The film has received generally positive reviews, praised for its historical accuracy, cast, and intense action. Military.com wrote, "The script is compelling on several levels. Whittlesey, the bookish-looking New York lawyer turned soldier, is the Everyman Warrior that viewers enjoy identifying with. Most would like to think that placed in a similar situation they too would find the courage to act as Whittlesey did. Moreover, the movie offers another take on the classic theme that pits an intrepid underdog David against the prohibitive favorite Goliath. As with the Biblical David — but not with Col. Davy Crockett at the Alamo and Custer at Little Bighorn — the underdog prevails here".