THE PLOT THUS FAR
Based on The New York Times bestselling true story of heroism, courage and survival, Lone Survivor tells the incredible tale of four Navy SEALs on a covert mission to neutralize a high-level al-Qaeda operative. The four men must make an impossible moral decision in the mountains of Afghanistan that leads them into an enemy ambush. As they confront unthinkable odds, the SEALs must find reserves of strength and resilience to fight to the finish. Academy Award nominee Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter) leads an all-star cast including Taylor Kitsch (Savages), Ben Foster (3:10 to Yuma), Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild), and Eric Bana (Munich) in a movie hailed by critics as “unforgettable, tense, and inspiring.” (Movieline)
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“Lone Survivor” depicts a highly idealized take on where Operation: Redwing went wrong. There have been a ton of versions of the operation that have leaked out since that dreadful day in June 2005. However, none really capture the emotion of “Lone Survivor”. More Navy Seals died on that one day alone, then in any time in U.S. history. It’s crazy, but the intensity of the carnage is captured here in bloody detail.
Mark Wahlberg deserves some credit. He tried to start going the Tom Cruise route since 1997 where he would work with maverick directors and create stunning films. However, he only was taken seriously by the mainstream with “The Departed”. So, he starts doing popcorn cinema fare and people start giving him shit for reading lines like a zombie. If you had to do “Max Payne” and “Shooter”, you’d sound like you were going through the motions too. Give the guy a break and watch as he tries to blend both worlds together.
The Blu-Ray comes with a DVD, Digital HD copy and Blu-Ray exclusive featurettes as the special features. The 1080p transfer does a good job of handling the deep grit. But, the DTS-HD 5.1 master audio track is reference quality. While my home theater is 7.1 and I show a bit of bias to those higher-end mixes, the audio in this release will be theater demo material from this point. The gunfight, characters running through a variety of environments and the back channel action are stunning! In the end, I’d recommend a purchase to the curious.
RELEASE DATE: 06/03/2014