Not so long ago, making a military movie was a surefire path to printing money at the box office. In a climate dominated by superheroes and sci-fi franchises, Hollywood had found another successful and powerful formula. While films like Act of Valor and Zero Dark Thirty were box office hits, the elevation of military movies into blockbuster territory started in early 2014 with Peter Berg's Lone Survivor, a Mark Wahlberg vehicle that doubled as a grisly tale of brotherhood and sacrifice in the mountains of Afghanistan. The film grossed $125 million in the US, but that was nothing compared to what would happen just one year later. Clint Eastwood's American Sniper was a controversial and hotly-debated film for a myriad of reasons, but domestic audiences ate it up, turning the biopic of sharpshooter Chris Kyle in the biggest movie of 2014 (even though it made most of its money in 2015).
That was the peak of the military craze, and things have only gone downhill from there. Michael Bay's 13 Hours was met with a collective shrug, and not even the re-teaming of Berg and Wahlberg could make Patriots Day work (not quite military, but still the same formula). Which brings me to 12 Strong, the latest celebration of the heroes fighting in America's longest conflict in Afghanistan. Like its genre predecessors, this hyper-patriotic shoot-'em-up is loud, straightforward, and not without its more problematic elements. All of these movies are meant to be finely tuned machines of adrenaline and emotions- that's because they're basically propaganda films (I don't mean that as an insult). But as war movies go, 12 Strong isn't exactly memorable in any significant way. It has some spectacular action sequences and a message of unity and empathy that I found surprisingly moving, but one-note female characters and a repetitive, cliche-ridden script keep 12 Strong from ever elevating itself to truly fascinating territory. It's undeniably an okay watch, and it's very good at the whole jingoism thing. Unfortunately, it's just a disposable adventure.
On September 11, 2001, Captain Mitch Nelson (Chris Hemsworth) is on a break from his military service, spending time at home with his wife (Elsa Pataky) and daughter. But when the horrific terror attacks strike a crippling blow at the heart of the nation, Mitch rushes down to the local recruitment center to get his team back together. Led by Hal Spencer (Michael Shannon), Sam Diller (Michael Pena), Ben Milo (Trevante Rhodes), and more, Mitch's team becomes the first unit on the ground in Afghanistan, preparing to fight the Taliban. Unfortunately for Mitch, the mission to take over a Taliban stronghold won't be as easy as it appears. In order to get anything done, he'll have to team up with General Dostum (Navid Negahban), an enigmatic warlord who is both highly unpredictable and highly respected. Forced to ride on horses into battle against tanks and artillery, Nelson and Dostum face insurmountable odds in their path to a surprising and necessary victory (spoiler?).
12 Strong takes forever to hit any kind of stride, but when it does, the results are undeniably entertaining. Director Nicolai Fuglsig (making his debut here) can't really find a way to craft unique or memorable action sequences, so he settles for the best alternative- he captures everything with a rousing sense of scale. For a January movie, this feels like a big slice of spectacular entertainment, shiny and dumb and riddled with a seemingly infinite number of bullets. Rasmus Videbæk's cinematography is crisp and effective, painting a desolate and dusty picture of the Afghanistan desert. And when the film leans into its more bombastic elements, there's a sense of propulsive momentum that makes the whole thing pop. In the midst of a lot of ra-ra posturing and narrative cliches, there are a few emotional and dramatic setpieces that click in a major way.
Too bad the script is a mess. Ted Tally wrote the screenplay for the Oscar-winning Silence of the Lambs, while Peter Craig was responsible for writing Ben Affleck's The Town and Mel Gibson's surprisingly half-decent Blood Father. None of that brilliance is on display here- while 12 Strong is unfortunately saddled with a story that forces it to go in circles, there's no reason for the endeavor to feel so rote and forced. Military movies often run into the same problems, as they all suffer from thinly drawn female characters, a simplistic approach to wartime politics, and an abundance of cringe-worthy dialogue. 12 Strong is just a whole hell of a lot more obvious about it. The first act is plodding and brutal to behold, as soldiers verbally jab at each other while their wives dutifully stand by them at any and all cost. Of course, most of the dialogue is military jargon of the highest order, peppered with profanity and marching orders and devoid of any sense of realism. Oh, and the only time the women are seen after this is when they're huddled around the TV, waiting to hear news about what's happening overseas. I'm sure this is accurate and true to the story, but the optics are pretty brutal.
The rest of the film is sprinkled with scenes where soldiers blatantly talk about things that should be thematic subtext, but the screenwriters eventually manage to barely find a way over the hump. It's just frustrating that the film becomes so repetitive from there. It's an endless cycle of fighting, strategizing, and even more fighting, which just grows tiresome after a while. At 130 minutes, 12 Strong never feels like too laborious of an undertaking, but it could certainly cut down on a few superfluous elements. The pathos of the narrative is undercut by all of the false starts and breaks in the action, and while it all comes together nicely in the home stretch, I don't think that makes up for the indifference I felt for much of the runtime. Even with great actors like Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon leading the way, the film just can't quite get everything into place.
But I have to give credit where credit is due- 12 Strong pulls off a surprising emotional balancing act. In a genre that is so intent on providing stereotypical depictions of the citizens of the Middle East, this film is nuanced and complex where simplicity seems like such an appealing option. It provides a picture of tolerance and unity, something we don't see often enough in the modern war genre. The film is exhausting and maybe even a little overindulgent, hindered by a script that is filled with triumphant highs and brutal lows, but this war story is passable entertainment. A symphony of combat that jolts to life for some effective moments, the audience for 12 Strong will undoubtedly be satisfied. If it just pushed a little bit more during some crucial moments, then Fuglsig just might have had something challenging and compelling. In its current state, 12 Strong is a competent but undernourished war saga.
THE FINAL GRADE: C+ (6.2/10)
Images courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
That was the peak of the military craze, and things have only gone downhill from there. Michael Bay's 13 Hours was met with a collective shrug, and not even the re-teaming of Berg and Wahlberg could make Patriots Day work (not quite military, but still the same formula). Which brings me to 12 Strong, the latest celebration of the heroes fighting in America's longest conflict in Afghanistan. Like its genre predecessors, this hyper-patriotic shoot-'em-up is loud, straightforward, and not without its more problematic elements. All of these movies are meant to be finely tuned machines of adrenaline and emotions- that's because they're basically propaganda films (I don't mean that as an insult). But as war movies go, 12 Strong isn't exactly memorable in any significant way. It has some spectacular action sequences and a message of unity and empathy that I found surprisingly moving, but one-note female characters and a repetitive, cliche-ridden script keep 12 Strong from ever elevating itself to truly fascinating territory. It's undeniably an okay watch, and it's very good at the whole jingoism thing. Unfortunately, it's just a disposable adventure.
On September 11, 2001, Captain Mitch Nelson (Chris Hemsworth) is on a break from his military service, spending time at home with his wife (Elsa Pataky) and daughter. But when the horrific terror attacks strike a crippling blow at the heart of the nation, Mitch rushes down to the local recruitment center to get his team back together. Led by Hal Spencer (Michael Shannon), Sam Diller (Michael Pena), Ben Milo (Trevante Rhodes), and more, Mitch's team becomes the first unit on the ground in Afghanistan, preparing to fight the Taliban. Unfortunately for Mitch, the mission to take over a Taliban stronghold won't be as easy as it appears. In order to get anything done, he'll have to team up with General Dostum (Navid Negahban), an enigmatic warlord who is both highly unpredictable and highly respected. Forced to ride on horses into battle against tanks and artillery, Nelson and Dostum face insurmountable odds in their path to a surprising and necessary victory (spoiler?).
12 Strong takes forever to hit any kind of stride, but when it does, the results are undeniably entertaining. Director Nicolai Fuglsig (making his debut here) can't really find a way to craft unique or memorable action sequences, so he settles for the best alternative- he captures everything with a rousing sense of scale. For a January movie, this feels like a big slice of spectacular entertainment, shiny and dumb and riddled with a seemingly infinite number of bullets. Rasmus Videbæk's cinematography is crisp and effective, painting a desolate and dusty picture of the Afghanistan desert. And when the film leans into its more bombastic elements, there's a sense of propulsive momentum that makes the whole thing pop. In the midst of a lot of ra-ra posturing and narrative cliches, there are a few emotional and dramatic setpieces that click in a major way.
Too bad the script is a mess. Ted Tally wrote the screenplay for the Oscar-winning Silence of the Lambs, while Peter Craig was responsible for writing Ben Affleck's The Town and Mel Gibson's surprisingly half-decent Blood Father. None of that brilliance is on display here- while 12 Strong is unfortunately saddled with a story that forces it to go in circles, there's no reason for the endeavor to feel so rote and forced. Military movies often run into the same problems, as they all suffer from thinly drawn female characters, a simplistic approach to wartime politics, and an abundance of cringe-worthy dialogue. 12 Strong is just a whole hell of a lot more obvious about it. The first act is plodding and brutal to behold, as soldiers verbally jab at each other while their wives dutifully stand by them at any and all cost. Of course, most of the dialogue is military jargon of the highest order, peppered with profanity and marching orders and devoid of any sense of realism. Oh, and the only time the women are seen after this is when they're huddled around the TV, waiting to hear news about what's happening overseas. I'm sure this is accurate and true to the story, but the optics are pretty brutal.
The rest of the film is sprinkled with scenes where soldiers blatantly talk about things that should be thematic subtext, but the screenwriters eventually manage to barely find a way over the hump. It's just frustrating that the film becomes so repetitive from there. It's an endless cycle of fighting, strategizing, and even more fighting, which just grows tiresome after a while. At 130 minutes, 12 Strong never feels like too laborious of an undertaking, but it could certainly cut down on a few superfluous elements. The pathos of the narrative is undercut by all of the false starts and breaks in the action, and while it all comes together nicely in the home stretch, I don't think that makes up for the indifference I felt for much of the runtime. Even with great actors like Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon leading the way, the film just can't quite get everything into place.
But I have to give credit where credit is due- 12 Strong pulls off a surprising emotional balancing act. In a genre that is so intent on providing stereotypical depictions of the citizens of the Middle East, this film is nuanced and complex where simplicity seems like such an appealing option. It provides a picture of tolerance and unity, something we don't see often enough in the modern war genre. The film is exhausting and maybe even a little overindulgent, hindered by a script that is filled with triumphant highs and brutal lows, but this war story is passable entertainment. A symphony of combat that jolts to life for some effective moments, the audience for 12 Strong will undoubtedly be satisfied. If it just pushed a little bit more during some crucial moments, then Fuglsig just might have had something challenging and compelling. In its current state, 12 Strong is a competent but undernourished war saga.
THE FINAL GRADE: C+ (6.2/10)
Images courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Comments
Post a Comment