George Lucas: 'Red Tails'

[Princesa]

Well notwithstanding whether he was the victim of true love/bad writing (my choice in that the whole movie was bad writing)/or merely a colorstruck negro with a fetish I thought this movie was pretty bad. I don't know anyone who thought it was good, granted that's anecdotal.

[Battle]

Well notwithstanding whether he was the victim of true love/bad writing (my choice in that the whole movie was bad writing)/or merely a colorstruck negro with a fetish I thought this movie was pretty bad. I don't know anyone who thought it was good, granted that's anecdotal.

Fair enough...

Y'know what?  I was contemplating whether or not I wanted to see this movie again. Now I'm convinced, I will definetly go see "Red Tails" again because I enjoyed it so much!

[Rockscissorspaper]

This movie...was not good. Bad script. Bad choice of actors. Bad execution. Good flight scenes.

Agreed with the bold parts. I didn't think (most) of the actors did a bad job with what they were given.

[BPStorm4ever]

This movie...was not good. Bad script. Bad choice of actors. Bad execution. Good flight scenes. The corny this dude falling in love with this white woman a 1000 feet in the air (ahh that's freedom isn't it? I mean really?) Never mind those guys had their BLACK wives and Black girlfriends whom they loved names written on their planes. God forbid a white woman be portrayed as a jumpoff piece of ass.

No, actually he (the best damn pilot on the base) just fell in love....with a WOMAN...PERIOD!

Exactly, Lightning spotted the Italian babe from afar and that's how that scene was supposed to be read [read: Love At First Sight].  I didn't have a problem with it.

What interesting is this didn't happen in America, where he could have picked black women but choose a white or Italian woman. No, he was IN ITALY, and picked an ITALIAN women. This happened all the time, servicemen would pick and fall in love with the people of whatever region they were stationed in.

So, not sure why if you're black and single stationed somewhere you're supposed to live like a monk until you get back to America, or find a needle in a haystack, a black Italian woman.

Also, no one seems to give a damn how this relationship ENDED. No, the people who complain could care less, just that him picking an Italian women, again, IN ITALY, I guess makes black women look bad somehow? Or I guess makes black MEN look bad (ie, should have acted like a monk until he got back home)? Nevermind the message it sends about how it all turned out in the end. I actually thought people would be PLEASED it ended the way it did (as a sort of vindication to those who hate couplings like that or feel he was "colorstruck" regardless of the context), but no, too busy being focused on the fact it happened at all.

Whatever. I might see the movie again, I loved it. It was a simple popcorn film but I think that was the point.

[Battle]

I just saw "Red Tails" for a second time around with another group and decided to give the movie +1

 So, make that 4 Jerries  out of 5! 

When you see the movie a second time, a lot of the dialogue starts to condense more, a lot of the character development starts to congeal and the aerial scenes starts to appear more logical.  This movie is excellent!

[Emperorjones]

The suggestion by some on the Internet (referenced above) that a film on a subject should not be made because someone else made a movie or miniseries is incredibly stupid - if that is what some folk were actually saying. And no doubt some were because on the Internet idiots abound.  On the other hand, suggesting that Lucas should acknowledge and tip his hat to past portrayals is fair.

I don't think it's a requirement that Lucas acknowledge anyone, to be honest. Don't get me wrong it would be cool if he did, but I don't think this is a requirement that we have for directors. Did Spielberg or Eastwood acknowledge previous movies about D-Day or Iwo Jima (to be fair, no previous movies about Iwo Jima come to mind)? Did Bay acknowledge Tora Tora Tora or other Pearl Harbor films?

[michaelintp]

I don't think it's a requirement that Lucas acknowledge anyone, to be honest. Don't get me wrong it would be cool if he did, but I don't think this is a requirement that we have for directors. Did Spielberg or Eastwood acknowledge previous movies about D-Day or Iwo Jima (to be fair, no previous movies about Iwo Jima come to mind)? Did Bay acknowledge Tora Tora Tora or other Pearl Harbor films?

Well, I think where we fall out on this is whether we disagree as to whether Lucas was kinda conveying in his public comments the false impression that his film is portraying an untold story that has been waiting to be told for over a half century, that nobody in the Entertainment Industry has been willing to touch. If that is what people took from his comments, that impression is incorrect. I don't think the other directors conveyed false impressions upon the release of their films.

On the other hand, if you focus on theatrical-release films, as opposed to television, I believe his comments are literally accurate (and probably for the reasons he states). It just seemed to me that he was patting himself on the back a little tooo much; he could have tempered it just a tad and shown a bit more humility with a slight nod to the prior portrayal, but then emphasize that his is a costly major motion picture with a broad theatrical release, etc. Didn't need to change his main point at all, that the studios viewed the topic to be too risky for a large theatrical blockbuster.

[Battle]

The issue surrounding the movie studios and "Red Tails" was not any 'false impressions about an untold story, or the amount of time it may have taken to tell it, or that no one in the Entertainment Industry has been willing to touch'.

It was the fact that the movie was already made and paid for and all the producer was asking from the studios was to market & distribute it.

Now, was that asking too much?

[michaelintp]

The issue surrounding the movie studios and "Red Tails" was not any 'false impressions about an untold story, or the amount of time it may have taken to tell it, or that no one in the Entertainment Industry has been willing to touch'.

It was the fact that the movie was already made and paid for and all the producer was asking from the studios was to distribute it.

Now, was that asking too much?

Oh, hahaha, nevermind. In the article that started this thread, the article quotes Lucas referring to the thing being held up since the 1940s. When I skimmed it I thought he was being cute with the word "shot" or he was referring to some earlier effort that never got off the ground. Now I see either he misspoke or it was a typo. I don't know what year he meant to say. But yes, I see that "1942" doesn't make sense. Feel free to disregard all my comments above other than that I do recall that the original film was good and worth watching.

[Hypestyle]

just saw it this weekend.  Good stuff overall, performances by all the actors, including the two leads, who I was not familiar with before this.  I hope this gets some awards, and maybe have an extended version DVD when it comes out.

[Kristopher]

George Lucas has some of the most successful movies of all time in the history books with his “Star Wars” movies. But Lucas also has one of the biggest turkeys of all time now, too, with the total failure of “Red Tails.” An ambitious  and well-intentioned telling of the stories of the Tuskegee  Airmen who flew in World War II–the forgotten black members of the Air Force–”Red Tails” cost at least $58 million to make plus another $10 million for marketing. (I’m being conservative.) No one wanted to finance it, so Lucas put up the money himself and got 20th Century Fox to distribute it. He worked on the film for three years as producer, but ultimately had to reshoot a lot of director Anthony Hemingway’s work. They intentionally skipped Oscar season, and slid the movie into release in mid January–the dead zone in the movie world, the place where bad films are sent to watery graves.

And now, ten weeks later, “Red Tails” is at rest with barely $50 million in the bank. Since theater owners got half that money, “Red Tails” is really, really red. So far there’s no been no foreign release; it’s hard to imagine there will be much of one coming. Even when a great film with a mostly black cast–like “The Help”–wins Oscars and other awards, its foreign appeal is limited. “The Help” did $37 million internationally. And it was wonderful. “Red Tails” is a nearly unwatchable film with terrible acting and production values. So a foreign release isn’t going to add much value. In the end, Lucas loses something close to $70 million on a noble vanity project that at least made the families of the Tuskegee Airmen feel good about themselves. So that’s something, and Lucas can certainly afford it. Now, on to “Indiana Jones 5″ and please, no aliens.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerfriedman/2012/03/29/george-lucas-star-wars-director-loses-60-mil-plus-on-red-tails/

[Battle]

From the article:

and slid the movie into release in mid January–the dead zone in the movie world, the place where bad films are sent to watery graves.

That's not true.
All businesses go through the same fiscal cycle, the entertainment world is no different.
That period is actually pilot season for television shows.  
To be honest, moviegoers (at least no one who has a stake in that business) don't care about the financial success of Hollywood movies, as long as they get to see what they wanna see.  That's why common folks watch bootleg movies whenever possible.

I loved "Red Tails" and that's all that mattered to me.  To me, it's just a movie I saw in the theater. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

...and from the comments section of that article:



Anon

"George Lucas “lost” money on “Mishima”, “Tucker” and “Howard The Duck” but he is still making movies. He did the right thing and told a WWII story that needed to be told because so few people knew about it. Sammy Davis, Jr. tried for years to get such a film made but he didn’t have the money or power to succeed. Lucas did and was brave enough to stand up to Hollywood and get this film made. Hollywood hates Mr. Lucas because what he predicted in the 1980′s has come true. Thanks to technology, Hollywood’s establishment no longer has the power to determine which films are made and seen. This film will be seen by millions in the U.S. and around the world and they will know a more complete picture of American history because of it.

George, you done good!"

[Emperorjones]

George Lucas has some of the most successful movies of all time in the history books with his “Star Wars” movies. But Lucas also has one of the biggest turkeys of all time now, too, with the total failure of “Red Tails.” An ambitious  and well-intentioned telling of the stories of the Tuskegee  Airmen who flew in World War II–the forgotten black members of the Air Force–”Red Tails” cost at least $58 million to make plus another $10 million for marketing. (I’m being conservative.) No one wanted to finance it, so Lucas put up the money himself and got 20th Century Fox to distribute it. He worked on the film for three years as producer, but ultimately had to reshoot a lot of director Anthony Hemingway’s work. They intentionally skipped Oscar season, and slid the movie into release in mid January–the dead zone in the movie world, the place where bad films are sent to watery graves.

And now, ten weeks later, “Red Tails” is at rest with barely $50 million in the bank. Since theater owners got half that money, “Red Tails” is really, really red. So far there’s no been no foreign release; it’s hard to imagine there will be much of one coming. Even when a great film with a mostly black cast–like “The Help”–wins Oscars and other awards, its foreign appeal is limited. “The Help” did $37 million internationally. And it was wonderful. “Red Tails” is a nearly unwatchable film with terrible acting and production values. So a foreign release isn’t going to add much value. In the end, Lucas loses something close to $70 million on a noble vanity project that at least made the families of the Tuskegee Airmen feel good about themselves. So that’s something, and Lucas can certainly afford it. Now, on to “Indiana Jones 5″ and please, no aliens.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerfriedman/2012/03/29/george-lucas-star-wars-director-loses-60-mil-plus-on-red-tails/

Biggest turkeys of all time? Please. I think that's overdoing it. It wasn't successful at the box office, but it wasn't a bomb. It underperformed, but it's not like John Carter, Green Lantern, or Mars Needs Mom, all films considered flops.

People are entitled to their opinions, and though I don't think Red Tails was a great film, it's not as bad as you/article is making it out to be. And I got a feeling that Red Tails would do better worldwide because it is an action film about World War 2 more so than the domestic appeal of The Help. However if it doesn't get a foreign release we won't see if that's the case.

[Kristopher]

FOR GOD'S SAKE!!!! Are y'all living in a different world than I am?? The World Hates/Can't stand BLACK folk(please...don't list your "exception to the rule open minded White/Asian buddies" you have)! If the rants over the colored casting choices in Hunger Games wasn't a clue, than I don't know what is. No way is a movie with a predominately BLACK cast going to do great/blockbuster  number UNLESS it's (maybe) a comedy. No matter how many Black folk write "I enjoyed it" WE"RE the target audience, so what? The higher the percentage of black actors in a movie, the less interested white people are in seeing the movie.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1386096/White-cinema-goers-prefer-movies-cast-similar-race-says-study.html#ixzz1qkcYb63W

I knew he was going to lose money on this movie(prayed/hoped I was wrong), surely I'm not the only one?

[Vic Vega]

Red Tails cost about about 58 million to make.

It made about 48 millon back. That is not sucessful.

But it isnt the "OMG what a bomb!" failure some are painting it as either.

That's John Carter.

We still have to see how it does on DVD sales.

We know perfectly damn well that there are a bunch of folks who just wait for the video as a general practice.

The movie didnt have Denzel's Will or even Larry's name attached to it, so it wasn't gonna be on many Black folks "must see" list at any rate.

In retrospect, Lucas probably should have cast more rappers it it, starting with 50.

That would have at least gotten it on the "106 and Park" set's radar.