Patriotism and Pashtunwali

Rating: 8/10 (4 January 2014)

The operation of Navy Seals in Taliban country in the mountains of Afghanistan go awry. And as the title already tells us quite obviously, there is only one lone survivor.
However, before it reaches that inevitable conclusion, we will be brought right in the middle of the action where bullets fly and bombs explode. You will definitely flinch as director Peter Berg does not shirk from showing in stark graphic close-ups how bullets and shrapnel hit their targets, drawing blood and ultimately death.
We will also bear witness to a 2000 year old code of honor among Afghan villagers called Pashtunwali where undertake the responsibility of protecting an individual at all costs. This is something new I have never known before and is heartening to learn about.
Honor and valor comes in different forms from different people. We see a lot of it here in "Lone Survivor." The Seals (played by Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Ben Foster, Emile Hirsch) show it. The Afghan villagers (played by Ali Suliman and Rohan Chand) show it even better.
You will really get into the horrific experience of being in the battle zone. This will make you admire and appreciate these brave men who do their unenviable duties in the face of death out of sheer patriotism. This is brutally frank war movie, not for the faint at heart. 8/10.