours.
By: - 13th June 2012 at 12:35 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00
re;
not seen the film yet, but where as you can understand some types needing CGI Mustangs are not exactly rare...
:)
Posts: 18,353
By: DazDaMan - 11th June 2012 at 06:38
So, who else has had a chance to see Red Tails?
I went to an early evening screening last night, and I must say, despite the initial misgivings about it, I actually found it to be quite good fun.
No, of course it won't be anywhere near the likes of, say, Battle of Britain or Tora! Tora! Tora!, but it's quite entertaining. The dialogue is a bit corny, and the storyline a little cliched, but then what war movies aren't?
The aerial sequences are actually very good - the Mustangs and Messerschmitts do look as though the CGI developers have actually paid some attention to how an aeroplane is supposed to move!
Spectacular? Yes. Fun? Yes. If you can go into the film and think "inspired by" rather than "based on" actual events, then you're going to have a reasonably good time.
But that's just my 2p worth...!