Red Tails (2012)
Plot
The 332nd Fighter Group, an all-black World War II unit made up of the best escort pilots and known as the Red Tails, fights racism at home while fighting the Nazis abroad in this action-packed drama based on the true story of the Tuskegee Airmen. The movie also looks a little bit at the men, as individuals. We get to know some of their strengths, weakness, dreams. One doesn't follow directions, and is highly aggressive fighter. One is captured by the Germans. One drinks whiskey. A couple die, due to combat injuries. One is badly injured, and sent home. The pilots finally get a more responsible assignment, do well, and then are given more responsible assignments. The end of the movie is the unit getting recognition for a job well done.
Black Racism
Black Empowerment
There is a scene when the Red Tails finally saw active combat, Ridley says, their white superiors were astounded by the levels of skill and discipline the Airmen displayed, especially when compared with pilots in all-white units. In this movie The Tuskegee Airmen proof them wrong (the white army and trainer who doubt them) even though they get racist treatment in the army. Having proved themselves, the Airmen were soon upgraded from their junkers to the state-of-the-art P-51 Mustang fighters and assigned to more demanding missions, including escorting heavy B-17 bomber aircraft to their targets.[1]
"They battle the institutionalized racism in the army and swiftly debunk decades of bigotry masquerading as science. The Airmen massacre the living snot out of scores of mean-spirited, smug Nazis. They triumph over their own fears and personal flaws, and even win the hearts and minds of some white dudes along the way. And in the end, racism loses, the fascists get owned, and the Tuskegee Airmen (or “Red Tails”) end up as decorated heroes."[2]
Reference
- ↑ 'Red Tails' Fought Racism — And World War II Foes. January 20, 2012. Npr.org. Retrieved January 22, 2021
- ↑ ASAWIN SUEBSAENG. “Red Tails”: The Tuskegee Airmen Deserved a Movie That’s Not Completely Unwatchable. JANUARY 21, 2012. Motherjones. Retrieved January 22, 2021