13 Hours (2016)

During an attack on a U.S. compound in Libya, a security team struggles to make sense out of the chaos.

Jess' Review

Sam’s choice today was 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, decided after an impulsive flick through Netflix’s action category. Lured in by John Krasinski, it was only after we pressed played that we realised what we’d gotten into - a Michael Bay film. Oh boy.

13 Hours is yet another true story (-notice a trend in our reviews yet?) that sees a group of elite soldiers tasked to defend a US compound from Libyan terrorists. The leading cast of the macho security team are great, bouncing off each other well with good-natured banter and a strong sense of loyalty. Their character depth feels quite limited, however, and I never feel fully invested in the people I’m watching. Rather, Bay, of course, focuses on the action. 

Explosions and gunfights are the centrepiece of 13 Hours. These moments are gripping and exciting to watch, tense at times and often quite gory. The battles are shot well, and with an intensity and chaos reminiscent of the desperate situation our heroes find themselves in. Bay captures this well, to be fair. Though I feel whilst 13 Hours is engaging and brutal in its depiction of warfare, there is an ongoing theme of patriotism that borderlines obnoxious. In fact, it crosses that line quite regularly to real ‘MERICA territory. 

There were several things I disliked about this film. Ranging from small things like the depiction of women and corny dialogue, to more problematic issues such as the film’s difficulty to follow. There were several instances where the terrorists’ motives seemed unclear, and vital information was just skimmed over. It’s also probably in part my own fault, on account that I did fall asleep. My bad. 

Regardless, 13 Hours wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. I didn’t particularly enjoy it and found the whole thing quite xenophobic at times, but the story at its core did intrigue me. I feel ultimately that the heart and soul of the true events were sacrificed for a stab at an explosive, fast-moving blockbuster. Which is a shame. I will go on to look into the real-life events, but I will be swerving future Michael Bay projects.

5/10

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Sam's Review

My review for 13 Hours will be short. Unlike the film, which at 144 minutes is at least 30 minutes too long. I picked the film for John Krasinski. (Jess and I have been bingeing the US version of The Office.) And Krasinski is a charming as ever, as are the other GRS members, though they are forgettable. Sadly, that’s the only charming thing about the film. Which is a shame, as the soldiers that this is based on are heroes and deserved better.

The story is stirring, a noble tale of brave heroes, and yet the film is erratic. It’s shot frantically, as if the crew was rushing to finish the film as quickly as possible. It could be to portray the confusion the soldiers felt in combat, unsure of who the enemy were. But it just left me confused at what was happening. Often I found myself wondering who the bad guys were, or what GRS were doing. It was a case of style over substance. Which is a shame, because this story should have been told properly.

It’s still a decent film. It is. But it had the potential to be substantial. It seems to capture the grittiness of battle well, with certain gory sights bothering Jess (who is a horror fan). Yet it falls short of telling a concise, passionate story, leaving the brave members of GRS as likeable but ultimately hollow characters. The film also skimmed over the political events, leaving me a little confused as to why the attack happened in the first place.

Overall, it’s an above average film. And worth a watch if you’ve got the time and nothing else to do.

Finally, I hope those who fell rest in peace.

6/10