Film Review: THE SIX TRIPLE EIGHT (2024): Tyler Perry’s Inspiring Movie Has a Lot of Heart and Entertains Throughout

The Six Triple Eight Review

The Six Triple Eight (2024) Film Review, a movie directed by Tyler Perry, written by Kevin Hymel and Tyler Perry and starring Kerry Washington, Ebony Obsidian, Milauna Jackson, Kylie Jefferson, Shanice Shantay, Sarah Jeffery, Pepi Sonuga, Moriah Brown, Jeante Godlock, Dean Norris, Sam Waterston, Susan Sarandon, Oprah Winfrey, Gregg Sulkin, Donna Biscoe, Baadja-Lyne Odums, Jeffery Thomas Johnson, Jay Reeves and Scott Daniel Johnson.

Filmmaker Tyler Perry’s The Six Triple Eight is a truly moving look at the African-American women who worked so hard to make sure that the mail was salvaged and sorted properly in order to get the words to the people who so desperately needed to read them. These women were central in World War II and made an impact that was honored many years later. Kerry Washington is featured in the movie as Major Charity Adams, a no-nonsense leader who used her fearlessness to triumph against the odds. The women she supervises in the movie are relatable characters who Perry creates authentically.

The other star of the film is Ebony Obsidian who plays Lena Derriecott King who is in a relationship with a devoted young man named Abram David (Gregg Sulkin) as the movie begins. Lena enlists in the Army in order to “fight Hitler” although she really does it to honor her love for the now deceased Abram. There are some usual basic training scenes of Lena and fellow women who have also joined the Army doing jumping jacks under the instruction of Adams. This film isn’t about the training itself, though. It’s about the heart of these women and their strength and determination to overcome fierce obstacles along the way.

Jay Reeves perfectly plays Hugh Bell, a gentleman in the service who helps Lena get off the truck when she first arrives for duty. What holds Lena back from acting on her feelings for Hugh is her love for Abram who she envisions guiding her when Adams appears to be too difficult for her to succeed in her chosen path in life.

This film’s plot kicks into gear when a grieving mother stands outside the home of the President in the pouring rain, looking for answers regarding her family’s whereabouts. The President, FDR (Sam Waterston) and The First Lady (Susan Sarandon) alongside Mary McLeod (Oprah Winfrey) are the motivating forces behind the formation of the six triple eight which is the group of women who are led to sort and repair the mail so that those who need to hear from their family and loved ones can.

One of the most memorable performances in the film is from Shanice Shantay as Johnnie Mae who seems to be (almost) a tad overweight but will undoubtedly shine during basic training to become one of the most intriguing characters in the entire movie. Sarah Jeffery stands out as Dolores Washington, another determined woman in the film while Ebony Obsidian’s compelling turn is truly at the heart of the picture. Milauna Jackson is also unforgettable as the determined Captain Campbell.

Perry oversimplifies some of his characterizations such as the one by Dean Norris as General Halt who almost gets the operation of the six triple eight shut down. It is the intense fight that Adams puts up that keeps things afloat and, in the end, there are plenty of inspirational moments that don’t arrive without being fully earned by the difficulties that arise over the course of the story line. There is discrimination towards the women that occur in a church in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the movie.

Millions of pieces of mail were repaired and delivered due to the efforts of the women the film portrays and this film serves as a testament to the battle they put up in order to make sure they were given the opportunity to make the impact on people’s lives that they ultimately did.

Kerry Washington is certainly a big part of the movie’s beating heart. She is absolutely perfect in the role she plays. While Obsidian’s performance helps one understand the reasoning behind the six triple eight’s efforts, Washington’s Adams is the principal driving force that made it all actually happen. Washington puts in the requisite energy and emotions that the part requires and the performance is all the more successful as a result.

This film closes with a look behind the honoring of the real-life women who the film portrays on-screen. Perry is always able to make a movie drive home its points without feeling overbearing and by simply stating the facts, he is able to get tears from the audience who will realize the intense challenges that these women faced in doing what seemed to be impossible. Does the movie ever feel cliched? Maybe there’s a moment or two where it does but that hardly lessens the impact the picture will have on its audience.

The Six Triple Eight is entertaining and moving. Because of the combined efforts of its distinguished cast and its simple, yet effective, story-telling methods, one feels that they’re right there with these women. Tyler Perry’s film ultimately has so many vivid details in it that it presents its story in such a way that viewers will care quite a bit about its characters. These women set out on a hopeful quest to help those who needed to know the answers to the questions that those pieces of mail answered. There are happy and sad pieces of mail but the fact that the mail was actually read by many of the intended recipients is a testament to the hard work of women who put their blood, sweat and tears into what they were enlisted to do and triumphed beyond a reasonable doubt.

Rating: 7.5/10

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