The Red Baron, 2008

[Yale]

The hassle of moving to Texas City back in 2008 is probably why I completely missed that year's Australian production, The Red Baron. Just this week I stumbled upon this film, but my opinions are mixed.

Verdict #1: By completely ignoring the controversy about who actually killed Von Richtofen, the producers displayed amazing intellectual cowardice.

Verdict #2: The plot seemed a desperate search for some dramatic justification for this film, falling back on the stale old idea of the futiliy of war, and trying to create a Grand Romance with Nurse Kate. The notion that Von Richtofen and Roy Brown personally met twice before the fatal day in 1918 was historical rubbish. So was the idea that the British would have allowed the German nurse to come through the lines to visit the grave.

Verdict #3: The technical depiction of aircraft, cars, and factories was unprecedented. The aerial sequences were as good as those of Flyboys, even making clear the triplane's spinning engine.

So I enjoyed seeing this film, and think any member of this forum would, too. But I cannot say that I enjoyed the film itself. Your thoughts?

[ccoyle]

I dimly remember seeing this film about a year ago. The fact that I can only dimly recall it probably speaks to my opinion of the movie at that time. (No cracks about age-related memory loss, please!)

[mchale]

It sounds like another it is similar to the peal harbor movie several years back

[wag]

I picked this up on DVD a couple of years ago. From a technical standpoint they did a great job, like putting the Baron in an Albatros scout during the proper time period, but the gigantic holes in the plot that Yale points out left me cold. Still, I would put it well above "Flyboys"-that movie was just plain silly. My favorite WWI epic is still "The Blue Max". A good story(from a novel by Jack Hunter) good acting (George Peppard, Ursela Andress, James Mason) and REAL airplanes.
Wayne

[CMDRTED]

But it had the actor that played Hugo Stiglitz in it, that makes it cool just by itself.

[juniordude]

I don't believe that it was an Australian production, but perhaps an Austrian production.

[Yale]

Originally Posted by wag

I picked this up on DVD a couple of years ago. From a technical standpoint they did a great job, like putting the Baron in an Albatros scout during the proper time period, but the gigantic holes in the plot that Yale points out left me cold. Still, I would put it well above "Flyboys"-that movie was just plain silly. My favorite WWI epic is still "The Blue Max". A good story(from a novel by Jack Hunter) good acting (George Peppard, Ursela Andress, James Mason) and REAL airplanes.
Wayne

Wayne, I almost pointed out the contrast with The Blue Max in my first post. Its real airplanes actually were a weak point, as the DrIs clearly had radial engines and Gypsy Moths stood in for British fighters -- no computer animation back then, so producers had to modify real aircraft as best they could. Nor was the plot all that significant. But the plot was a sort of plausible story, and that makes it a better movie than The Red Baron.
Of course, Forum members should see both films -- they'll enjoy the depictions of planes in The Red Baron, and they'll enjoy pointing out all the technical innacuracies of The Blue Max.

[Isaac]

I enjoyed this movie regardless of its historical fantasy

The Blue max was no less of a fantasy movie with cheesy acting and crappy accents

However as an airplane movie goes they were both great fun to watch

Isaac

[ccoyle]

I haven't seen The Blue Max in ages and ages, but I distinctly recall the score making a big impression on me. I was taking piano lessons at the time, and I can remember picking out the chords.

[Nemesis7485]

I enjoyed both movies from a purely entertainment standpoint. I've long since given up on expecting anything close to historical accuracy when it comes to war movies and just suck it up these days.

The movie industry will always throw facts in the trash in favour of a good yarn. Just wait for the upcoming travesty that Hollywood is about to produce when they remake 'The Battle of Britain'.