Starring Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster
Directed by Peter Berg
Admittedly, theres not much suspense regarding who makes it out alive in this dramatization of a real-life 2005 Navy SEAL operation in Afghanistan that went sideways. Likewise, gung-ho director Peter Bergs involvement leaves little doubt as to how the subject matter will be handled: war may indeed be hell but such conditions prove ideal for forging fraternal bonds that even death cant break.
After a montage (which could double as a wusses need not apply recruitment video) of actual Navy SEALS testing their physical limits, Berg introduces us to their fictional stand-ins who are spoiling for a fight. Soon enough, four elite operatives who eat impossible odds for breakfast played by Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch and Ben Foster are dispatched to flush out a Taliban heavy. Instead, they discover how the best laid plans can be completely undone by the inopportune arrival of some goat herders.
The inclusion of make-up artists Gregory Nicotero and Howard Berger who cut their teeth in horror in the credits warns of the gore that ensues as this band of brothers tries to shoot their way out of trouble. However, the slaughterhouse-worthy bloodshed is hardly the most objectionable aspect of Bergs film. Rather, its how the filmmaker cranks Explosions in the Skys soaring, dramatic music and distastefully stages the SEALs last stand as if it were just another big game in Friday Night Lights. Its a decidedly blunt force mode of manipulation but itll likely result in many lunkheads exiting the theatre and high-fiving a bro they love the first chance they get.
