Tears of the Sun (2003)

Director:

Antoine Fuqua

Writers (WGA):

Alex Lasker (written by) &
Patrick Cirillo (written by)

Release Date:

7 March 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Thriller | War

Tagline:

He was trained to follow orders. He became a hero by defying them.

Plot:

Bruce Willis plays a Special-Ops commander who leads his team into the jungle of Nigeria to rescue a doctor played by Monica Belluci who will only go with them if they agree to rescue 70 refugees too.

Plot Keywords:

Refugee | Rebel | Doctor | Jungle | Nigeria

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Bruce Willis	...	Lieutenant A.K. Waters
Monica Bellucci	...	Dr. Lena Fiore Kendricks
Cole Hauser	...	James 'Red' Atkins
Eamonn Walker	...	Ellis 'Zee' Pettigrew
Johnny Messner	...	Kelly Lake
Nick Chinlund	...	Michael 'Slo' Slowenski
Charles Ingram	...	Demetrius 'Silk' Owens
Paul Francis	...	Danny 'Doc' Kelley
Chad Smith	...	Jason 'Flea' Mabry
Tom Skerritt	...	Captain Bill Rhodes
Malick Bowens	...	Colonel Idris Sadick
Awaovieyi Agie	...	Musa
Akosua Busia	...	Patience
Hadar Busia-Singleton	...	Amaka
Ida Onyango	...	Lasana

Also Known As:

Hostile Act (USA) (working title)
Hostile Rescue (USA) (working title)
Man of War (USA) (working title)
Rules of Engagement (USA) (original script title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong war violence, some brutality and language.

Runtime:

121 min | 142 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:Not Rated (director's extended cut) | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:U | Spain:18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Brazil:14 | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | South Korea:12 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:14A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Dole Plantation - 64-1550 Kamehameha Highway, Wahiawa, O`ahu, Hawaii, USA

Company:

Cheyenne Enterprises

Trivia:

All the actors who played Navy SEALs had to go through a two week boot camp.

Goofs:

Continuity: When they were leaving the village they said it was 12 clicks to the pick up point. Later they said they have gone 5 clicks and have 7 more miles to go. 1 click (kilometer) equals 0.62 miles.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Female news reader: [voiceover] The tension that had been brewing for months in Nigeria exploded yesterday as exiled General Mustafa Yakubu orchestrated a swift and violent coup against the democratically elected government of President Samuel Azuka. In a land with 120 million people and over 250 ethnic groups...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Family Guy: I Dream of Jesus (#7.2)" (2008)

If you like gritty, realistic action movies then this will not disappoint.

Tears of the Sun. A pretty typical actioner which reminded me a little of Navy SEALs, though grittier and more believable. Willis is his usual mostly expressionless self here, yet somehow he manages to get the part of the troubled Lieutenant across very well indeed. The other actors all do their parts well and leave little that makes you frown in their portrayal of hardened special forces personnel. It was nice to see Cole Hauser in this movie. An underrated actor who is only now starting to get decent parts since his role in Pitch Black. Almost makes me want to go and see 2Fast 2Furious to see how he does in that. Almost...

But back to the movie. The plot won't stretch your mind much and the "strange" reason why the rebels pursue the refugees so ardently isn't very hard to guess long before the characters in the story discover it. But the action is plentiful, as is the brutality portrayed. If you like sanitized action movies then this film might upset you a little. It's not for those who think that war is about pushing buttons from hundreds of miles away or that all soldiers carry a copy of the Geneva Convention in their kit and consult it regularly.

But if you like gritty, realistic action movies then this will not disappoint.

And now....a small rant.

Oh dear God! I can't believe some of the truly stupid comments here. The concept that this movie's sole purpose was as a propaganda vehicle to make people feel better about the Iraq conflict is laughable to anyone who has a higher IQ than their shoe size. And as for Hollywood constantly portraying Americans as the great saviours....well why the hell not? Who in God's name wants to go and be depressed watching "the good guys" shoot innocents and ignore suffering. Yeah, that'd do real well at the box office! Movies are meant to entertain and make you feel good, not come out of the theatre wanting to slash your wrists. Jeez! Get a grip you people.

Thank you....end of rant.