From left to right: Michael Ealy, Laz Alonso, Derek Luke, Omar Benson
Miller as Bishop, Hector, Stamps and Train respectively, in Spike Lee's "Miracle
At St. Anna", which opened today across the U.S. and Canada. (Photo: David
Lee/Touchstone Pictures)
THE POPCORN REEL FILM REVIEW/"Miracle At
St. Anna"
In World War Two, American Brothers-In-Arms Fighting For, And Against, Their Country
With Miracles Of Tuscany On Their Side
By
Omar P.L. Moore/September 26, 2008
Spike Lee hits a home run but not a grand slam with "Miracle At St. Anna", a
thrilling World War Two epic about four black U.S. soldiers in the 92nd Infantry
Division, aka Buffalo Soldiers, who were the first to fight in the War prior to
the integration of black soldiers into the segregated American military in 1948
by President Truman. Mr. Lee draws upon a gorgeous canvas in Tuscany where
almost all of his film was shot (superb cinematography by Matthew Libatique) but in
other technical areas "Miracle" has two big flaws: its abrupt and occasionally
choppy editing (by veteran Lee collaborator Barry Alexander Brown) but most
especially its music score (by Terence Blanchard).
Mr. Blanchard, who has scored the music for nearly all of Mr. Lee's films
starting with "Jungle Fever" onwards, is strangely off key with this score.
In a film about war, relationships and faith -- a film almost three hours long
-- much of "Miracle"'s crucial first hour, which is sometimes haphazard, is
overwhelmed by Mr. Blanchard's score, which early on is thunderous in places
where it should be solemn or at the very best, non-existent. Because we
are bombarded by the loud score, notably during early battle scenes, settling
into it is awfully difficult, despite the fact that soothing music accompanies
the wonderful onomatopoeic opening credit sequence.
Only after the first hour has transpired does "Miracle At St. Anna" segue into a
relationship film with several vivid stories: the camaraderie of the quartet of
soldiers who face racism in their own ranks and from their own country they
fight so hard for; the survival of the spirit amongst Italian villagers in
Tuscany during WWII; the resilience and faith of a young Italian boy who claims
to see the unseen; the conflict between the Mussolini Fascists and the
Partisans, and the Nazis who descend upon Tuscany as their quest to conquer
Europe becomes more fully realized. James McBride's screenplay is based on
his similarly-titled book, which in turn is inspired by true events and people,
which Mr. McBride was told in stories years ago as a child by his war veteran
uncle. The book is well-written and the script is hewn almost verbatim
from the book with only two or three alterations.
Even with its flaws -- few though glaring -- "Miracle At St. Anna" is still a
fine film especially in its depiction of rich characters -- the diverse black
men, with solid performances from Derek Luke (as Sgt. Stamps), Michael Ealy
(Private Bishop Cummings), Omar Benson Miller (as Private Sam Train) and Laz
Alonso, who as Corporal Hector Negron is an unsung hero, anchoring the film
powerfully as its conscience. Mr. Alonso is profound in his mainly silent
role, showing the strains of war and trauma. Special mention as well to
young Italian child actor Matteo Sciabordi, who as Angelo, the believer in
miracles, is indispensable to the film's narrative. It is Angelo who ties
the film's multiple storylines together. Pierfrancesco Favino is terrific
as Peppi the Great Butterfly, a man who has suspicions and wonders who and what
he fights for in the Italian alps. Several other Italian actors are very
good, including Valentina Cervi as Renata, whose self-education via one of the
film's Transatlantic characters comes quickly.
Mr. Lee directs "Miracle" and pulls emotional intimacy into focus in small
moments -- which his new film is essentially a series of. He captures
tenderness in scenes involving Mr. Ealy's uncouth Bishop and some young Italian
boys; he replicates this in early moments involving Mr. Miller and Master
Sciabordi -- their scenes are affectionately rendered and their chemistry is
undeniable. For some, Mr. Miller's character will represent the kind of
minstrel-show entity reminiscent of Michael Clarke Duncan's character in "The
Green Mile" -- the kind of doltish jolly black giant that Mr. Lee himself has
railed against in his own films such as "Bamboozled", but in Mr. Lee's defense
Mr. McBride's book contains the same character as drawn in the author's
screenplay; the work Mr. Miller does is dazzling at times, the character he
plays (Sam Train) is an affirmative man who stands up for himself and leaves an
impact. Mr. Lee has always talked about the importance of including the
black men who fought and died for America in World War Two in the movies and
with "Miracle" he delivers a
heretofore unmarked recognition in Hollywood films until now. We see and
feel the pride of this buried treasure in American history burning through the
screen, even if some of the
battle scenes are conventional in both scope and depiction.
That said, "Miracle At St. Anna" is ambitious, sweeping and not as violent as
one would expect, although there is one heartbreaking scene in the film's second
half that will sting you hard. The film presents shades of grey on all sides of the
conflict -- American, Italian and German -- and the players dotting his canvas
speak the authentic languages. The film has some bitterly righteous
moments and you can feel them, especially in a scene involving Mr. Luke and the
other black soldiers when they arrive at a restaurant in the American South.
Mr. Lee's film is very good not great, epic not excellent, beautifully-shot
though not brilliant.
With Joseph Gordon-Levitt, D.B. Sweeney, John Leguizamo, John Turturro, Kerry
Washington.
"Miracle At St. Anna" is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America
for strong war violence, language and some sexual content/nudity. The
film's duration is two hours and 40 minutes, but it goes by very quickly.
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