(Score: 2.5/5)

Summary:

Red Tails tells the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first crew of African American US fighter pilots and their journey to the top. While facing segregation throughout their training and tour of duty in Italy, they are kept mostly on the ground during World War II.  Then one day they are given the chance to make a name for themselves, on a mission where their only objective is to protect a large group of larger aircraft, in order to assure a safe return home for the men piloting them.  In order to not ruin anything,

I will shy away from any spoilers.

Positive Elements:

Red tails is a story of companionship and overcoming obstacles.  Each member of the crew has their own personal weakness, which is kept in check by the accountability given to them by the other members in the squadron.  An overarching, though underdeveloped plot point is overcoming racism.

Negative Elements:

One character is extremely defiant and cocky, ignoring all orders, in pursuit of as much glory as he can get.  Some may see many of the racist moments of the movie as negative for 2 reasons.  1) the movie is EXTREMELY RACIST in its points of racism.  #2) The reaction of the movie to these points of racism is very lackluster, if existent at all. Sure the overarching racism is “dealt-with” once the movie’s closing paragraphs on screen tell us that they were eventually respected.  However, the movie itself doesn’t fulfill on its side of the struggle.  The opening visual of the movie consists of an extremely offensive line from an old army paper, just to get you in the mood for how racist the movie will be.

Spiritual Content:

One member of the group, Deacon, is a strong Christian who spends most of his screen time praying to “Black Jesus” while keeping a picture of a dark-skinned Jesus with him at all times.  The group, consisting of roughly 30 men, prays together before a big mission.

Sexual Content:

The romantic side of the plot consists of one of the men dating an Italian woman who he can’t communicate with.  It is hinted to multiple times that this individual spends his nights with local women throughout the military campaign.  Once he falls for a local girl, for real, they are depicted as having spent a night together later in their relationship.

Violent Content:

Red Tails depicts many aspects of aerial warfare. We repeatedly see planes being ripped apart by bullets and exploding. Inside those planes, bullets often wound pilots and gunners, and blood spray is frequent. Some main characters get pretty nasty injuries.

Language:

8  s-words. God’s name is abused five or six times (three times with “d‑‑n”). We hear about 20 uses of “h‑‑‑” and “d‑‑n.” Characters say “a‑‑” 6 times. A white officer calls a black officer a “n—-r.”

Alcohol:

Alcohol plays a vital role in the story of one of the officers.  It is his struggle with alcohol, as well as another crew member’s cockiness, that comprise most of the plot while the group is on the ground.

Conclusion:

Overall, the movie is pretty clean, with only a few curse words thrown into the mix, as well as some alcohol. Though it had great potential, Red Tails suffers from poor acting and depiction.  George Lucas, who began work on this film in 1988, has presented a film that feels much more like Star Wars (the prequels) than Glory.  Some viewers may be very offended due to how “raw” the racist remarks are in this film, as well as the passive way it is dealt with.  I would recommend this movie to people looking for fun, not substance.  The feel of this film is somewhere around early high-school, and viewers looking for a deeper film, or one that is more mature, may prefer past war films, such as Glory, We Were Soldiers, or other films of that nature.   Be warned however, that I have not reviewed those movies, nor watched them recently.  Therefore I cannot vouch for their content if they prove more vulgar, graphic, or sexual than this film.  I usually add a “date” recommendation to the films I review, so here’s the one for this movie..take her to Beauty and the Beast 3D, it will go much better.  I feel like I need to post a backup review with this, as it is a movie I know a lot of people will defend without seeing it so here you go (look below).  The biggest problem I have with the film is how much potential was squandered on it.  The Tuskegee Airmen deserve a better portrayal than this, and I’m sure many will agree with that statement. God bless you all with a fantastic week.

Review (via Wall Street Journal)

Contraband

(Score: 7/10)

Summary (via IMDB):

Chris Farraday long ago abandoned his life of crime, but after his brother-in-law, Andy, botches a drug deal for his ruthless boss, Tim Briggs, Chris is forced back into doing what he does best, running contraband, to settle Andy’s debt. Chris is a legendary smuggler and quickly assembles a crew with the help of his best friend, Sebastian, to head to Panama and return with millions in counterfeit bills. Things quickly fall apart, and, with only hours to reach the cash, Chris must use his rusty skills to successfully navigate a treacherous criminal network of brutal drug lords, cops and hit men before his wife, Kate, and sons become their target.

Positive Elements:

Not many, if any at all.  However that should not deter you from the film.

Negative Elements:

The movie’s entire plot surrounds every illegal substance you can think of.  However they will be better explained in their respective areas.

Spiritual Elements:

None.  The movie doesn’t really have time to dig into any deep conversation or topic due to its non-stop action/theft elements.  This is actually a good thing because it doesn’t drag any unneeded elements into the film, which reminds me…..

Sexual Content:

…there is none.  Here it is people, the first (in hopefully many) R-rated action movie that knows what it is there for and sticks with it.  The movie has prioritized keeping you intrigued/witnessing action and does not stop ever for a moment of sensuality or sexual expression.  It’s somewhat refreshing, even though the rest of the movie is completely about deception, drug running, and violence.

Violent Content:

People are shot, stabbed, threatened, and, quite frankly, devastated by physical beatdowns.  As Chris goes through his plan he is forced into multiple gunfights and a heist on an armored van.  People going to this movie will most likely know what to expect in the violence level, however (and I’m not going to spoil anything) there is a side plot, late in the film, that will put some people on edge.  It is this plot that fills the “substance” hole that the plot has for most of the film.

Language:

The F-word is the only adjective known to society in Contraband.  In more exact terms, I lost count of its occurrence once I hit 140.  For real.  S*** is used more than 50 times as well.  Others just fill in the cracks.

Conclusion:

Contraband is a strange film. It inhabits theaters in a time of the year that I like to call “The Drought”.  All the films from the Holidays are still in theaters, and those that wouldn’t have flourished during that time, are given a chance to open the New Year.  Usually films of this period are the worst of the year, but Contraband contains a budget and quality I would have expected in the summer.  With that said, it is a film I believe that many will be surprised with.  However, that is not to say that all should see it just for that reason.  The language is abysmal, the violence is over the top, and the characters aren’t very good guys.  I would recommend this to a mature group of guys who are ok with language and just looking for some action.  I saw it with my sister, her boyfriend, and another guy friend.  The 3 guys thought it was entertaining.  My sister, on the other hand, was very distraught about the violence and the “side-plot” I mentioned earlier.  It defined the film for her and, combined with the language, ruined the movie overall.  I, myself, thought it was just “ok”, however I understand the obstacles in production and timing it has and therefore enjoyed myself a little more than I expected.  Had this come out at a time with a better movie line up, I would probably have been way more critical.

If you’ve devoted your life to Christ, you’ve experienced firsthand being transformed into a new creation (2Cor 5:17).  And it’s not really a decision you ever want to take back.  However, do you realize that in making that decision, you’ve learned the guiding steps to lead another into their own transformation? Join us January 14, 21, and 28 for our newest series, “Comfortable,” as we discuss comfort zones, risk, church, and stepping out of our comfort zones in order to change the world.

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