Billed as an action packed film by the Tribeca PR material this is, outside of two sequences deadly static. Essentially three people in a room, the film painfully shows it's stage origins by having nothing much happen for 90 minutes. This might have worked on stage but blown wildly out of proportion on the big screen its deadly.
The sad thing is that not only does the film look good, the blackened eyes of the two soldier creates a haunting effect and the landscape is stunning, but the cast is truly amazing. Sofia Boutella is wonderful as the woman kidnapped while Brian Gleeson and Damien Molony turn in star making performances as the soldiers. Gleeson is scary good and may eclipse his famous father (hell give me a film where they go head to head).
The problem is nothing happens. They guys drive to the house, take the hostage and then talk. Even though the location shifts at one point it comes across more as desperation by the director to fabricate action. Its a bad move since it adds nothing to the story.
After the screening there was a great deal of talk about why the film was set in Iraq. The film could have been set anywhere at any time. There is nothing in the tale that requires it to be a war story, it could be just a gangster story. It hadn't occurred to me, but the feeling is dead on. Why is this set in Iraq?
More importantly why am I being asked to see this since any points its trying to make are obvious and over early leaving the film no where to go.
Fantastic performances aside I'm disappointed.
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