Watch a documentary instead

Rating: 1/10 (5 July 2020)

I wanted to like this so bad. Unfortunately I was left quite angry at how bad it was.
If you want to learn about black soldiers in the Vietnam war I would advise watching a documentary and learning about black history and culture. This is so badly done that it will more likely turn people away from learning more on the subject, not because of any of the message itself but because the entire film is so awkward and unwatchable that anyone open to learning about the subject will instead run for the hills due to this clumsy story.
Also please don't lower yourself to believing that people who don't like this film are all racists or don't understand the cultural references. Cultural references don't make a film good to watch alone, you need cultural references AND a good script, characters which pull you into the story and accurate details especially when it's a film about war.
The military details need to be on point. If these details aren't in place then it makes them completely unbelievable as soldiers which distracts from the entire film. I can't comprehend why when making a film about war, it's directed without any effort being put into this part of it. This is such a basic of filmmaking that it almost feels insulting to the military and to soldiers of any race. This is an equally important part of the film, they are black SOLDIERS and yet the director completely lets them down in making them believable soldiers. This is just one of the many issues plaguing this film as well as wooden acting in some parts, badly scripted in many parts, terrible action scenes, lazy plot such as randomly stumbling across the gold and then asking if they are in the right coordinates, then agreeing this is the exact right place. If this was the right place and you've been following the map then you would already know you have reached your destination, I mean you're military men so you would know right? A quick look at the map and oh yes we are actually in the exact right place. The music was culturally significant but used in a way that distracted from the scene rather than enhanced it. Most decisions in the film in fact had this effect, distracting rather than enhancing making it very difficult to like even when trying so hard to like it all the film all the way through. I think this is why I was so angry by the end. I kept giving it chances and it just kept throwing them away one by one.
I advise for anyone thinking about watching this that you may well regret it. However, please watch it and make up your own mind. Some people may like the feel of the film but I know many won't because there are so many issues distracting in every scene that it's very difficult to sink into. Many parts are so bad that I can only guess that they must have been done on purpose to create a certain sort of feeling. If so then fair enough but understand that the feeling it actually creates is very cringey, disconnected and boring to sit through for most people. If you're going to take a risk like that then don't insult viewers by calling anyone that doesn't like it racist. To do so is disgusting especially if it's been made to be purposely clumsy and awkward for the viewer. People are allowed to dislike a film regardless of the subject matter if its filmed in such an odd way. It was also comedic in parts, so much so that it took away from the weight of the more serious parts. Even when people are dying it has a strange comedy element to it in a way which completely distracts from the gravity of them dying but not enough to make in genuinely funny. This mixed with the historical clips flashing through the film make for a really crap vibe for the film as it was constantly floating in limbo with no clear direction as to what the film is itself, even though the message was there. The gravity of the clips and the history were the best parts as was some of the acting but unfortunaltely they felt wasted in the confused feel of the film and couldn't make up for all the negatives.
All this is why I would recommend watching a documentary instead. You would learn much more and have a more interesting 2.5 hours just being told the real facts of the war rather than watching this bizarre film. All films are subjective so please bear in mind that people who have a different opinion aren't necessarily doing so because of an agenda. I found it difficult to believe at first that anyone could have genuinely enjoyed the film and weren't giving it 10/10 because of the background alone and not based on the film at all. However everybody is different and they obviously enjoyed all the things I hated, that is human nature for you, ones trash is another's treasure so just watch for yourself and don't worry about what other people think of your opinion on the film. You are allowed to like or dislike it without it saying anything significant about you as a person.