The Six Triple Eight Review: Ruins the Reality

This Netflix war movie follows the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and its contributions to World War II. The film is based on “Fighting a Two-Front War” by Kevin M. Hymel and has a runtime of 127 minutes.

The Six Triple Eight Review

Tyler Perry isn’t known for his subtlety and his latest film doesn’t do anything to change that notion. Don’t get me wrong, the story that the film is based on is an inspiring and thrilling one, one that can push most viewers to tears. Fighting against bigotry, sexism and a system that loves to hate Black women, the story is of a bunch of brave women in the US Army during World War II who go above and beyond to serve their country in a time of crisis. The film has its moments when it truly touches your heart and as I mentioned, the true story is one of inspiration. However, it’s the execution that I find faltering in The Six Triple Eight.

Although it doesn’t have Perry’s telltale signs, it is devoid of absolutely any and all layers and subtlety – the film doesn’t make you uncomfortable, neither does it make you want to divert your eyes away, but there’s just something so annoying about watching the same point being hammered into our brains with no finesse that really gets to you after a point. We are given no grace and neither are we deemed competent enough to understand the layers that exist with the horrible situation that these women are in. It’s easy to relate to and sympathise with them, but it gets much harder when the director doesn’t provide leeway for the characters and the situations to breathe.

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I also found the problem to be with the characters and the acting. Everyone feels just so one-dimensional for most of the runtime, be it with the way that they are written or acted. These women seem like they are reading off a bland script and are saying some words that they are supposed to. You don’t feel the feelings that they are feeling beyond the expected because the actors and the writing fall short of telling those tales. Shanice Shantay as Johnnie Mae was the only exception, in my opinion, as she is both real and raw. It’s easy to really feel for her because she feels so natural as a character.

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The biggest issue, though, I feel is that it makes the point about the racial issues just so obvious that it loses its intrigue and its importance. After it goes through the pain-striking process making us uncomfortably aware of the issues, it then goes deeper to make the already muddy water muddier, taking away what was left of the subtlety that truly makes a difference. Less is more in these situations and Perry is, unfortunately, not known for following this.

Final Thoughts

The Six Triple Eight is inspirational and thoroughly moving, but only because the core story is just so moving. Perry doesn’t add anything to alleviate any of that and only serves to take away from the story of these inspirational women by hammering the same point over and over again and leaving no space for its characters or the story itself.

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