Modern warfare is the milieu of Lone Survivor, a movie about a team of Navy Seals on a special mission in Afghanistan that goes horribly wrong.  It’s based on a real mission (which actually lasted longer in real life, believe it or not), although, as with most cinematic recreations of reality, some of the details have been changed.  It was filmed in New Mexico, where the mountains and trees and crags fill in quite nicely for those of Afghanistan.

A team of four Seals (Taylor Kitsch, Mark Wahlberg, Emile Hirsch and Ben Foster) are sent to eliminate a Taliban leader visiting a tiny Afghan village.  The approach goes well until a trio of shepherds stumbles across them and a moral decision must be made by the Americans.  In good guy style they led the goat herders go, but the ramifications of that kindness are huge, as indicated by the title, which detestably destroys any idea of suspense because it gives away the outcome.  Nevertheless, Peter Berg’s film is superbly made, convincingly harrowing, and, yes, inspiring.

The four Seals are shown to be well-bonded before the mission, and their individual preparation for the mission is thorough.  The plan seems sound, but of course it all falls apart once the shepherds enter the picture.  An aspect that I really respect is that while the film is certainly intended — and succeeds — as a tribute to American fighting men, it also depicts quite frankly how poorly orchestrated this mission really was.  The intelligence regarding the Taliban leader was correct but very inaccurate; the communications gear was almost useless; the plan for support and rescue was incomplete and another mission compromised the rescue effort which was eventually made.  All in all it was a complete and utter disaster, although the movie downplays this in favor of honoring the men who fought, most of whom died.

The cast is very good.  Mark Wahlberg has really matured as an actor, and he isn’t afraid of letting his character’s weaknesses show through his brave facade.  Taylor Kitsch is solid; it’s nice to see him rebound from the twin debacles of John Carter and Battleship.  He might yet have a career after all.  Emile Hirsch is quite fit now, after his turn as a starving hiker in Into the Wild several years ago.  And Ben Foster remains a great character actor who improves any movie in which he appears; he was my favorite of the actors from the beginning.  I love his intensity.  Eric Bana also appears as the swaggering officer who puts the inferior plan into motion.

The paramilitary action is kinetic and harrowing, filmed at close range with quick editing and cameras that are right in the fighting.  The result is the most authentic version of a brutal firefight since Saving Private Ryan.  Berg uses the locations beautifully and forcefully, gradually acknowledging that as tough as these Seals are, they are not quite as hard as the boulders they must continually clamber around and over.  The Taliban fighters, which tally somewhere around two hundred, continually press their advantage in a relentless stream of bullets.  And yet the film is hopeful, too, in a surprising (to me, anyway) plot turn that probably would not be believable had it not actually occurred.

Lone Survivor is a very good, but very brutal, glimpse into how supremely awful a military situation in any foreign country can be for our troops.  It is a tribute to their dedication and sacrifice, yet it isn’t purely a propaganda piece; its remarkable clarity shows just how easy it is to stumble into harm’s way, and how even the best intent can backfire with horrible consequences.  ☆ ☆ ☆ 1/2.  4 February 2014.