Review of Lone Survivor (2013) by David C — 13 Jul 2014

Teaming up Mark Whalberg with Eric Bana for a war film, I had hopes that Lone Survivor would be both a good action film and a compelling war film.

For what it's worth, Lone Survivor essentially did the job I had expected. While it didn't amaze me like I may have hoped, it worked as a compelling war story which emphasizes the heroic nature of the true story well while also entertaining with the quality of some top action scenes.

The issue with Lone Survivor is that it is more focused on action than it is on the characters. While this establishes the way that the characters all really did have to fight in a violent battle where their achievements were more important than their general existence, it could have been a more compelling film if there was a bit more focus on the acting. The quality of the acting is great and most viewers should be able to find the characters compelling simply because of the patriotic heroism of their actions in the story, but many are likely to find that they are not depicted all that deeply while instead they are emphasized as being pawns in a battle. In real life, they actually were so this point remains valid. But it means that the project ends up having less depth than it had the potential to. Lone Survivor is so realistic in portraying the nature of its story and the characters that people may be disappointing that it was not turned into a film any more than it was turned into a realistic re-enaction of a true story. I guess that what I'm saying is Lone Survivor has depth because of what the characters are, but not so much because of who they are.

Yet Lone Survivor is also able to play this off as being one of the best assets of the drama in the film. The fall of American soldiers is depicted with brutal realism while emphasizing that the characters are willingfully dyingfor their country and that they are true heroes. The main focus is on the heroic protagonist Marcus Luttrell, the titular Lone Survivor of a tragic battle with terrorism. And while the film does not get into depth of him as a person, it reveals the kind of sacrifice he and his surrounding soldiers made to battle Taliban fighters during Operation Red Wings. Admittedly, the importance of the film is largely on the action. But not because Lone Survivor is an action film, but because it is a war film. It is one of the best war films in years. Admittedly, as the title reveals a lot about where the film is going to go, the effect of it ends up being lesser than it could have. But still, it is great.

In terms of being a war film, Lone Survivor is important because of how it depicts the violent action of Operation Red Wings. While the action is very entertaining, it is essential to the story in every single way. Not since Saving Private Ryan has a war movie depicted the harsh reality of the battle so perfectly, and although it does not achieve the same scale or depth as Saving Private Ryan, Lone Survivor stands as being a film with an exceptional mix of drama and action in how it depicts the war scenes. The battle scenes in Lone Survivor are fearless in depicting the blood and gore which come with all the battle wounds of being in war, and they do it with all the explosions and precision bullets that come with extensive Navy training. The depiction of the battle is exceptional because of the way that they are shot with atmosphere and edited quickly and intensely without things becoming excessively difficult to see like in half the other action films of modern day. Everything is easy to see, and it is shown fearlessly under Peter Berg's decision to show it all and hide none of the violence of the battle. Lone Survivor has some of the best action of any film for 2013, and it manages to incorporate it into the story well so that everything comes out deep and meaningful while explosively entertaining. As a war film, Lone Survivor manages to capture the patriotic spirit of the men who fought and died for their country while honouring them with powerful depictions of their heroism and photos of everyone involved during the film's epilogue which also references the assistance received by Afghan civilians and how they have to fight to survive every waking day. Lone Survivor does everything in such an entertaining and dramatic way, and although at times things can get a little excessive considering the fact that it is so realistic that it may be too much for certain viewers to stomach or they may be worn down by the manic energy of all the violence, viewers who can appreciate the brutal honesty that came with Peter Berg's honest recreation of Operation Red Wings are likely to come out of the cinema with a new respect for him, especially since he is coming from directing the atrociously commercial Battleship.

Viewers may also walk away from the film with a new respect for Mark Wahlberg. He has to carry a lot of the film as the titular Lone Survivor Marcus Luttrell, and it ends up being one of his best performances to date. If you look closesly at his performance in Lone Survivor, you can see the fact that he is really passionate about what he is doing and he flawlessly portrays Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell with exceptional dedication. He brandishes his weapon with skill and constantly acts as if he is in a state of threat which makes the experience of the film feel a lot more genuine, and he genuinely makes a compelling case out of his performance. Mark Wahlberg's performance is great because he really cares about the role, and he ends up giving it his all which makes him a perfect leading hero and a sympathetic character. And frankly, the way that he portrays the heroic nature of Marcus Luttrell as well as the side to him which truly cared for his fallen brothers is what makes the part so deep. Mark Wahlberg works with the script in Lone Survivor excellently, and he is spot on in the leading part.

Although Eric Bana did not get as much screen time as I had hoped, his performance was a powerful one. Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch and Ben Foster all make strong and patriotic efforts in the film as well.

So although Lone Survivor is not as deep into its characters as one might hope, it is an excellent and brutal recreation of Operation Red Wings which emphasizes the heroic nature that Navy SEALs put themselves through in battle, the excellent directional abilities of Peter Berg and the true endeavour of acting talent that Mark Wahlberg can offer.