“Act of Valor” is the latest action film designed to bring a realistic viewpoint to those serving in the military. Supposedly based on real Navy SEAL exercises, it follows a group of SEALS on various missions across the globe as they attempt to thwart some international bad guys. There’s no doubt that the men and their missions are honorable, but the forgettable film plays more like a second-rate, one-sided promo video for the SEALS and the military in general. Lots of action, but little emotional complexity or genuine characters to really care about; the film, especially the villains, is much too black-and-white for such a gray world. Filmmakers Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh introduce the film with excitement telling us about some of the unique people and emotional heft they experienced while filming, but little of that ended up in the footage they shot. Apparently the vast majority of the film’s modest budget (around $20 million, expensive for an unknown cast) was spent on the intense, realistic action sequences and not the script, acting or characters, all largely forgettable, especially the manipulative, random ending. The only recognizable cast member is Roselyn Sanchez, (from TV’s “Without a Trace”) who has limited footage in the first part of the film. I’m appreciative of the service of our military, but they deserve a better movie than this, which seems better suited to the small screen.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Act of Valor - C-
Rated R, 101 minutes
“Act of Valor” is the latest action film designed to bring a realistic viewpoint to those serving in the military. Supposedly based on real Navy SEAL exercises, it follows a group of SEALS on various missions across the globe as they attempt to thwart some international bad guys. There’s no doubt that the men and their missions are honorable, but the forgettable film plays more like a second-rate, one-sided promo video for the SEALS and the military in general. Lots of action, but little emotional complexity or genuine characters to really care about; the film, especially the villains, is much too black-and-white for such a gray world. Filmmakers Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh introduce the film with excitement telling us about some of the unique people and emotional heft they experienced while filming, but little of that ended up in the footage they shot. Apparently the vast majority of the film’s modest budget (around $20 million, expensive for an unknown cast) was spent on the intense, realistic action sequences and not the script, acting or characters, all largely forgettable, especially the manipulative, random ending. The only recognizable cast member is Roselyn Sanchez, (from TV’s “Without a Trace”) who has limited footage in the first part of the film. I’m appreciative of the service of our military, but they deserve a better movie than this, which seems better suited to the small screen.
“Act of Valor” is the latest action film designed to bring a realistic viewpoint to those serving in the military. Supposedly based on real Navy SEAL exercises, it follows a group of SEALS on various missions across the globe as they attempt to thwart some international bad guys. There’s no doubt that the men and their missions are honorable, but the forgettable film plays more like a second-rate, one-sided promo video for the SEALS and the military in general. Lots of action, but little emotional complexity or genuine characters to really care about; the film, especially the villains, is much too black-and-white for such a gray world. Filmmakers Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh introduce the film with excitement telling us about some of the unique people and emotional heft they experienced while filming, but little of that ended up in the footage they shot. Apparently the vast majority of the film’s modest budget (around $20 million, expensive for an unknown cast) was spent on the intense, realistic action sequences and not the script, acting or characters, all largely forgettable, especially the manipulative, random ending. The only recognizable cast member is Roselyn Sanchez, (from TV’s “Without a Trace”) who has limited footage in the first part of the film. I’m appreciative of the service of our military, but they deserve a better movie than this, which seems better suited to the small screen.
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