Blu-ray Review: Visceral Soldier Story ‘Lone Survivor’

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CHICAGO – The story goes that when deciding on the project, director Peter Berg read a copy of Marcus Luttrell’s book “Lone Survivor” in one sitting. Whether this tale includes a bathroom break, or even a few days in-between but with usage of the same chair, for a director like Berg this story will always ring possible. After all, he’s the guy who tried to legitimize Hasbro’s movie militarization, by pitting real American veterans against goofy strategy aliens in “Battleship.” Even in that disaster, his efforts were inspired, and valiant.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

I’ve rattled on about Berg because his voice is so crucial to how well Luttrell’s true story has transitioned into the experience of watching a film, and feeling something from one. This isn’t just a drama about soldiers stuck behind enemy lines, but the limits these men pushed for themselves and each other. Berg keeps the pain of this film’s experience visceral. You can hear every bone break, and you can nearly taste the dirt as these guys throw themselves off rocks and down hills to survive when evading the enemy. The story is inspired by American soldiers, but politics are not the point. One of Berg’s most striking achievements with “Lone Survivor” is making Luttrell’s tale of being behind enemy lines one of universal comradeship.

Lone Survivor was released on Blu-ray on June 3, 2014
Photo credit: Universal Pictures

Synopsis: A group of American soldiers (played by Mark Wahlberg, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster, and Taylor Kitsch) on a covert operation behind enemy lines make a difficult moral decision that sends them into an ambush.

Special Features:
o Recreating the Firefight
o Learning the Basics
o Will of the Warrior
o The Pashtun Code of Life
o Bringing the Story to Light
o The Fallen Heroes of Operation Red Wings
o DVD Copy of ‘Lone Survivor’
o Digital Copy of ‘Lone Survivor’

By Nick Allen
Contributor
HollywoodChicago.com