13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

 

"What can I do?" "Get some F-16's to put the fear of God and the United States of America into them."

A major part of Michael Bay's signature style and quite possibly a part of his successful formula is his fervent desire to lionise the doers in his films. The cops of Bad Boys refusing to give up, the blue-collar spirit of Armageddon's drillers, the motive of Ed Harris' villain from The Rock, the never-give-up spirit of the Transformers, or the gung-ho can-do attitude of military and police officers in all his films, who are often portrayed or advised by real military officers. 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi puts the spirit of action-over-diplomacy as a mission statement wherein covert military contractors are assigned to protect a CIA outpost and a nearby American embassy when angry militia groups in the politically turbulent city of Benghazi, Libya attack in the wake of Muammar Gaddafi's death. In 2012, Benghazi is overrun by militia gangs battling for control on the post-Gaddafi powstarcuum, ex-Navy Seal Jack Da Silva (Kransinski) lands in Bengazhi and as he is being eyed up by the local populace he meets up with his friend and team leader Tyrone "Rone" Woods (Badge Dale) who, after a tense stand-off in a militia road-checkpoint, introduces him to the small team of military contractors and CIA personnel all under the authority of "The Chief" (David Constabile of TV's Breaking Bad). The Chief and Rone are at constant odds with Rone demanding actions and escalations of security with the Chief demanding the Americans maintain a low profile. This all comes to a head when the nearby residence of US Ambassador Stevens is attacked and Rone demands his team be dispatched to protect their countrymen.

It's painfully clear how earnest and personal this film is for Bay, and it shows as one of his more mature and restrained movies. While visually and thematically the film borrows heavily from (and even explicitly mentions) Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down, there is enough of the positive and negative sides of Bayhem on show. The film wastes little time throwing Silva and Rone into a tense stand-off minutes in with the first lines of dialogue being no-nonsense military banter regarding weaponry and tactics. Much of the dialogue is fast-paced and jargon-filled, and little time is is spent on the political dynamics on moral motivations behind the American presence there, or even on the mind-set of the Benghazi people. Instead the majority of characters are one-dimensional and exist as little beyond their jobs and the people of Benghazi are either by-standers, hidden foes or questionable friends. Often the concept of the hidden threat and shady allegiances is used to surprisingly effective degree, but this only comes into question about an hour into the film. Up until this point 13 Hours is a slog of poorly mixed dialogue, doers-versus-thinkers headbutting and action-espionage, but when the action kicks off Bay hits his stride.

By this point it's worth mentioning that 13 Hours is not a film for the mainstream, it's a passion-project with no real lead star about a politically complex and unpopular incident. This is a film made for the US military, it's fans and fans of war-action in general and this is the bread-and-butter of Bay's film-making. While he's most often derided for his unrestrained, high-octane,cluttered, and at times incomprehensible action-style with heavy effects in 13 Hours it works wonders. The action scenes are chaotic, but the protagonists move through it with order and purpose, with bystanders and potential foes and friends leaping out of the dark, bushes and through fire. With little CGI Bay and cinematographer Dion Beebe (Edge of Tomorrow, Memoirs of a Geisha, Collatoral) use a vast array of visual styles to create an exceptional warzone. And the usually indulgent and intrusive aspects of Bay's visual style really pay off here such as perspective shots from guns, documentary-style night-vision filters, Bay's beloved helicopter shots, plenty of hand-held and steadi-cam, unmotivated lights, low angles, fast-paced tracking shots, telephoto lenses, the time of the day constantly changing, smoke, dust, blood, sweat and dirt just look and feel great. It's visceral, engaging and at times immersive. It works, the fights don't feel epic they feel efficient, brutal, enhanced but certainly the grit and uncertainty of reality is present. Bay and Beebe also have a strong eye for some beautiful colour and composition, it's not rife with meaning but it's technically beautiful.

13 Hours is a strange beast. It's Michael Bay's most restrained film by a certain degree, but at the same time it's exactly as trashy (in terms of narrative and character) with unintelligible dialogue (see J. J. Abrams Star Wars and Star Trek to see a good version of this kind of dialogue) and it's made to directly appease a niche audience but teach nothing new or give any depth they didn't already feel. But at the same time it's one of the best depictions of war-combat in recent times, the action is engrossing and tense all the way through the film's almost egregious running time. If you like good gunfights and want to see more John Kransinski, maybe this is the film for you.

The Walk

Robert Zemeckis has a talent for telling eccentric stories on a grand scale, be it Back to the Future, Forrest Gump or Castaway. Now he’s adapted Man on Wire, one of the finest documentaries in recent years, into The Walk. 

Standing atop the Statue of Liberty's torch, our story begins with Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), reminiscing about his incredible experience atop the Twin Towers. Back in 1973, Philippe's livelihood rests on his ability to perform. His street act is filled with juggling, unicycles and of course, wire walking. A visit to the dentist's office however, give Philippe an idea for an incredible feat, a wire-walk between the two tallest buildings in the world (currently under construction).

After getting kicked out by his parents, he starts to practice at the Circus, where he falls under the watchful gaze of trainer Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley). Slowly Philippe forms a group of accomplices, starting with fellow performer, Annie (Charlotte Le Bon). The plan is in motion and they all travel to America, now all the group have to do is get to the top.

Considering the quality of the original documentary, it’s difficult to view The Walk as anything but unnecessary. It plays out as a heist film, similar to the re-enactments in Man on Wire, and plays up the theatrics well, with expectedly strong visuals from Dariusz Wolski. But the result is a hollow experience that doesn’t hold up to the whimsicality of Philippe Petit’s story. Zemeckis has bowed to peer pressure and favoured spectacle over story, and he’s done it with a film that should rely so strongly on the development and detail of the feat. 

Perhaps worse than that though, was the decision to cast Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Petit. I think Levitt is an exceptionally strong actor and has clearly trained himself to capture the charismatic essence of Petit, but all the electrifying performances and outrageous French accents can’t change the fact that it’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt in a wig. At least I hope that’s a wig. He never really inhabits Philippe, instead he becomes more of a caricature of him. 

The relationships between the characters also seem skewed, particularly toward the end with the way Phillipe, his girlfriend and his accomplices separated after the event, which is quite an emotional moment in the documentary. Historical accuracy always seems to be an issue with biopics, but here it's less the about inaccuracies and more about the lack of connection to the people that was so well established through the interviews and depictions in Man on Wire. I can't help but feel that perhaps this film would have been in better hands with a French production house like Studio Canal rather than Tristar, or better yet just not made at all. 

If you're recounting events and depicting real people then spectacle needs to be firmed up with half-decent story-telling, and unfortunately Zemeckis only achieves the spectacle. Man on Wire is the only way to go for Petit's story. 

World War Z

This movie is not for the hardcore fanatic of zombie pop culture. It was made for a mainstream audience who might be interested in seeing what this whole zombie thing is about. It's probably best to stick with The Walking Dead if you are a fan.

The plot revolves around Gerry (Brad Pitt), a former United Nations investigator, who, at the behest of his former colleagues, is sent around the world in search of something that will stop the zombies (not necessarily a cure). He leaves his family on an aircraft carrier and flies off around the world, encountering many people along the way. Gerry goes to South Korea, Israel and Wales in search of something to help.

This movie was very intense and chaotic and the setting was unsettling. This came from the fact that normally zombie films and TV take place in a contained environment, such as a shopping centre or prison, but here it was global. The scenes where hordes of the undead are swarming were intense and at times I didn't quite know what was going on.

The fact that the majority of the movie is chaotic makes the ending all the harder to watch. The final 40 minutes returns to a climax that would fit well in any other zombie film. It is the classic stalking of the hallways trying to reach the ultimate goal, but due to the intensity of the first part of the film, it just seems distracting. Maybe this is due to another writer coming in and rewriting the entire ending of the film. Apparently, it was supposed to end with another climactic battle, which would have kept up with the pacing of the entire film.

The cast of this movie is very chaotic as well. Brad Pitt and his family are the only constant. Except we don't see his family all too often, which is good because is wife Karin (Mireille Enos) is one of the most annoying movie characters ever. Matthew Fox (Lost) is supposedly in this film, and quite prominently billed, but I did not see him once, so that's a waste of some cash.

Verdict: Max Brooks' novel did have potential, but it was poorly executed and even though it takes place on a global scale, the world feels kind of empty but not in a I Am Legend way.