The younger, less-loved brother of The Green Zone.

Rating: 5/10 (6 February 2014)

There's been much said about Lone Survivor – mostly by my frequent cinema companion, Bag, who read the book by Marcus Luttrell upon which it was based. Mostly I trust Bag's opinion and heed his guidance, but then there was the Act of Valor episode, and we all know how that one ended
Lone Survivor begins with the titles laid across documentary footage of Navy SEALs undergoing, failing and surviving basic training. It has little bearing on the feature that follows, but it succeeds in giving audiences an understanding of the elite military unit and the essential backstory to the characters as a whole. Based on the actual events of ill-fated covert mission Operation Red Wings, in which a small force endeavours to 'neutralize' Ahmed Shah, a Taliban operative, Peter Berg's film embellishes the truth to make it more exciting, and perhaps palatable, for his niche audience.
To the ignorant near-pacifist, it seems a little odd that Navy SEALs should find themselves on a mountain in landlocked Afghanistan, but that is perhaps beside the point. Berg wisely avoids the politics of whether America had any business being in Afghanistan in the first place but cannot resist a moment of self-congratulation with Peter Gabriel's rendition of Heroes over the end credits. But, while both issues rankle slightly, they are understandable moves and still a long way from the blinkered, gung-ho approach of Act of Valor.
Lone Survivor is no Hurt Locker but it doesn't scrape the depths of the barrel the afore mentioned battle flick managed to achieve. While it is never going to convince the sceptics that war is good and that it was a legal escapade, it is a compelling look at the camaraderie and the sheer bloody mindedness of soldiers on a mission. Scruples are hinted at and consciences suggested, but I'm not sure Lone Survivor has anything particular to say beyond acknowledging the bond of military brotherhood under gunfire.
Mark Wahlberg does a convincing job and I'm sure Luttrell the soldier will be more than happy with his portrayal by the actor. As a small unit, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch and Ben Foster, along with Wahlberg, gel as a film watcher would hope a quartet of SEALs would. Was it realistic? I don't know; I've never been paid to shoot at people. But they create a sense of genuine solidarity and, while I was never convinced to actually like them, it was impossible not to admire their spirit.
Lone Survivor aims for naturalism with the weaponry, sound effects and the sheer grit and discomfort of mountain/desert warfare and, so I'm told, Berg has achieved a reasonable level of technical accuracy, but there is nothing here that really sets it above or apart from other war films. Black Hawk Down is more thrilling, The Green Zone more shocking and The Hurt Locker far more intense. It's fine, it's good but there's no hint of a sixth star wandering into the rating.
For more reviews from The Squiss, subscribe to my blog and like the Facebook page.