The most powerful part of this movie is the very effective way in which it depicts the chaos and insanity of the First World War. You could, I suppose, say that any war fits that description of chaotic and insane - but the First World War is the classic example. It had no real purpose; it was in many ways a war that started by accident as a chain of events got set in motion that no one had the courage to stop. And the end result was 4 years of slaughter. And, of course, the First World War introduced a new element to warfare - aerial warfare, and the emergence of the "aces" - pilots who shout down large numbers of enemy planes. The movie's absolute strongest point is almost certainly the recreated aerial battles. And at the top of the list of flying aces was Manfred von Richtofen - the Red Baron.
As a biography of Richtofen, this movie falls far short. It doesn't really portray much of his life, aside from his war experiences, and much of what is portrayed in heavily romanticized. His romance with the French nurse is unlikely, and the friendship with Canadian pilot Roy Brown (who in real life was incorrectly identified as the pilot who shot Richtofen down and killed him) in which the two shared chats in No Man's Land never happened. The movie was, however, correct in pointing out the respect in which pilots from the opposing sides held each other.
The movie progresses along a path which is increasingly sombre, starting with an almost joyous feel as pilots took to the skies, and gradually descending into a depiction of the horrors of war, graphically displayed in a scene shot inside a military field hospital, and in some depictions of ground combat.
Unfortunately, while this does have strong points, it ultimately comes across as largely flat and often passionless. It's the sort of movie that you really don't feel you need to pay close attention to - and sometimes you're quite compelled not to pay close attention, because large stretches of it are rather dull. But it does do a decent job of depicting the insanity of World War I. (6/10)
As a biography of Richtofen, this movie falls far short. It doesn't really portray much of his life, aside from his war experiences, and much of what is portrayed in heavily romanticized. His romance with the French nurse is unlikely, and the friendship with Canadian pilot Roy Brown (who in real life was incorrectly identified as the pilot who shot Richtofen down and killed him) in which the two shared chats in No Man's Land never happened. The movie was, however, correct in pointing out the respect in which pilots from the opposing sides held each other.
The movie progresses along a path which is increasingly sombre, starting with an almost joyous feel as pilots took to the skies, and gradually descending into a depiction of the horrors of war, graphically displayed in a scene shot inside a military field hospital, and in some depictions of ground combat.
Unfortunately, while this does have strong points, it ultimately comes across as largely flat and often passionless. It's the sort of movie that you really don't feel you need to pay close attention to - and sometimes you're quite compelled not to pay close attention, because large stretches of it are rather dull. But it does do a decent job of depicting the insanity of World War I. (6/10)