The Red Baron

***Curiously unabsorbing account of the Red Baron***

The exceptional career of the ace-of-aces, Manfred Von Richthofen, is chronicled up to his death at 25 years-of-age on April 21, 1918.

“The Red Baron" (2008) comes in the tradition of similar WW1 fighter pilot flicks “The Blue Max” (1966), “Aces High" (1976) and “Flyboys” (2006). “The Blue Max” is an extraordinary melancholic epic while the realistic “Aces High” is good, but one-dimensionally mundane. The blockbuster-ish “Flyboys” is entertaining, but marred by comic book storytelling (think “Legends of the Fall”). Does “The Red Baron” match or surpass any of these movies? Unfortunately, no.

Everything is here for a quality film of this sort, but something about the storytelling makes for a curiously unabsorbing viewing experience, whether the fault is the script, the directing or something else (no doubt a combination). The first act lacks dramatic hooks and the necessary exposition to grab the viewer; and the movie never recovers.

This is augmented by the typical non-historical additions, like the nonsense of Von Richthofen (Matthias Schweighöfer) and Capt. Roy Brown (Joseph Fiennes) having cozy little chats throughout the course of the war. A lesser criticism is that a few of the cast members are noticeably too old for the parts. For instance, Lt. Werner Voss was only 20 when he was shot down while actor Til Schweiger was in his mid-40s during shooting. Lena Headey is a milder example. The score is good, but conspicuously rips-off the superior “The Last of the Mohicans” in two parts.

It’s not all bad. Schweighöfer, for instance, is fine for the titular role and carries the picture, which admittedly LOOKS good. I’ve seen the flick three times over the years and there’s enough good here to make it worth watching for people interested in Von Richthofen and what it was like during WW1. The story’s just not captivating.

The film runs 1 hour, 46 minutes, and was shot in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with studio stuff done in Prague.

GRADE: C+