RED TAILS CELEBRATES THE TUSKEGEE PILOTS
Titles at the beginning of Red Tails inform us that in 1925 a U.S. Army study concluded that Blacks were unfit for combat, but titles at the end remind us that the Tuskegee pilots in the 332nd fighter squadron during World War II received 96 Distinguished Service medals, and 66 died. The film celebrates their courage and sacrifice portrayed in a genre of black-and-white World War II films that are usually viewed on Turner Classic Movies. The action begins in Italy (actually filmed in Prague) during 1944, when the group is evidently on a training mission with obsolete aircraft. Serendipitous pot shots at a Nazi truck and railroad train prove their competence, but their “hang loose” dialog reveals how bored they are with nothing exciting to do. But in Washington, their commander, Colonel A. J. Bullard (played by Terrence Howard), reports how extraordinarily the unit recently has provided support for an amphibious landing in Italy, and soon new orders come down. They paint red on the tails of their new P51 Mustangs and fly to Germany to provide support for White fighters. After that, they provide bomber support. Racist incidents are few but provide some expected drama for the film. Nevertheless, the White bombers are so grateful that they offer a round of drinks for a group of the 332nd as they walk down a street, avoiding that previously “White only” bar. A love affair between Joe “Lightning” Little (played by David Oyelowo) with an Italian lass, Sofia (played by Daniela Ruah), is the most feel-good part of the film, but of course she must know how dangerous his assignments are. The film raises the question, “Why now?” There was an HBO film on the subject, closer to the truth, back in 1995. Director Anthony Hemingway had been working on the concept for 23 years, with many script rewrites, and he evidently got producer George Lukas to put up his personal funds, as Hollywood publicists (mostly young White females) did not know how to interest audiences abroad, which account for more than half of film profits nowadays (though they did for last year’s The Help about Black females). Politically-oriented films have only niche markets in the United States, mostly through low-budget documentaries. But the Political Film Society feels differently and has nominated Red Tails as best film on human rights of 2012. MH
DECLARATION OF WAR IS A WINDOW INTO FRENCH CULTURE AND HEALTH CARE
The French film La guerre est déclaréé is about a young couple who meet, marry, have a child, but agonize as their baby’s malady turns out to be brain cancer. The only war in the film is the battle with cancer and how they amazingly cope, but their son Adam is treated successfully. Everyone must have health insurance in France, so the only clue about the cost is that they must sell their condo and stop using credit cards. Valérie Donzelli, who plays and is the mother Juliette, is the film’s director. Her husband and the father is Roméo Benaim (played by Jérémie Elkaïm). The film, dedicated to the child Gabriel, was shot in the actual hospital where the surgery was performed. MH
LULA, SON OF BRAZIL PORTRAYS HIS HUMBLE ROOTS AND METEORIC RISE
Covering his birth in 1945 until his mother’s death in 1980, with much attention to his family life, Lulu, o Filho do Brasil shows how a boy born into abject poverty exhibited much intelligence as a child, became a machinist, joined the union, and became a union leader whose fiery speeches could mobilize thousands to strike yet compromise, setting a path for his eventual rise to the presidency of the country in 2003. The Political Film Society has nominated Lula, Son of Brazil as best film exposé of 2012. MH