Doesn't match the cool style it opens with, but still a worthy show

Rating: 7/10 (17 May 2014)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning
In June 2005, Marcus Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg) and his team of men are sent on a mission in Afghanistan to take out a notorious Taliban commander whose lack of mercy is becoming intolerable. But after arriving at their destination, they find their mission compromised when unexpected problems come up, and they do end up finding themselves in heavy gunfire with insurgents. The following is a true depiction of his battle for survival and the unexpected kindness and humanity he was shown by some local Afghan villagers.
The backdrop of the controversial Afghan war would no doubt provide many a setting for some really meaty tales that could be converted in to a Hollywood film, and here we have one by Peter Berg, adapted from the true life story of Marcus Luttrell and his harrowing five day long battle for survival in the Afghan wilderness, where he saw his comrades brutally killed off one by one and was forced to endure his own terrible ordeal, before re-discovering the humanity of others after being rescued by some local villagers. Berg has crafted a film that manages to open in a really involving, absorbing style that is more than you expect, but which loses it somehow after the battle starts, descending in to a stylish but less moving effort. Somehow, the early scenes give it a depth and development it loses when the action starts.
Somehow, more than in any film I've seen him in before, here Wahlberg's limitations as an actor really shine through, even though I can't say he gave an especially bad performance, or any worse than usual. It could be because he takes up much of the screen time on his own, and can't rely on a supporting cast including the likes of Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster and Eric Bana to carry him. It's surprising what a lead star can reveal when their safety net goes. The film seems split in to three parts, before, during and after the battle, and even after during his humanistic scenes with the villagers, it doesn't switch on.
From the director who gave us the likes of Battleship, this could have been a lot worse, but a more charismatic lead and not letting up on the stirring human dynamics at any point would have still made the experience an even more dramatic depiction of a real life thriller. ***