Written by: Chris Kessler

In most action movies, the heroes are impervious to harm; bullets always miss, and the rescue team always shows up in time.

Unfortunately, this is not one of those action movies.

Written and directed by Peter Berg, “Lone Survivor” is an intense, real-life look at war.

The film is based on the same-titled book, written by Marcus Luttrell and Patrick Robinson, which gives Luttrell’s personal account of surviving the failed SEAL Team 10’s mission, Operation Red Wings, in June of 2005.

The title of this film makes it obvious that only one of the soldiers is coming home alive. Mark Wahlberg, starring as Marcus Luttrell, is that soldier. Taylor Kitsch, Ben Foster and Emile Hirsch portray Luttrell’s fellow SEAL members.

While I like Wahlberg as an actor and enjoyed his performance, I find it silly to cast Wahlberg as Luttrell because of their significant height difference. Maybe Kitsch, who is closer to Luttrell in stature, should have been casted; however, considering Kitsch isn’t nearly the star Wahlberg is, I can understand the casting choice.

The film starts with a quick and efficient introduction, which gives the audience just enough characterization to get to know and like our heroes.

Once the special ops team is deployed mountainside just outside of a Taliban village, it doesn’t take long for the team to be spotted and quickly out-manned and out-gunned. At this point, the film becomes a pure adrenaline rush.

The action is hard-hitting and intense, feeling very real. It’s forceful, ugly and scary−as it should be. The men fight with courage, and even in the midst of gunshots, the dialogue is a mix of positive reinforcement and dry humor.

“Lone Survivor” really stands out against other war or action movies because the film doesn’t rely on the suspense of action or the satisfaction of all the main characters surviving. Instead, it explores thought-provoking moral questions. It demonstrates that even in war, things aren’t as simple as good and bad.

This film isn’t “happy” or “fun,” but neither is war and that’s the point. This isn’t a movie I enjoyed from an entertainment standpoint, but I thoroughly enjoyed the realism and was emotionally spent when the credits rolled.

Overall, I would give this movie an A.