Disappointing if you've read the books

Rating: 4/10 (24 March 2007)

Being a huge fan of Stephen Hunter, I had high expectations when I heard they were making a movie based on one of the Swagger books (Point of Impact). I've been saying for years that this series lends itself to a potential movie franchise. Then I heard that Mark Wahlberg was set to play Bob Lee. Nothing against him as an actor, I think he is very talented and was brilliant in The Departed. But this character is supposed to be a Vietnam vet and I didn't think he had the right look or age for such a role. Then I saw the movie. They tried to modernize it by making Bob Lee a Marine sniper doing special opps in Etheopia a couple of years before the story takes place instead of a Vietnam War vet. My opinion is this detracts from the character and the story significantly. And anyone who has read the books I think would agree with me. I also got the impression that there is no intention to continue this series as a franchise, either. I don't see how that is possible. For starters, future stories revolve heavily around the death of his partner Donnie Fenn, a scene which was summed up in about 5 minutes at the beginning of the movie. Not to mention Bob Lee's relationship with Donnie's widow Sarah whom they dumbed down to nothing more than eye candy in the movie. I don't think she appeared fully clothed in a single scene (not that I minded all that much). And then there's Bob Lee's father Earl. A lot of the future books revolve around him. Earl was a WWII vet and some of the books take place during that era. If Bob Lee is supposed to be as old as he was portrayed in the movie, there is no way his father could be a WWII vet. I don't see how this series is supposed to continue. Which is sorely disappointing to me. I know I'm supposed to be reviewing the movie here, but it was hard for me to enjoy it since I'm such a huge Hunter fan. As a stand alone movie, I guess it was OK. I probably would have enjoyed it more had I not read the books. So if you haven't read them, check it out. If you have and enjoyed them, go see it with caution.