Act of Valor (2012)

Directed by Mike McCoy & Scott Waugh. Starring Rorke Denver, Dave Hansen, Derrick Van Orden, Jason Cottle, Sonny Manson, Ajay James, Brenan Weimholt, Ray Mendoza, Alex Veadov, Nestor Serrano, Roselyn Sánchez, Emilio Rivera. [R]

Cringe-inducing military action film with the sort of gimmick that takes the discomfort level to a more extreme level: a stereotype-steeped, nuance-deprived rah-rah celebration of guns-blazing U.S. military intervention around the globe where real-life active-duty Navy SEALs and SWCC play the armed service members dispatched on missions (a ploy that’s impossible to overlook since their acting leaves, well, everything to be desired). Transparently designed to honor the service and sacrifice of these individuals, but doing so through cheap thrills and murky geopolitical context was a bad idea since it only makes the movie’s men-of-action out to be one-dimensional action heroes, their commanding officers to be blinkered warmongers, and their enemies to be ugly caricatures. Also, “reverent” is too mild a word for how the filmmakers approach their subject; “fawning” is more accurate. Every now and then, the action sequences provide fleeting excitement and/or suspense, but not nearly enough to overlook the stilted line readings, non-characterizations, and relentless jingoism and pro-military propaganda. There are far better and more tasteful tributes to American servicemen and their call to duty out there, although American ethnocentrists and staunchly nationalistic “patriots” will probably find it to their liking. The servicemen “actors” are credited onscreen by aliases to protect their real identities.

24/100