Director Rod Lurie (1984 West Point class with four years in the military) is expected to push the fluttering aspect of a film about the war in Afghanistan. Even if The outpost honoring the soldiers who fought and died during the bloody Battle of Kamdesh in 2009, opens fire on the military arrogance and stupidity that put these soldiers there in the first place. As President Obama talked about withdrawing troops, the Army military ordered a small unit of 53 US soldiers to hold down Camp Outpost Keating, located at the foot of three steep mountains. It was also just 14 miles from the border with Pakistan, where more than 400 Taliban fighters lifted them up from above like sitting ducks.
It’s that suicide mission that Lurie, and a cast led by Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones, and Orlando Bloom, bring to life so vividly as insurgents attacked the outpost with small arms fire, rocket-propelled grenades, heavy machine guns, and B – 10 rifles without recoil. They killed eight American soldiers and wounded nearly two dozen more, making it one of the worst attacks on a United States outpost during the Afghan war. And just try not to think about the recent reports on the rewards Russia paid to the Taliban forces for killing US soldiers.
With a script by Eric Johnson and Paul Tamasy, based on The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor By Jake Tapper, the film emerges as an action thriller that never loses sight of the futility of the war being waged. Tapper, Washington’s chief correspondent for CNN, wrote his best-seller in 2012 to highlight what he called the “deep-seated inertia of military thought.” Praising the book, Inside the wild Author Jon Krakauer said, “If you want to understand how the war in Afghanistan derailed, read this book.”
You might also see this intensely powerful film, which Lurie directs with a deep understanding of the mechanics of battle and a primal humanism that puts flesh and blood on the bones of the tragic story told about Bravo Troop 3-61 CAV, one of the most decorated units of the 19-year conflict. Eastwood stands out in the key role of Staff Sgt Clint Romesha. (As the son of Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood, the young star of The longest journey and The fate of the furious He must have seen the irony of playing a soldier named Clint.) Romesha understands that thoughts about home and family could interfere with the laser focus required to have her brothers’ backs in her arms. Having written her own account of the war in the book Red Platoon Romesha won the Congressional Medal of Honor for her courage under fire. Eastwood captures the soldier’s “saddled” spirit and also his keen understanding of what led to this impossible-to-win situation.
Still, not everyone had Romesha’s ability to stand up bravely. As specialist Ty Carter, another Medal of Honor winner, Caleb Landry Jones (Get Out, The Florida Project) shows how fear is a real factor that must be managed in the heat of battle. The first part of the film at the base follows the usual pattern of brothers that allows us to meet the characters, including CPT Robert Yllescas, played by Milo Gibson (Mel’s son) and Daniel Rodríguez, who along with other survivors of the battle . , he plays himself. Lurie captures the tension of base life that can be interrupted at any time by the sudden death of enemy fire – some main characters are killed even before the main battle begins.
British actor Orlando Bloom, shaved-headed and business-minded, takes on a credible Yankee accent to play Captain Ben Keating, the base commander whose counterinsurgency mission: to recruit the civilian population to aid the enemy from within, it is lost when the shooting begins. Occupying the last high-voltage hour of the film, the Battle of Kamdesh represents Lurie’s best achievement to date as director, up there with Deterrence and The contender (and enough to forgive him for his wrong new version of Sam Peckinpah Straw Dogs) There have been other films about the Afghan war, including 12 Strong, War Machine, Lone Survivor, and the excellent document Restrepo But The outpost it makes it fundamentally correct by bringing home the meaning of heroism as a collective action. The ferocity of this “you are there” sequence, brilliantly supported by Lorenzo Senatore’s prowling handheld camera, ranks with the best combat performances in the film. Your nerves will be broken, guaranteed.
