Review of Courage Under Fire (1996) by Scott R — 17 Feb 2014

Courage Under Fire serves as director Edward Zwick's second of 3 collaborations with Denzel Washington, following Glory and followed by The Siege, and all 3 films touch on the Army in one way or another. Courage Under Fire serves as one that touches upon the war in a more post-traumatic situation and focuses on the aftermath of an explosive war event as opposed to the event itself. That way, it touches on a significantly more humanistic aspect of the story that many war films tend to leave out.

Some elements of Courage Under Fire are cliche, such as how it details the protagonist dealing with serious trauma due to an incident he has experienced before the key plot of the film shoots off, and it's often easy to forget the importance of the intro scene or even that it took place at all. But once the story gets going and truly develops, it becomes thoroughly interesting. I know that I personally was eager to get to the bottom of things and discover just what was being hidden beneath all the gunfire and all the people doing the talking but not the fighting. As the drama develops and more themes begin to seep into the story and set themselves in the movement of things, the tale becomes more and more intense, and with the exploration of the events interspersed with footage of the events themselves taking place in flashbacks, Courage Under Fire benefits from a fascinating story structure and a fascinating story, and it's a well scripted one which is intelligently insightful in some of the most simple ways. Even though at some times the story may be a little confusing, Edward Zick constantly keeps it in tact as a director so that it stays sufficiently well on path through its intense territory and its themes of honour, courage and redemption.

And Courage Under Fire features cinematography which ensures that it is filmed to precision. It is filmed in a very intense manner during scenes attempting to determine the truth lying beneath everything which gives it a nearly neo-noir film at moments, while alternatively during the war sequences it is shot on the grand scale to reveal the wide scope of the events and the explosive nature of them. It is simultaneously a big and small scaled film thanks to the narrative structure of the story, and it manages to make an impact as both.

The musical score in the film is also powerful because of how it has the true military feel to it as well as a lot of real emotion in just how it is composed. It works every inch of the atmosphere appropriately and reassures the mood of every scene when it is necessary.

And a large portion of the emotional effect that Courage Under Fire Deals out comes from the successful efforts of the diverse cast in the film.

It is not the slightest bit surprising that Denzel Washington gave a powerful performance, because his tenacious energy on film has never been anything but powerful, even if the film is poor quality like his work in the 1992 comedy Heart Condition. In Courage Under Fire he leads the story as a character facing serious personal struggles as he is faced with a complex whodunit situation in a war context. And the atmosphere follows Denzel Washington through his emotional states to ensure audiences are in tune with it, but in reality they never actually have to because the riveting power of Denzel Washington's eyes alone empower him as an actor, but combined with his incredibly humane physicality and facial gestures combined with his tenacious line delivery he proves to never collapse under the intense pressure of the story and simply delivers his character with an incredible dedication and tenacity as an actor. His leading talents are strong and give the story all the support it needs, single handily.

Meg Ryan gives one of the most fierce and intense performances of her career in Courage Under Fire, and as her character is the centre of all the mystery, Meg Ryan manages to second that theme by ensuring down to every detail that she is unpredictable in what her next move will be. For a woman predominantly more known for romantic comedies, none of which I have seen, she is flawless in the role of Captain Karen Emma Walden, and she has an impeccable charisma that will surely surprise viewers with just how effective it ends up being. Her performance is great, and she is constantly a source of interest thanks to both that and how the story treats her.

Matt Damon has significantly less body fat than usual in Courage Under Fire and he is practically unrecognisable at times. Yet the way it's easy to identify him is through his simple yet effective line delivery and his ability to deal with the real emotional drama of his character without ever slipping into cheap acting or melodramatic territory. I mean, I've seen Matt Damon as both a great dramatic actor and a successful action star, but he finds the middle man in Courage Under Fire by portraying a soldier with serious trauma as result of an experience that the viewers want to find out. He gives an impeccable supporting performance to the story, and within his brief screentime he proves to make it one of his best efforts.

Lou Diamond Phillips also pulls off an intense and memorable effort in Courage Under Fire for the burning spirit that lies within him, and Ken Jenkins does a straight job in his small time on screen.

The entire cast in Courage Under Fire proves to make a great effort, and all of them put something of their own into making it all it can be.

So Courage Under Fire is an intense and intelligent look at the more humane elements of war in both battle and the aftermath, and it is elevated by fine, stylish direction from Edward Zwick and a strong cast led by a magnificent Denzel Washington.