12 Strong declassifies the incredible true story of the first Special Forces deployment in Afghanistan after 9/11 where a total of twelve U.S. soldiers are sent on a daring mission to help the Northern Alliance rid the area of Taliban. Outgunned and outnumbered, the team of twelve must face overwhelming odds in the fight of a lifetime.
12 Strong is directed by Nicolai Fuglsig and features a screenplay from Ted Tally and Peter Craig which adapts Doug Stanton's book Horse Soldiers. When watching 12 Strong, other Afghan war flicks may come to mind such as Lone Survivor and the similarly titled 13 Hours. This is largely because it's difficult to distinguish Fuglsig's film from the modern selection of movies focusing on the War on Terror. While I don't necessarily expect every war film to be as immersive as Dunkirk or as character-driven as Saving Private Ryan, it's disheartening to see how disposable films in this genre can become when they're lacking a clear objective. The dialogue's full of the typical military jargon and the soldiers do little more than pal around with one another so there aren't any fleshed out individuals to invest yourself in.
You're much more likely to gravitate towards characters based on what recognizable actors are portraying them rather than anything Tally or Craig do as writers to earn your interest. You'll probably think, "Hey, that's the guy that plays Thor! I like him!" or "I remember seeing that guy in that one movie that won that Best Picture at the Oscars last year... What was it again? Oh yeah... Moonlight." That's the extent of how little the writers develop these characters, which is kind of sad in considering these men are war heroes and couldn't even be depicted as anything beyond surface level soldiers... I'm sure someone reading this review is thinking, "But David... Dunkirk didn't do much to develop its characters either, and you praised THAT film!" Well, you are correct. However, there's a HUGE difference between the two. Nolan chose to focus on the experience of war and essentially made his film a heart-pounding pressure cooker. Fuglsig doesn't really focus on the experience or the characters. Instead, all he offers is visual noise.
While the combat sequences are quite exhilarating, they all blend together and begin to feel repetitive so the film quickly loses its luster and grows rather tiring. In fact, 12 Strong comes to mind as one of the most exhausting theatrical experiences I've had in recent memory. The film feels overlong and just wears on your patience after awhile, even at a respectable runtime of two hours and ten minutes. Towards the tail-end of the film I kept wondering to myself when it would all be over, but was disappointed time-and-time again to see the events further prolonged.
Not everything is mediocre though, as Chris Hemsworth proves to once again be a likable lead in the role of Captain Mitch Nelson. Hemsworth rarely gets to flex his acting muscles in the Marvel movies, so it was really reassuring to see him demonstrate some acting range here. Despite Nelson's lacking characterization, Hemsworth's charisma and dedication are able to carry the character all the way to the finish line. Strategizing opposite Hemsworth, Navid Negaban portrays General Dostum as an insightful warrior and leader willing to impart wisdom whenever possible.
12 Strong flourishes most whenever capturing the convincing camaraderie between its focal brotherhood though. While the A-list talent are largely responsible for this, the actors filling in for the remaining twelve soldiers aren't half bad. Respected actors Michael Shannon, Michael Peña, and Trevante Rhodes each elevate their stock soldiers with a captivating screen presence while the other actors joke around with one-another in an effort to remain relevant. It works in the moment, but you'll find it difficult to remember anyone who wasn't billed on the poster afterwards.
12 Strong should have galloped into this weekend championing a harrowing and inspirational true tale of heroism and bravery, but instead, it stumbled and wound up being a dispensable military motion picture. Don't let my criticism discourage you from watching the film if you had your heart set on seeing it though. I still think the story itself is truly remarkable and actually deserving of a better translation to the big screen. If war films like Lone Survivor and 13 Hours are your thing, then by all means, go and see it! I'm sure you'll be more blown away than I was.
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