Lone Survivor

Berg serves us with cool action in another bungled Navy Seals raid in Afghanistan. Because it’s based on real events makes the movie that more powerful. Especially the number of hits the heroes take before they really expire. The fairly realistic treatment then slips into Bay-isms, but that doesn’t bother me so much, it’s just that Lone Survivor doesn’t turn out so naturalistic. The cast is excellent, especially Kitsch and Foster are outstanding. (01/15/2014)

An absolutely captivating war movie about how a group of four Terminators disguised as SEALs go on a high-altitude trek through Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and how the awfully evil Taliban (hereafter AET) really don’t like it, so they try to persuade the awfully nice Americans (hereafter ANA) to go to the happy hunting ground using their ample arsenal. The film opens with scenes of a peaceful life at the American military base where the Marines are planning weddings, making a shopping list for IKEA, and conferring with their fellow soldiers about interior design. This friendly scene is soon followed by the aforementioned trekking, which, after an action-packed encounter with a herd of goats, turns into the AET's repeated attempts to take out all four Terminators. They survive insane falls, being hit by projectiles from various firearms (mainly AK 47s and RPGs), and, since the AET don't have Linda Hamilton or Michael Biehn in their ranks, they take an awfully long time. Plus, they get betrayed by the residents of a nearby village, so their plan turns to dust. When the helicopters arrived, I wished I were an American so I could proudly stand at attention and shed tears with my hand on my heart. (12/20/2016)

From 40 minutes on, the film is action packed with nonstop brutal war scenes! The tension builds as fast as the clearing of enemy heads. The excellent direction and cinematography ensure a painful trip that will make you squirm like the four main protagonists. Each of them plays their role very convincingly. Mark Wahlberg is sharp as ever, Emile Hirsch is strong and sensitive, Taylor Kitsch decently handles the difficult decisions as the leader, and Ben Foster is terrifyingly cold but compassionate. I must highlight the breathtaking camera shots of the four soldiers falling off the cliff, they were gritty and raw and gave the film a great edge. Peter Berg did a good job with the premise and the execution. After the second screening I enjoyed the film much more, so I raise to 5*. 90%. (01/05/2014)

It is closest in its formal concept to Black Hawk Down, but it doesn't have the same quality action or the same narrative value. Peter Berg made it for blokes, but he only managed to create a mediocre raw survival action flick where marines, shot up like a sieve, fly around rocks and perform all kinds of stunts that you can imagine. He was able to create a good military atmosphere, and has observed and listened, but unfortunately the ending  terrible, similar to Tears of the Sun, to which is this one is very similar in terms of the screenplay. (07/27/2014)

The introduction is OK. The middle – and longest – survival part of the film is stunning, visually well-arranged and efficiently conveyed, with several chillingly brutal scenes. The climax is ridiculously simplistic political propaganda for the average US viewer. Overall, Lone Survivor is good film for relaxation, but it will sink into oblivion as fast as all of Peter Berg’s action flicks. (01/16/2014)