Fans of first person shooter games will love this film. Some excellent action scenes with a variety of cinematography techniques used - nothing feels overused or in my opinion tiresome. The humid tropical jungle is a lush exciting backdrop for the action. Some of the battle scenes are a tad over stylised risking glorifying war and violence. Be warned there are some extremely graphic scenes of death and violence.
Some great acting here from the whole cast but it can't rescue the thin plot, and the sometimes impenetrable military jargoned or clichéd cloying script. The caricatured bad guys (Russians and Muslims obvs) make the film feel even more hollow and maybe the biggest downfall of the film - a very AMUHRICA MACHO film which is fun given that three of the leads are Australian. There are moments when the script tries to go deeper, explore themes of imperialism/no innocence in war, and poke fun at itself making war look good - and where the American heroes get dirty and messy.
It looks good, is thrilling in points and has some good humour / human moments. Overall though, this feels like an hollow shell showcasing some beautiful men, in a beautiful place, with some excellent directing /editing, doing some ugly things against caricatured/borderline racist depictions of baddies. I enjoyed watching it but felt guilty to be partaking in a simplistic reassertion of the American hero /America dominance over Russians and Muslims old and tired narrative.
Review by nicoleahmedBlockedParent2024-02-18T00:40:11Z
Fans of first person shooter games will love this film. Some excellent action scenes with a variety of cinematography techniques used - nothing feels overused or in my opinion tiresome. The humid tropical jungle is a lush exciting backdrop for the action. Some of the battle scenes are a tad over stylised risking glorifying war and violence. Be warned there are some extremely graphic scenes of death and violence.
Some great acting here from the whole cast but it can't rescue the thin plot, and the sometimes impenetrable military jargoned or clichéd cloying script. The caricatured bad guys (Russians and Muslims obvs) make the film feel even more hollow and maybe the biggest downfall of the film - a very AMUHRICA MACHO film which is fun given that three of the leads are Australian. There are moments when the script tries to go deeper, explore themes of imperialism/no innocence in war, and poke fun at itself making war look good - and where the American heroes get dirty and messy.
It looks good, is thrilling in points and has some good humour / human moments. Overall though, this feels like an hollow shell showcasing some beautiful men, in a beautiful place, with some excellent directing /editing, doing some ugly things against caricatured/borderline racist depictions of baddies. I enjoyed watching it but felt guilty to be partaking in a simplistic reassertion of the American hero /America dominance over Russians and Muslims old and tired narrative.