Lone Survivor (2013)
Certified: 15
Duration: 121 minutes
Directed by: Peter Berg
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster, Eric Bana
KRS release

Lone Survivor is based on the book of the same name by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson about a 2005 military operation in the Pech District, Kunar Province, Afghanistan. The objective of Operation Red Wings was to kill or capture Ahmed Shah, a Taliban leader whose orders led to the death of many American servicemen and to a stop Taliban activity in this region.

The operation is under the command of Erik Kristensen (Eric Bana) who leads the mission from military headquarters. The film follows four Navy Seals as they infiltrate the region: Navy Lieutenant Mike Murphy (Taylor Kitsch), Petty Officer Second Class Danny Dietz (Emile Hirsch), Petty Officer Second Class Matt Axelson (Ben Foster) and Navy Hospital Second Class Marcus Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg). As they scour and scan the area, they are discovered by some goat herders. A race for survival ensues as the military men try to escape from the Talibans who come out in force to get them.

The film mixes well elements of Die Hard with a patriotic thematic.

Peter Berg, who has directed the likes of popcorn box-office offerings such as Battleship (2012), here shows increased control and foothold and delivers a war movie that is focused on the story it wants to tell.

Lone Survivor picks up tempo slowly with the early sequences passing by uneventfully. The action kick-starts once the mission starts to go wrong. From then onwards, Lone Survivor places its audience right in the middle of the gunfights which are raw and hard – nothing like the stylish Hollywood gunfights most movies offer.

Berg could have easily fallen into the trap of turning this picture into an American flag-waving, clapping and cheering celluloid piece. But the film is not about taking sides, but about delivering a universal message about war. It shows its views on Afghanistan and its people but does not shove them down our throats.

Inevitably enough, as happened with Top Gun, I can envisage this film being used for recruitment purposes as it emphasises the heroic nature of the Seals’ work.

Berg seems to be in love with the military and emphasises the dangerous service provided by these men. The fight sequences are well edited to show a sense of battle confusion and frenzy. The cast is game enough to let the film do the talking. Wahlberg is intense and deeply focused on his role and Foster provides the right amount of raw energy to give the film its edgy core.

Lone Survivor is one of the recent spate of superior war movies such as Zero Dark Thirty (2012), The Hurt Locker (2008) and Green Zone (2010), taking different perspectives of modern conflicts. Here the audience is placed in the thick of a real-life conflict and the effect is totally gripping.