By snoadmin
There’s a kaleidoscope of ideas Lee is trying to mush together: It’s an effort to paint another facet of WWII history that often goes unsaid in modern times — the story of Buffalo Soldiers and race relations from the perspective of black wartime soldiers — and an attempt, if not a cry, to become a mirror to ourselves at what the film believes is a lack of social and governmental progress.
While it isn’t as disastrous as “Heaven’s Gate,” neither is it poignant or aggressive in voice as “Flags of Our Fathers.” If anything, it is a permissible and heavy heartstring-tugger in the context of WWII race relations, the evaluation of the word “freedom” and the backdrop of some seriously gorgeous scenery.
Maybe it is a bit much to call “Miracle at St. Anna” a budget flaunter that will eventually have you sympathizing for its lead characters (there’s a cute kid, and in the context of WWII, I think you know all the tragic instances that come with this formula), but had the tempo and performances been more focused, perhaps getting to the end would have been a well-worth and meaningful ride.
Our Take: Perversely long, and borders on the slightly self-absorbed — but that’s all easy to suspend since Lee is a master in manipulating your soft side. Man your Kleenex.
