Act of Valor: Les Soldats de l'Ombre (2012)

An elite team of Navy SEALs embark on a covert mission to recover a kidnapped CIA agent.

Directors:

Mike McCoy (as Mouse McCoy), Scott Waugh

Writer:

Kurt Johnstad

Stars:

Alex Veadov, Roselyn Sanchez, Nestor Serrano

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rorke Denver	...	Lieutenant Rorke (as LCDR Rorke)
Dave	...	Chief Dave (as SOC Dave)
Sonny	...	SO1 Sonny (as SOC Sonny)
Weimy	...	SO1 Weimy (as SOC Weimy)
Ray	...	SO1 Ray (as SO1 Ray)
Ajay	...	SO1 Ajay (as SO1 Ajay)
Mikey	...	SO1 Mikey (as SOC Mikey)
Derrick Van Orden	...	Senior Chief Otto (as SOCS Van D)
Katelyn	...	LT Lyons (as Katelyn)
Callaghan	...	Admiral Callaghan (as Admiral Callaghan)
Duncan Smith	...	Captain Duncan Smith (as Captain Duncan Smith)
Billy	...	SWCC Boat Senior Chief (as SOCS BIlly)
Roselyn Sanchez	...	Lisa Morales
Jason Cottle	...	Abu Shabal
Alex Veadov	...	Christo

Storyline

An unprecedented blend of real-life heroism and original filmmaking, Act of Valor stars a group of active-duty Navy SEALs in a powerful story of contemporary global anti-terrorism. Inspired by true events, the film combines stunning combat sequences, up-to-the minute battlefield technology and heart-pumping emotion for the ultimate action adventure. Act of Valor takes audiences deep into the secretive world of the most elite, highly trained group of warriors in the modern world. When the rescue of a kidnapped CIA operative leads to the discovery of a deadly terrorist plot against the U.S., a team of SEALs is dispatched on a worldwide manhunt. As the valiant men of Bandito Platoon race to stop a coordinated attack that could kill and wound thousands of American civilians, they must balance their commitment to country, team and their families back home. Each time they accomplish their mission, a new piece of intelligence reveals another shocking twist to the deadly terror plot, which ...

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Plot Keywords:

torture | anti tank missile | veteran in a wheelchair | mexican drug cartel | crying woman | 

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Taglines:

The only easy day was yesterday.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Thriller | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence including some torture, and for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the commentary the producers say the torture scene is a "Hollywood" torture scene. The stories that they researched and heard about were far more sadistic and gory than what they shot on scene. They were also certain they would get a X rating if they filmed some the methods they researched.

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Goofs

While riding the rigid hull boats en-route to assault the Mexican town, Chief Dave's M4 does not have a AN/PEQ-15 laser sight. Later, during the assault on the town, he has one.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lieutenant Rorke: Before my father died, he said the worst thing about growing old was that other men stopped seeing you as dangerous. I've always remembered that, how being dangerous was sacred, a badge of honor. You live your life by a code, an ethos. Every man does. It's your shoreline. It's what guides you home. And trust me, you're always trying to get home.

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Alternate Versions

The patriotic tone of the film has been toned down for the international version. For example, in the original US version the letter says "Before my father died, he said the worst thing about growing old was that other men stopped seeing you as dangerous." In the international version it reads "Just before my father died, he said the worst thing about growing old was that it gets harder to protect the things that matter." Another example is the text at the ending. The US version shows the line "This film is dedicated to the following warriors of Naval Special Warfare who have made the ultimate sacrifice since 9/11." while the international version reads "This film is dedicated to all of the men and women who have sacrificed for their countries as guardians of freedom against forces of terror and tyranny."

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Connections

References L'empire contre-attaque (1980)

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Soundtracks

For You
Written by Monty Powell & Keith Urban
Performed by Keith Urban
Keith Urban appears courtesy of Hit Red Records
(Distributed by Capitol Records Nashville)

User Reviews

Call of Duty: The Movie

If you've ever wanted to know what Call of Duty: The Movie would be like then look no further than Act of Valor, the action packed war film featuring active duty Navy Seals as some of the main characters. It's the story of a team of Seals who go on a covert mission to rescue a kidnapped CIA agent from terrorists. It's an extremely patriotic love letter to the armed forces, a film that shows undying respect for these brave men and women, romanticizing their valiant efforts overseas. It feels more like a recruitment video than a film, and I think it might have been better off as one instead.

Act of Valor is a film that wants to be intense, super cool, and also profound. However, it's profundities are incredibly shallow and all of the observations the film makes on war are nothing new, and provide no new insight into war. But as far as intense and super cool goes, Act of Valor accomplishes that more than anything else. It's one giant firefight after another, exemplifying the blaze of glory that the Seals fight within. It's a finely polished and explosively grand picture of modern warfare.

But if you're looking for any kind of story, characters, or halfway decent dialogue then Act of Valor is not what you want. I said before that the film stars actual Navy Seals, so it should be expected that the acting will be dreadful... and it is. But I can easily forgive this. However, what I can't forgive is the paper thin story that is devoid of all substance, as well as the pathetically dry dialogue. The script is beyond awful with incredibly cheesy and lifeless dialogue and a terribly empty story that most certainly, perhaps even deliberately, takes a back seat to the visual spectacle aspect of Act of Valor.

All in all the story is practically non-existent here and the only thing this film has going for it is it's patriotism and firefights. But even the fighting gets a little tedious with it's overuse of the shaky cam and first person video game style camera work that gets overused to the point where it's almost gimmicky. I won't deny that Act of Valor is pretty cool and it certainly makes one proud to be an American, but I cannot say that it's a good film. It's a definite dud and there is little point in seeing this film, especially if you value story, characters, and dialogue.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian Spanish

Release Date:

24 February 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Act of Valor: Les Soldats de l'Ombre

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$24,476,632, 26 February 2012

Gross USA:

$70,012,847

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$82,499,399

Company Credits

Production Co:

Relativity Media, Bandito Brothers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1