The Red Baron

[Gregvan]

Quote: "maybe a while before the English subtitle hits and who knows about the English languish version."

Sounds like the English version has been languishing for some time.

[Laserlloyd]

Greg:

You've heard of the Freudian slip well I coined this one a Lloyden...Slip

Language........Dhoooo

[await]

“Rainbase” and “Grandson” in their earlier postings are right. “The Red Baron” was actually shot in English and the German dialog was dubbed in afterwards. Perhaps that will give one reason to hope that the original English version will eventually make it to DVD even if the film never makes it to the big screen in the United States and Canada. Afterall, a lot of awful films go straight to DVD.

I’m not saying that “The Red Baron” is altogether awful. Just the script and some of the mis-en-scène are awful. The film does have much value from a visual standpoint. The CGI effects are generally top-notch and the aircraft mock-ups are quite nice to look at though almost none of them represent actual aircraft from Richthofen’s units and some genuine schemes have been altered in a whimsical fashion. Incidentally, I failed to mention in my posts in another thread ("The Red Baron on DVD described") that the scheme of Sternberg's Albatros is related to his name ("Stern" = "star"). Also, I think the witch I mentioned was inspired by the markings on one of Otto Hartmann's aircraft (Jasta 30).

The backdrops in which the aerial contests take place also have a certain grandeur. Some of them are in deep rich blue skies above strikingly white clouds, while others unfold in dark gloomy regions above smoky battlefields.

Because of the nice visuals, I must say that I don’t regret spending about $40 for the DVD. It is a must-have for fans of the genre. One must also appreciate the fact that, despite all its inaccuracies, the film does do something to help promote awareness of this era of aviation history in the popular consciousness.

I felt much the same way about “Flyboys.” All impromptu in-the-field flight training, daylight Zeppelin raids, out-of-place Fokker triplanes, unlikely behind-the-lines rescue operations, somewhat cartoonish villains, and questionable amputations aside, at least it made people aware of the existence of an “Escadrille Lafayette.” Maybe as a result someone will actually pick up a book on the subject!

[stoney]

Thanks, Hmmmm.....

[rainbase]

I have an earlier promo disc my Niama friend sent me. It's maybe 5 minutes long and definitely in English. Sounds good too.

[rainbase]

I finally saw the film; downloaded it using utorrent.

These are some quick impressions I have. Let me say firstly, that my Deutsch language skills lack much, so I can't really comment much on the dialog. I was, however, basically able to follow the story. My "war-speak German" is better than my "romance German", so I found myself zipping past some of the Manfred/Katie scenes.

This movie is a welcome edition to the all-too-sparse genre. With typical German craftmanship it just looks wonderful. Artsy in places, practical in others. The backgrounds and props are, in my opinion very convincing (they were in Flyboys too, btw). The full sized mock-ups look wonderful. The buildings, hangers and landscapes work together very well.

The Richthofen family estate looks uncannily like the pictures we have seen. If they took some liberties with history and got a few things wrong, well, they also got a lot right. The planes are gorgeous and the variety of types and models is something to behold. I know some of the folks here will be happy to nitpick color schemes and such, but I just loved how the Flying Circus is depicted.

The story seems to be solid enough. Of course I miss much of the dialog but I can tell you that the romance isn't really the central theme of the film. It doesn't get in the way. It's more of a "comrades in arms" tale.

Some of the scenes are instantly recognizable; like Manfred's last visit home. We've all read the story of Manfred sitting with his Mother, drawn and weary, looking through pictures of all his fallen friends. This script was not written without some research. I can see that the writers cherry picked through facts to craft the story.

And finally there are the battle scenes. Fokkers, Albatripe, Sopwiths, Spads and other types! The variety alone makes this more satisfying than Flyboys. The aircraft seem to move fairly realistically and the damaged aircraft breaking up and flopping out of the sky are breathtaking to watch. It doesn't look like a video game, anyways. The CGI is very nice, especially with clouds, smoke and the front lines below. These "money shots" are worth the price of admission alone.

Oddly, my main gripe is on a silly point... Richthofen's hair is too long. They could have/should have given him MVR hair, but hey, it's a small complaint.

[womenfly2]

Thanks Rainbase for the review. Would it be possible to post the site from where you downloaded it?

Cheers,
WF2

[rainbase]

Originally Posted by womenfly2

Thanks Rainbase for the review. Would it be possible to post the site from where you downloaded it?

Cheers,
WF2

Thanks, WF2. I didn't download this from a site, I got it using utorrant, which is a peer-to-peer program (like napster). As a rule of thumb, I don't grab files from other people's machines but really didn't want to wait any longer to see this