Derek Luke (Glory Road, Definitely, Maybe) plays one of members of the 92nd Infantry Division who gets trapped behind enemy lines in Spike Lee’s World War II drama, Miracle at St. Anna. Luke admits he wasn’t familiar with the 92nd ‘Buffalo Soldier’ Division before being cast in the film, but after making the movie he believes he understands what the soldiers went through and why they were willing to give their lives for a country that treated them as second class citizens.
Derek Luke Interview
Did you feel an extra weight on your shoulders bringing their story to life?
“Well you have a sense of pride and honor, one that was expressed from Spike Lee. He invoked or injected us with [pride], more than he injected us with fear. So, you know, our task at hand was more so honoring than it was trying to measure up.”
After you got the script did you do extra research on your own?
“You know, I did. And no one was really given a script until you were cast. I was cast and then I had to fly out, and I was put directly into a boot camp. We call it the Spike Boot Camp. And then we were given everything to recreate the moment of the past. We were given a draft letter and we were told to leave certain comforts behind. The cast was told that, and the Italians were told to feed us little or no food which enabled us to rely on ourselves and bond with each other.”
How difficult was that process for you? It sounds as though it would be tough physically as well as mentally.
“You know what? It was, because many times the generation before - and I’m sure you’ve heard it - if you have a child, you always look back at your parents and you become very critical and say, ‘How could you all?’ or ‘Why didn’t you do this?’ And so many times the key was getting into a mindset of, so to speak, your mom or your dad and why they did the things that they did. And in order for that to happen to you, you need to abandon yourself or abandon your thoughts. So what happened is Spike set out a boot camp and it was German actors, Italian actors and Americans. He separated us. He put the Germans on one side of the mountain and then the American soldiers, the Buffalo Soldiers, on the other side. And we would hear them chanting as if they were getting ready for a Monday night football game. And sometimes as the boot camp progressed, we would get ambushed by the German soldiers. No one told us they were coming. And then later we stole their flag and then ambushed them. So the boot camp was psychological as much physical.”
How long were you there?
“We were there for two weeks. We were told in the two weeks no contact with your family, but during that time a lot of soldiers endured a lot of tragedies. Spike Lee flew 30 background or 40 background actors to Italy with us so it could be authentic and many of them had to make a decision. Some guys had lost family members during the time and they had to make the decision to go on with the film or go back home. None of them quit. You can tell how much we bonded because what affected one guy affected everybody.”
“The boot camp gave us the anatomy of a Buffalo Soldier, so it was highly important.”
What did you learn about the Buffalo Soldiers during the process that stood out?
“I learned that Buffalo Soldiers were… It was really the question of what I admire about the Buffalo Soldiers, that they were as patriotic as much as brave, and that bravery and patriotism went the same way. They had two enemies they were dealing with. They had to put away the fact that they weren’t being accepted at home and to get on the plane, get on the bus and go to another place where they’re not being received also by the Germans. And, you know, I learned that these men were visionaries and unselfish in the fact that they felt that it was their duty, regardless of how they were being treated, to make a sacrifice. Even though we didn’t predict Obama all this other stuff, they believed that what they would be doing would be leaving an inheritance. And they didn’t have actual money; they left spiritual, psychological and also a patriotic inheritance which was powerful.”
It sounds like this movie really affected you.
“You know, just like my character, Stamps, who was the only one of a few college graduates during the time who enlisted, knowledge can really empower you. And so did going to Italy and filming the Miracle at St Anna, it empowered me.”
How important was it to actually shoot in Italy?
“Oh, shooting on location as an actor is part of the beauty of acting. One, you’re not on a sound stage. And two, when you’re on location it’s a location and so you always have a co-star.”
Were the people of Italy receptive to this big Hollywood production?
“You know, Italy was more receptive to the fact that - and supportive - that w were telling a story that they were in support of, which was a story of the Buffalo Soldiers. They were so thankful of the Buffalo Soldiers and their contribution. And, you know, they were just so warm to us. I was eating a bowl of soup on a break of mine - sometimes when we have five or ten-minute breaks. I was eating soup and basically a woman came out speaking in Italian and I thought she was like telling me off or trying to curse me out in Italian. And she said, a PA came over, he was standing there and I said, ‘What is she saying? Is she telling me to leave, get off her porch?’ He says, ‘No, she’s asking why aren’t you eating bread with your soup?’ And that was just symbolic of how the Italians received us.”
Were you able to speak with anyone in Italy who had a relative in the war?
“We remained busy but Italy was just one big place of monumental and beautiful architecture. I had no connection to it at first or at all, and I did not get a chance to, because our boot camp, it took us right in to filming so I didn’t get a chance to speak with anyone. But I went accidentally, if you want to say, to a lot of landmarks. I went shopping one time and I found out the place that I loved, this beautiful city, there was a plaque that said that the Buffalo Soldiers were the first soldiers that were Allied that they saw behind these walls. I didn’t get to talk to many, but I saw the impact they had.”
Was it a real emotional moment for you when you saw the plaque?
“It was, because I was in the middle of an Italian village and, you know, you see one village and then sometimes they all look the same and you’re like, ‘You know, I think I’ve seen enough touristy things.’ And then it gives you a new meaning when you see ‘In Memory of John Fox,’ an American soldier who happened to be African-American who gave his life to save the lives of others. That touches you.”
I’ve heard Miracle at St Anna described as “a movie about a war, but not a war movie”. In what way is it more than a war movie to you?
“It just shows you how a war does not just devastate the men but it also impacts the families. And I love the fact that the war and the Buffalo Soldiers, you know, were just one part of the story. Another reason why I think that it’s beyond a war movie is because history has an invisible time to it and I think that things are happening in our generation, I don’t think that we plan them, I think they plan us.”
Going through this experience and seeing how war affects soldiers and their families, has it changed how you look at the military today and the men and women who are serving their country?
“Yes, looking at the past gave me a different perception of the war today in the sense that I did not have a view of the men in uniforms, guys of color or whomever, as people that were wise. I always thought that, you know, a lot of them, and it’s true, some men and women in these uniforms, they join the army for schooling and because they can’t find jobs. But I never knew that it started out from a patriotic community mindset in the African-American community. I did not, I just always thought it as an economic situation.”
And this was your first Spike Lee film. What was that experience like?
“It was intense in the sense that he had a lot of work to do and he told us,’ Hey look, you guys may never see your trailers because I need you on set.’ And I think we were in our trailers maybe 15% of the movie. He ran the set like a coach running a team, and you always had to be prepared to play.”
Playing the leader of the group, was that a little different than being just of the soldiers?
“You know, as they say ‘it’s much given as much as required’ - that’s my quote for being a leader. And many times you may not fit in but you can’t be a friend and lead at the same time, but you can be friendly.”
And that’s what you try to keep in mind?
“Yes, I tried to keep it in mind. Also I was just reminded of anybody who’s tried to lead me, like all the way from the beginning - my parents. They weren’t always popular but they got the job done. [Laughing] And your parents are there to protect and serve you, no matter how crazy they sound.”
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