Yahoo Lifestyle ‘The Six Triple Eight’ Is Based On An Incredible Real-Life Story — But Doesn’t Do It Justice
We had high hopes for “The Six Triple Eight.” Higher hopes than we typically have for Tyler Perry productions. With a strong trailer, cast and a story backed by the unsung heroes of the 6888th Battalion, we thought it would be different than the filmmaker’s other work, especially since his writing had to stay within the confines of historical facts.
That partially happened, as some truly moving moments highlight the resilience and bravery of the only all-Black battalion of the Women’s Army Corps who served overseas during World War II, led by Major Charity Adams (Kerry Washington). “The Six Triple Eight” tells the story of how these women created a process to deliver thousands of pieces of backed-up mail and parcels to soldiers and their families during the war. The film is at its best when leaning into their story, sisterhood and how they overcame when faced with racism, sexism and adversity.
Where it falls short, however, is within the same tropes that often plague Perry’s work. Flat and stereotypical depictions of Black women distract from the story. The film spends too much time seesawing between the love stories Lena Derriecott (Ebony Obsidian) has with her late white lover who was killed at war and a Black soldier she meets while serving. Fleshing out the plot and characters with more depth and nuance would’ve been a more productive use of time.
Still, it is important that the 6888th Battalion’s story is being told. We just hope that it isn’t limited to this one film.
We break down our thoughts and reactions to “The Six Triple Eight” here.
Let’s Talk About The Cast And Their Performances
I will never not admire writer-director Tyler Perry for being able to get some of the most talented Black actors in Hollywood in his movies — despite many of the movies being quite bad. Oprah Winfrey. Kerry Washington. Sam Waterston. Susan Sarandon. Dean Norris. The problem is rarely ever the cast. In this case, that includes the lesser known prominent cast members like Ebony Obsidian, Shanice Shantay and Pepi Sonuga. The issue, as always, is the histrionic performances they’re likely directed to deliver. On one end, you have Obsidian as Lena melodramatically throwing her body over her special friend’s (I hesitate to call him her boyfriend, since she specifically says he is not) grave. On the other, you have each and every bad white person in the movie being so cartoonishly awful that it’s almost funny at times. And it shouldn’t be! These women dealt with a lot of racism and other forms of dehumanization. Nothing about that is funny. Even more well-known characters like Winfrey’s Mary McLeod Bethune and Sarandon’s Eleanor Roosevelt come across as merely human-adjacent; one-dimensional and instantly forgettable. In the midst of all that, Washington’s mouth quiver is doing all her acting for her as Major Charity Adams.
It’s such a shame because the cast is so talented and obviously the story is an important one to tell. But it’s really in the wrong hands. I wonder how a talented Black filmmaker would have handled this. — Candice
My gripe with every Tyler Perry project is that the cast’s performances oftentimes feel stiff or hollow, as if they’re being directed to act a particular way to deliver a vision that only makes sense to Perry. That said, it’s a miracle that Kerry Washington was able to conjure a performance that, in my opinion, saved the premise of the movie. Only her scenes as Major Charity Adams seemed to drive home what the “Six Triple Eight” should’ve been all about — the feat of sorting through a backlog of correspondence between American soldiers and their loved ones while a racist military awaits their failure. Her performance was more arresting than whatever Oprah Winfrey and Susan Sarandon’s cameos were meant to rouse. But there weren’t too many standouts, even with Ebony Obsidian positioned as one of the main leads.
Quality not matching the caliber of talent is an issue that’s popped up regularly in Perry’s last decade of films, but it would’ve been nice for him to prove that wrong with “Six Triple Eight.” — Njera
I’ve been watching Tyler Perry’s “Sistas” since it premiered in 2019. It’s a soap opera of a TV series, that keeps you hooked with these storylines that have micro-updates — and crazy cliffhangers — every week. Ebony Obsidian stars on that series, and stars as Lena in “Six Triple Eight.” Her character on “Sistas” is so aggravating that it was quite refreshing to see her in this role. But otherwise, ditto on everything Candice and Njera have said about the casting here. — Erin
For me, I just wonder what would happen if Perry gave the cast and crew ample time to do their jobs instead of rushing to shoot everything with such a tight window. And if he gave another Black writer an opportunity instead of writing a script like this in TWO WEEKS! — Taryn
Unpacking Lena And Abram’s Love Story
This is part of the plot I didn’t quite understand because, for a film determined to bring a little-known true story to the big screen, it spent a lot of time flushing out the origins and aftermath of this interracial romance between Lena and Abram — which could’ve been dialed back to properly honor the work of the 6888th Battalion. Abram’s “ghost,” if we can call it that, had odd cameos that took away from the point of the movie for me. I didn’t expect his presence, or lack thereof, to have such a profound impact on Lena either, especially during her assignment overseas. At times, it felt like the movie was trying to manipulate emotional moments out of Lena’s grief to justify all the mentions of Abram’s tragic death throughout, and I was over it by the time she finally found his grave.
Again, this relationship didn’t have to become a central part of the 6888’s story, but I guess I can’t expect Tyler Perry to commit to a full-on war drama without giving in to his melodramatic tendencies. — Njera
I think I kept screaming at my TV screen a version of “How is she so sprung on a man she kissed that one time and who she wasn’t really in a relationship with — despite him sorta proposing to her??” I could believe that maybe the two were in a relationship and that when tragedy struck, she was devastated. But the movie only really puts them in maybe one scene together (two, at most) and just asks the audience to just roll with this great love story. Is it love? And is it even a story, for that matter? For a movie to rely so heavily on their dynamic, without actually building their dynamic, is… a choice. A bad one.
I also just find it… interesting that a movie that is supposed to center the Black and brown women of this battalion was usurped by the love story of a dead white guy. — Candice
Ditto, Candice. Says a lot about the film’s intentions. — Njera
I realized early on we were getting off on the wrong foot with this love story. I totally agree with you, Candice. Unless that was a part of the real Lena’s story, it was unnecessary to introduce us to Abram. And if it was a part of the real story, Perry did a poor job correlating Abram’s death to why Lena wanted to go to the military. — Taryn
Lena And Hugh’s Underdeveloped Love Story
I almost wish the film never entertained a romance between Lena and Private Hugh Bell because so many of their encounters were dampened by Lena crying over the loss of Abram, which, sure, realistically makes sense. But it’s hard to cling to the potential of this budding affair through fleeting conversations that somehow lead to them eventually being wed. I didn’t really buy it. I wish they spent as much time developing a real connection between Hugh and Lena as they did building the latter’s arc around a dead white guy she was barely committed to. — Njera
When he tells Lena that he broke off his engagement to the other woman, I literally shook my head in confusion. He had had like two conversations with Lena at that point, and she was barely paying him any attention. It felt like such an afterthought of a storyline that was wedged into the film, only because in real life Lena ended up marrying Hugh. I will say that I wrote down, “civil rights era fine” in my notes about Jay Reeves, the actor who portrays Hugh. They nailed his whole look down for that era. — Erin
As soon as Hugh helped Lena down from that truck, I knew Tyler Perry was Tyler Perry-ing. If the girl is mourning her dead boyfriend — who’s clearly haunting her, lowkey — why do you have a love story already brewing for her? I really wish Perry would’ve picked between the love stories because it seemed like too much of a task to do both. Balancing one with telling such an important story is enough if you must bring romance into it.
And him leaving his wife after just three conversations with Lena really pissed me off. But at the same time, I wouldn’t put it past men of that era. — Taryn
LOL, Taryn, men did often leave their beloveds on a hope and a prayer with another woman who most definitely was not checking for them back then (and maybe still today — I don’t know). I actually had to look up who Hugh was, because he sure was an afterthought in this movie and certainly to Lena. When she told Major Adams that Hugh would make sure she got home after she finished visiting her dead crush, I was like… OK, you really do not like Hugh like that at all. And he clearly is smitten because why else would he accompany his crush to another man’s grave so she could weep all over it? How incredibly sad… for Hugh.
Also: I agree with all of y’all about Perry not knowing how to build either of these “love” stories. Neither of them makes a lick of sense. I would imagine there is so much that happened within this battalion, and yet we don’t learn much about it through this movie. Most of what we learn, actually, is in the few sentences of postscript. And all to tell not one but two terribly constructed love stories that ultimately have nothing to do with anything here? Mess. — Candice
What Works In The Film
I was surprised by how emotionally I reacted to a couple of moments in this film. I boo-hoo cried when the battalion walked off that ship that carried them over to Europe for their mission. They endured a rough ride overnight through a storm and walked off the ship like they’d gotten a full night’s rest and were ready to take on the day. They lined themselves up to march through Glasgow as the General Halt ordered. They were sharp and in sync. I just kept thinking of all the moments Black women have defied the odds and shown up despite their circumstances. It was really moving. The other moment was when they all clapped for Major Adams after she stood up to the general. I thought both of those moments were well put together. — Erin
The costumes are good. — Candice
I liked that the film tried to establish some kind of sisterhood between Lena and the girls she rode to training camp with. It felt like a more intimate window into who the Black and Brown women of the 6888th Battalion were (excluding the caricature of Shanice Shantay’s Johnnie Mae, though I enjoyed the actor in “The Wiz Live!”). Their bond was more interesting to me than the “romances” Lena was stuck on.
And for what it’s worth, I did appreciate that the film didn’t gloss over the intricacies of the system the battalion established so we could actually understand how they — above everyone else who tried and failed — managed to sort and deliver thousands of pieces of mail to soldiers and their families way before their six-month deadline. — Njera
I agree, Njera. I really wish the foundation of this story would’ve been sisterhood instead of these love stories that are barely fleshed out. The best parts of the film occur when it’s just the women bantering, supporting each other, and making a way out of no way.
I also appreciated the historical footage and short feature of the real Lena at the very end, though I do wish we would’ve had more context around if those were her words she was reading or words Perry asked her to read. The story of the 6888 is important and this film is at its best when it focuses on that. — Taryn
What Doesn’t Work In The Film
I enjoyed the actor who plays Johnnie Mae, but I loathed the way she was written. As the dark skin, plus-size woman in the group, Perry wrote her mean, uneducated and slightly jealous. Aside from the racist white men we encounter in the film, she seems to be the “villain” of the group who eventually finds redemption after realizing Lena’s story. Though colorism did grant those with lighter skin more access to education back then, there’s still something not sitting right with how Perry wrote her story. And that’s probably because Perry has historically applied stereotypical tropes to his female characters. It’s a shame that even this story, one about shining a light on a battalion of Black women so few know about, wasn’t immune.
I’m going to touch your hand when I say this, Tyler. We can make nuanced, flawed characters without leaning on stereotypes. I promise. — Taryn
Totally agree, Taryn. I also thought it was interesting that Johnnie Mae said she was only there for the men and didn’t really care about much else. PLEASE, write better characters. It’s like they’re all written by someone with no imagination and cannot possibly understand female complexity. — Candice
You both hit the nail on the head. Johnnie Mae deserved better, and so did the other women of the battalion we only get to know on a surface level. Like Pepi Sonuga’s Elaine White, who we only learn is a bible-thumping Christian of the group condemning everyone else’s worldly behavior. More nuance could’ve given those women actual identities in the movie — I think of how another historical film like “Hidden Figures” did a better job of this.
I also left the theater wondering if “Six Triple Eight” was an accurate depiction of how far removed the women’s battalion was from the actual events of World War II. Hugh’s conversation with Lena, where he shares what he saw on the frontlines, reminded me that the movie spent more time talking about what was happening with the soldiers during the war than actually showing it, with the exception of the opening scene.
My biggest issue, though, was the fact that Perry spared us no subtleties in portraying the brutal misogynoir the women faced at every turn of the movie. In fact, he seemed more concerned with showing those degrading and minimizing moments than the exceptionalism the film boasts, leaving little screentime to flush out a proper build-up to Adams’ emotional blow-up at General Halt’s harsh tirade, which quickly transitioned to the scene where the soldiers suddenly see the result of the 6888th Battalion’s work. The pacing made it hard for me to be completely satisfied with the movie’s end, which tries to wrap up any loose ends with postscript and footage of the real Lena before the credits roll. I felt like I learned more at the end of the movie than I did during it, and that’s very telling of what the film actually achieved outside of educating us about untold American history. — Njera
I agree about the pacing of the film — especially toward the end. I would have loved to see a more fleshed-out storyline about their actual mission in Europe. The sorting of the mail seemed to come together super quickly, but in a convoluted way that didn’t fully make sense to me by the time the credits started rolling. — Erin
The Tyler Perry Of It All
This could have maybe benefited from him bringing the concept of the film to a talented Black female director and producing it. I’m… just not confident that he’s capable of doing anything else here. — Candice
“Six Triple Eight” was a decent attempt, but no more war movies from Perry. — Njera
The trailer had me convinced that maybe Perry had stepped up his game with this film and his filmmaking. And sure, it’s a step up from previous films. But too many elements of this movie left me scratching my head. — Erin
Our Quick Takeaways
I couldn’t find a feature-length documentary on the 6888 Battalion, though I think it could definitely make a good one, in the right hands. But I did find an informative, 14-minute video titled “Black Women & WWII: The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion” on YouTube. I’d maybe suggest viewers watch that instead. — Candice
Again, I’m just glad more folks will know these women’s stories overall. I do, however, hope that this film’s existence doesn’t stop another creator from digging deeper into the 6888 Battalion. — Taryn
Agreed, Taryn. Overall, I hope this movie actually encourages future filmmakers to mine through American history and bring more untold Black stories to mainstream consciousness. Maybe then they’ll get proper justice. — Njera
