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DramaWarHistory

The Six Triple Eight

- They were ordered to provide hope...

During World War II, the US Army's only all-Black, all-women battalion takes on an impossible mission: sorting through a three-year backlog of 17 million pieces of mail that hadn't been delivered to American soldiers and finish within six months.

Release Date : 2024-12-06

Language :English

Adult : false

Status : Released

Production Company : Tyler Perry StudiosMandalay PicturesHer Excellency ProductionsIntuition Productions

Production Country : United States of America

Alternative Titles : Six Triple Eight

Cast

Kerry Washington

Character Name : Charity Adams

Original Name : Kerry Washington

Gender : Female

Sam Waterston

Character Name : Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Original Name : Sam Waterston

Gender : Male

Susan Sarandon

Character Name : Eleanor Roosevelt

Original Name : Susan Sarandon

Gender : Female

Oprah Winfrey

Character Name : Mary McLeod Bethune

Original Name : Oprah Winfrey

Gender : Female

Ebony Obsidian

Character Name : Lena Derriecott King

Original Name : Ebony Obsidian

Gender : Female

Shanice Williams

Character Name : Johnnie Mae (credited as Shanice Shantay)

Original Name : Shanice Williams

Gender : Female

Kylie Jefferson

Character Name : Bernice Baker

Original Name : Kylie Jefferson

Gender : Female

Sarah Jeffery

Character Name : Dolores Washington

Original Name : Sarah Jeffery

Gender : Female

Pepi Sonuga

Character Name : Elaine White

Original Name : Pepi Sonuga

Gender : Female

Milauna Jackson

Character Name : Captain Campbell

Original Name : Milauna Jackson

Gender : Female

Jay Reeves

Character Name : Private Hugh Bell

Original Name : Jay Reeves

Gender : Male

Jeanté Godlock

Character Name : Vera

Original Name : Jeanté Godlock

Gender : Female

Moriah Brown

Character Name : Inez

Original Name : Moriah Brown

Gender : Female

Baadja-Lyne Odums

Character Name : Susan

Original Name : Baadja-Lyne Odums

Gender : Female

Gregg Sulkin

Character Name : Abram David

Original Name : Gregg Sulkin

Gender : Male

Dean Norris

Character Name : General Halt

Original Name : Dean Norris

Gender : Male

Austin Nichols

Character Name : Colonel Collins

Original Name : Austin Nichols

Gender : Male

Ben VanderMey

Character Name : Captain Mathews

Original Name : Ben VanderMey

Gender : Male

Nick Harris

Character Name : Chaplain Clemens

Original Name : Nick Harris

Gender : Male

Scott Daniel Johnson

Character Name : General Lee

Original Name : Scott Daniel Johnson

Gender : Male

Jeffery Thomas Johnson

Character Name : Colonel Davenport

Original Name : Jeffery Thomas Johnson

Gender : Male

Brian Kurlander

Character Name : Mr. David

Original Name : Brian Kurlander

Gender : Male

Reviews

C

CinemaSerf

@Geronimo1967

2024-12-10

When it's brought to the attention of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt (Susan Sarandon) that the soldiers fighting in Europe aren't getting their morale-bolstering mail, she convinces her husband (Sam Waterston) that something has to be done about it. Meantime, a regiment of African American women is festering away at a fort awaiting, in vain, orders that will get them meaningfully employed. Well! Now they have a task, and under the command of their newly promoted Maj. Adams (Kerry Washington) are posted to Europe. They are unaware of the sale of their project until presented with half a dozen enormous hangars full to the brim of rotting envelopes, packages and their fair share of rats. Chief amongst the newly arrived soldiers is "Lena" (Ebony Obsidian) who joined up after her beau "Abram" (Gregg Sulkin) went off to war as a pilot and was reportedly killed in action. She, and her determined colleagues, are determined to make a difference and the remainder of this drama depicts their struggles against their own side rife with bigotry and sexism whilst the bombs are never far away and the task is quite literally Herculean - only they can't just divert a river to solve this one. It's a fact, so the conclusion isn't in doubt, and the story is quite an interesting one as it not only challenges stereotypical attitudes, but quite poignantly illustrates how downright counter-productive these were. The execution, though, is all rather bland. Washington is competent but nothing more, indeed that's true of almost all of the acting talent on display here - aside from a lively and earthy effort from Shanice Shantay as the the engagingly rough-around-the-edges Johnnie Mae; and the writing takes a sledge hammer to the racial undertones that, once it's made it's bleedin' obvious point, just proceeds to labour that a bit too heavily. It's fascinating to see glimpses of the "intelligence" these women used to repatriate the post with the person and at times it's quite funny too as their intuition and common sense proved astonishingly effective but that's all rather swept under the carpet as the story focusses too much on the soapy elements of their travails. Indeed the ending, and the significance of their achievement, is all just a bit too rushed. It's a film that might have made for a better documentary celebrating the dedication of these ladies. As a piece of cinema, it's at best an high-quality television movie and an over-long one at that.