Act Of Valor

Good lord, where to start unpacking the military industrial complex sized baggage of this movie? To wholly consider this film entails taking into account your personal politics in regard to America's war on terror and, perhaps more presciently, your belief's about the responsibility of a film maker to be respectful of such sensitive matters whilst employing so seemingly jingoistic an approach to verisimilitude. There's an awful lot of baloney attached to this pictures production, chiefly its roots as a Navy Seals promotional/training feature and the gimmicky selling point of casting active duty Seals in all the lead roles. There are a swift boatload of reasons for film enthusiasts to jump down its throat and proclaim it nothing more than a hollow, opportunistic sham exploiting both the men and women of the armed services and the gullible audience duped into ostensibly supporting them by purchasing a ticket. I am sympathetic to all of that and to a certain extent understand the considerable ire it has roused from the critical community. But, to put it as indelicately as possible, I don't really care about all that.

I was well aware of all this going in. I was ready for the performances to be beyond wooden, the politics to be painfully oversimplified and yes, I got that in spades. But, you know what? I'm a man of the world, going to and fro and walking up and down in it and I've learned to take a broad, general view of things. I was as outraged as any sane person at the direction the world took in the wake of 9/11 and the rise of (as Renn Brown would say) pick-up truck patriotism at home. After a wearying, disheartening decade of endless escalation, my knee-jerk reaction to all this has been hamstrung by exhausting reality. At this late stage in the game, I can't be troubled to get up in arms about this late February upstart that will make some decent cash, then disappear from the public consciousness as swiftly and quietly as the Navy Seals who round out its cast.

I wanted a mouth-breather of a storyline featuring some dope military hardware used against cartoonishly hissable villains by capable, burly men in camouflage. I got this in spades as well. There was some very nice photography going on here and there, it's uneven to be sure, but no more so than in any other fledgling effort. I liked the propulsive, globetrotting aspect, however implausible and the dim witted procedural aspect was as satisfying as it was easy to follow. The script, by 300 scribe Kurt Johnstad is a serviceable slice of manly red meat that I'm ashamed to admit struck a chord with me. I was on board with that opening voice over bit about the worst part of getting old being viewed as not dangerous by other men, no matter how poorly delivered or embarrassingly indicative of testosterone insecurity. The notions of service, honor and duty to country and family are more resonant to me now, as a husband and father, then they would have been in my early 20's. The film is a blunt, hammer to the temple, but its simplicity works in its favor to my eyes. There is no pretense, no calculation. Good and evil, black and white, no more so than in any of the Stallone or Schwarzenegger films I grew up idolizing. Whether the pretense of reality renders Act Of Valor more unethical is a debate to be held between those who feel passionate about either side.

The Seals are admittedly terrible actors, none more so than the square jawed, no nonsense leads and the film collapses entirely when it calls on them to support the narrative with heartfelt goodbyes or joking camaraderie. There is one fantastic scene when the character referred to as Senior (who is rocking the most kick ass beard I've seen onscreen in ages) performs an interrogation on a drug smuggler aboard his yacht. He stops laboriously attempting to act and simply slips into the role he no doubt plays opposite real life bad men and he is magnificent. I honestly couldn't think of a real actor who could have brought more to that scene. It is the perfect synthesis of believability, coldness and charisma and the one instance in the film where the casting gambit pays off. Otherwise, the stiff, rushed line readings take you out of it as much as the practiced confidence during their maneuvers inspires awe and fidelity, so it's basically a wash. Real actors would have gone a long way toward ameliorating the story problems, but that would negate everything that makes this film an interesting anomaly.

We have plenty of pretty boys emoting while going through the motions, why not let these scarred brutes with backs like barn doors have their brief moment in the spotlight? If you need to see the complexity of modern warfare and Geo-politics, there is Black Hawk Down and Green Zone. This is Audie Murphy on steroids, John Wayne with an actual number of confirmed kills. It is entertaining and occasionally quite well shot. We live in a Country that prides itself on offering the freedom to express ourselves artistically, so why not let big brother in on the fun? They do try so very hard. I will say this, at least this film believes in what it's saying and believes in the need to tell its story. Just last week, I sat through a piece of filmed "entertainment" that was more mercenary and dispassionate than any I've seen in a long time. Compared to that lifeless outing, Act Of Valor was a welcome mission to undertake.