A well-intentioned but heavy-handed Vietnam War picture, "The Walking Dead" doesn't miss a cliche and has enough subplots to fill two or three movies on the subject.
The hook here is the film's four main characters being black Marines, which is intended to make this a sort of "Jarheads From the Hood." And if it had been successful, the picture could certainly qualify as a unique entry in the overview of black cinema. As it is, "The Walking Dead" will likely be forgotten by April.
The plot has this foursome being dropped in the middle of a hot zone in South Vietnam, circa 1972, to assist in the rescue of POWs. But once their helicopter lands, they are under attack, confusion reigns and they ultimately become separated from their unit.
For the rest of the film, they become a microcosm of the black experience, each representing a varied aspect:
— Sgt. Barkley (Joe Morton) is the older, more mature member of the group — the guy in charge. A former minister, he repeatedly takes his Bible out of his backpack for solace, and we gradually discover that he harbors a nagging dark secret.
— Lance Cpl. Evans (Allen Payne) is a young husband and father who joined up to better provide for his family, and to avoid the racism he felt was holding him back in civilian life.
— Pvt. Hoover (Eddie Griffin) is the smart-mouth wise-guy whose insubordination and marijuana-smoking initially collide with the sensibilities of the young lieutenant in charge, and as the film progresses he continually challenges Barkley. His vulgar wisecracks are probably intended as comic relief, though they become tiresome rather quickly.
— And finally, there is a naive teenage private named Brooks (Vonte Sweet), who is ridiculed for not bedding his girlfriend back home, and who will inevitably — and predictably — receive a "Dear John" letter.
During the course of the film, each is afforded a lengthy flashback that shows how he got into the service and found himself in Vietnam. These flashbacks are intended, of course, as a means of fleshing out the characters. But instead, they merely provide domestic movie cliches, as opposed to war movie cliches. They also demonstrate how stilted the dialogue and direction really are.
A fifth flashback is also provided, this one for a white character — a crazed Marine with a dark past as a gangster. He also provides the film's most graphically gory moment, driving a stick through a Vietnamese woman's eye.
Writer-director Preston A. Whitmore Jr. adds nothing new to the genre of Vietnam War movies, and his moderately budgeted picture is hampered by self-conscious camera movements — especially in the jungle sequences — and unimaginative plotting.
This war movie looks like it was made by someone who has seen too many other war movies. And he apparently hasn't seen the good ones.
The solid cast is willing, but even such proven talents as Joe Morton ("Terminator 2: Judgment Day," "The Brother From Another Planet"), Allen Payne and Eddie Griffin (both from "Jason's Lyric") have a hard time with Whitmore's chunky dialogue.
"The Walking Dead" is rated R for violence, profanity, vulgarity, sex and drugs (marijuana use).