Review: Lone Survivor

Release date: January 10, 2014

Running time: About 120 minutes

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Ben Foster, Eric Bana, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch
Who to see it with: Someone who liked Black Hawk Down or Act of Valor

David:

Lone Survivor follows a group of Navy Seals during a dangerous mission to take out a high value target. As is generally the case in these movies, the mission goes south and the team is forced to deal with a rapidly deteriorating situation. This situation is pretty horrendous, and it's made all the more impactful knowing that the story is probably faithfully told. The movie does a great job of initially setting the stage. It starts with scenes of seals training to give a sense of just how rigorous the process of becoming one of these elite soldiers actually is. After this, the movie depicts the soldiers in camp, relaxing and preparing for the future mission. It gives a great glimpse into the quieter, less serious parts of the soldiers lives and it provides a nice contrast to the chaos that occurs later in the movie.

The actors have completely transformed for this movie. Emile Hirsch looks like a completely different person and I didn't even recognize Taylor Kitsch until someone mentioned it. Additionally, the sound might be the best part of the film. The explosions, the gunfire, the cries of the battlefield are all amazingly done. But, the quiet scenes are additionally noticeable. They provide a great contrast to the chaos of the fighting and this provides a great sense of tension when the sound finally dies down. The story is probably the most unbelievable part of the movie, but it's based on a true story. Lone Survivor is a paintful film to watch, but that is because you're forced to watch an unbelievable and terrible situation unfold in front of you. It's a good film to watch, but the effects and experience might be too extreme to take in theaters. 

Rent it.