Lone Survivor tells the brave tale about how I split a bag of - TopicsExpress

Lone Survivor tells the brave tale about how I split a bag of Haribo Sugarless Gummy Bears with a few friends. As the title suggests I was the only one who made it out alive. Thanks for the views everyone! **oh wait...you want the review of the movie? Oh....hmmmmmm** Lone survivor tells the story of Operation Red Wing. Four DVT Navy Seals act as a recon team against taliban forces in Afghanistan, and as you can tell from the title, the op gets compromised and chaos ensues. Now, before I went into this film, I heard most positive things about this film. However, there were a few negatives that I heard about the film, specifically how the characterization was not good and how the violence was too glorified. With that being said, lets get on with what I think of this film. First, Ill talk about the acting. I thought the actors in this film were great. Mahky Mahk was terrific as usual, Ben Foster was solid as usual, Taylor Kitsch actually made me care about his character for once, and Emile Hirsch was...Emile Hirsch. On a side note, I thought Hirshs character was probably the weakest in as far as the script goes but it still wasnt bad. Eric Bana, was solid, and uh yea...overall the acting was...solid. Not much to say there...many might criticize the acting to be barebones but Im going to come back to it. Lets move on... **So there I was, eating the gummy bears and all of a sudden, I felt like a horse kicked my stom...oh wait...wrong story...** I will now discuss the technical aspects. The gritty camerawork along with the inspiring and harrowing score added immense depth to the film. The action was gritty, brutal, and emotional. It felt real and there was a good amount of tension in the film because the seeming realism utilized. The camerawork was incredibly personal, getting into the thick of the character reactions during combat, and it worked to add a sense of urgency. I havent seen Battleship but I did watch Peter Bergs The Rundown and one of the things I liked about that film was the gritty camerawork and cinematography. Berg does a really good job of putting you into the environment making it feel like youre actually in the setting of the movie. His style added immense depth to the events unfolding on screen and it really adds a lot of emotional weight. The score was fantastic in the movie. It was tense, but not overly aggressive (paraphrasing from Bergs words). There was tender and uplifting aspect to the music that really pushes the film to become more about the sacrificial journey, and less about the combat at hand. I loved the technicalities with the film...they were immersive, and more importantly, they added depth to a horrific yet inspiring story. **You know what else is horrific? Sugarless Gummy Bears....** Now Ill get into the nitty gritty of the film. The screenplay and the story. One of the criticisms of the film was that the characterization was poor. Now...anyone who knows me knows that I value good characterization in any film. Any good film is one where an audience can emotionally connect with the characters on-screen. Pretty Simple. Yet, so many films cannot achieve this. Lone Survivor, oddly enough, does not have tremendous characterization, but in a lot of ways, i think THAT WAS THE POINT of the movie. When we see montage videos of servicemen and servicewomen coming back home to their families and/or loved ones, we get emotional about it...we feel for the people who sacrifice themselves for our safety. I kinda equate this idea to Lone Survivor. We dont get a lot of character development, but in my opinion, we get enough to know that these are real people, and that they have real connections with loved ones in the States. Now I will come back to this idea in a second. Lets talk story...this is BASED on a true story, however I know that some events were exaggerated. With that being said, I thought the film was still incredibly respectful the events that unfold and the actual survivor, Marcus Luttrell, worked with Berg on the film...so there would probably be a decent amount of accuracy involving the events. With this little digression out of the way, Ill say that the story was compelling and definitely inspiring. And as much as this film was Pro-American/Pro-Military...Ill say that more than those things...this film was Pro-Human. Now what do I mean by that? **I mean, someone helped me with my stomach problem. His name was Dr.Restroom. Hes a nice guy. I see him a few times a day. ** I mean that the Movies main theme and message was not that of completely endorsing the USA and/or the military, but of the sacrificial quality that humans share. I wont spoil anything but there is a key point towards the end where I really started to get emotional and think about how this film is truly about humanity. Its about being the Good Samaritan if you will and also being a true brother. This is why I think the sub-par characterization was a good device in the film. Helping the people we know and sacrificing for them is definitely motivational. BUT, helping those you dont know...well then thats a true test of character. Its the same principle as the soldiers of this country giving their lives for millions of people who(m?) they probably wont ever meet. The events that unfold in this film in the entirety really reflect this idea and this is why I was ultimately okay with the sub-par characterization. At the end of the day, the movie was a story of the soldiers who died in combat, but it was story about the IDEA of sacrifice, especially for people who are strangers to us. There was huge sense of humanity and dignity that I found to be incredibly moving and respectful. In my opinion, the people dissing on Berg for the lack of characterization simply failed to see the point. (But Im just a 20 year old loser who knows nothing about film so...yea...maybe Im just stupid). Talking about stupid...dont ever eat sugarless gummy bears!!! I apologize for the long review and analysis but I thoroughly Enjoyed Lone Survivor. It was gritty, emotional, and inspiring. I shed a decent amount of tears by the films end (Ill admit...salas que I dont care what you think) and I walked out of the theater with some hope in humanity (lolz....?) I give Lone Survivor a 90/100. If this film was released widely in 2013, it wouldve been on my top 10 list...alas it was not meant to be.