One of the unexpectedly good films being released in limited theaters this Christmas, though expanding on January 10th, is the Peter Berg directed war drama Lone Survivor, staring Mark Wahlberg, Ben Foster, Eric Bana, Taylor Kitsch and Emile Hirsh.
Lone Survivor tells the story of four SEAL Team 10 members and their failed 2005 mission, known as Operation Red Wing, to capture or kill the Taliban leader Ahmad Shahd. When Marcus Luttrell (Wahlberg), Michael Murphy (Kitsch), Danny Dietz (Hirsch) and Matt ‘Axe’ Axelson (Foster) set up camp after identifying their target, a trio of unarmed Afghani’s come upon their location and, after making a very difficult decision, Murphy decides to let them go even if it means compromising the mission, but when their communication systems fail, they are left to survive against a large Taliban army and must fight their way down to the village if they are to have any chance of survival.
After the colossal failure of Battleship, Peter Berg definitely redeems himself with Lone Survivor. The film is 1000 times better and for a movie with such a seemingly simple plot, it might be one of the most intense films you see this year. The reason is Peter Berg and his cinematographer create both an audity and visually riveting mountainside battle that shows how much of a disadvantage the SEALs are at, from number of enemy soldiers descending upon them and their available weapons to the fact that the Taliban have the high ground and are chasing them down the mountain. This leads to some of the coolest shots to show off the intensity of the firefight, namely camera angles from inside the scope of our SEALs’ rifles as they attempt headshots on the Taliban but, more impressively, when camera goes with the guys as they jump and/or fall of ledges and are rolling and crashing down the mountain and off of rocks which allows us to feel their pain. These are brutal scenes and when the team gets back on their feet the film makes it clear that these guys are tough son-of-a-bitches that won’t let bullet wounds, broken bones and more stop them from trying to protect each other against their enemy, all of which becomes even more clear when one says “never end the fight.”
Naturally, everyone has their favorite character and mine was Axe, played terrifically by Ben Foster. He was the sniper, which automatically makes him cool, but there is a point during his rampage of protection where he says in the most bad-ass way possible, “I am the reaper,” and it leaves a chill in your spine as he begins to knock off Taliban soldiers. The other guys have their insane and brave moments too but this one left a lasting impression on me.
Anybody that’s a fan of war movies, supports the military, the idea of brotherhood or motivational/inspiring creeds will certainly by motivated by the actions of the men in this film along with the philosophies that they abide by. There is one scene in particular, which is partially shown in the trailer, where a new member of the team, Shane Patton (Alexander Ludwig), must recite their team’s Creedo and man is it good. I guarantee you by the end of January you’ll find guys on sports teams reciting it because it’s that damn moving.
SPOILER The most important part of the film comes in the final act. The reason Marcus Luttr
ell survived after his comrades fell was because of the bravery of the Afghan Pashtun villagers who may or may not support the Taliban but, more importantly, who follow the code of Pashtunwali. My favorite part of the film and the moment I appreciated the most was when the epilogue explained what the code of Pashtunwali is, specifically one principle of it which says that protection must be given to a person against his enemies and that they must be protected at all costs. The reason I found this so important is that I still feel many people in America believe that everyone that speaks an Arabic language or lives in Afghanistan is either a terrorist or associated with the Taliban and this film clearly proves that is not the case. This movie aims to tell the truth and how through cooperation and basic human decency good things can come out of really shitty situations rather than simply a glorified tale of survival. END SPOILER
Lone Survivor is a tragic and moving story of a mission gone horribly wrong but it’s also a story that shows how brave, skilled and dignified American soldiers can be without unnecessarily glorifying their deaths on the big screen. The movie aims to be as accurate as possible thanks to the participation of Marcus Luttrell and his book, which the film was adapted from, but it also aims to show that not everyone is an enemy. Lone Survivor is a well acted, well paced, excellently shot, and an intensely emotional film that everyone should see regardless of their feelings towards war.
Rating: An intense, realistic and emotional story of bad-asses, brotherhood and survival (7.4/10)
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