Act Of Valor (DVD+Blu-ray+Digital Combo) (Blu-ray) (2012)

I know some people will think this movie shouldn't have gotten 5 stars because of the acting. I did not go to this movie for the acting, I went to see our real life Navy Seals pay tribute to those who sacrificed everything for our country, and I was not disappointed.

I have read several books by Seals and about Seals over the years, starting way back when Dick Marcinko's first book came out, and I always watch any movie or tv special about them. I feel it takes a special kind of person to do this job and it fascinates me.

This movie has a fictional plot; however, the extractions and sacrifices in the movie all have actually happened in the field and they are re enacted in this movie in different locations. How awesome was it to sit their and watch the things I had imagined in my head in real life. I say real life, because these are things they actually do, real technology actually used, real split second decisions actually made. The action was fantastic and I will go see this movie again on the big screen to make sure I caught everything.

What was most profound to me was the way the team worked together and their commitment to each other. The fact that they can see something horrific happen to their best friend, and keep doing their job, put their emotion aside until their mission is done. I have read in countless books about men that keeping going while wounded not for themselves or to get back home, but so they don't let down the person next to them, the person they go into battle with. This movie shows that. It shows these men to be multi faceted. They are not war mongers. They are men with families and a deep sense of history and honor. This is what I feel should be taken away from the movie.

So if you are not sure what you are getting into with this movie, they were not shy about head shots and brain splatter, they did not focus on it, it was all done in a very matter of fact way, but it is there. There is a torture scene that made me squirm, not graphically shown, but you knew what was happening. Overall though if you have let your child play Grand Theft Auto or 1st person shooter games, this is not any more violent.

This movie is not a propaganda or recruiting film it is real life. Remember that when watching, don't look for something to be there for a political reason, as an american look at this film and be proud, appreciative and thankful that we have men like this willing to give everything so that we can be safe. I for one am, and I was really glad they listed the Seals that sacrificed everything for us at the end. This movie broke my heart while instilling a huge sense of pride for our servicemen and first responders. I hope everyone goes to see this movie on the big screen it is worth it. I don't know but I hope the producers/studio whomever is in charge makes a substantial donation to the Navy Seal Foundation as the men in this movie were not, nor did they want to be compensated.

Anyway I will be purchasing this movie as soon as it is available and encourage you to do the same, it is important to know what someone will sacrifice for you.

This one really grabbed me. It reminded me of the same emotions I had watching Taking Chance(also recommended). This movie was harder to watch the second time, but man, do I love this film. I am a retired Chief who served on submarines. Everything I saw that related to my career was absolutely accurate. I imagine the rest of the film was just as credible. I sure admire these military folks!

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You might notice the date for this post is two weeks before launch. that is because I am part of the military and was invited to an advance showing of this movie.

Non-spoiler summary: Act Of valor is based around SEAL Team 7 sometime around September 2010. This is a fictionalized film, these events really did not happen but they are based on events that have happened to SEALS since the war on terrorism. In 2007 the two directors of this film, Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh, worked on a film project where the navy allowed them to work with real Navy SEALS. The directors came out with an idea to make a realistic movie based on the Navy SEALS. While deciding on casting they decided that the only people they wanted playing the Seals were the Seals they met themselves. Act of Valor uses real Navy SEALS and at times real ammunition in some of the fire fight scenes.

If you have not seen this film I definitely recommend to at least rent it. It is not a documentary but it is the most realistic military movie that I have seen. Definitely worth a viewing.

Some Spoilers:

A CIA operative is captured by a drug smuggler. SEAL Team 7 is sent in to save her. SEAL Team 7 discovers the Drug smuggler is connected to a high level terrorist that seeks vengeance on America. The SEALS are in a race against time to uncover the plot and stop the terrorist before they reach their target in America.

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Navy SEALs are America's warriors du jour. Remember that spectacular demonstration of marksmanship when three of them, standing on a tossing boat, felled three hostage-holding Somali pirates with simultaneous shots? That was followed a year or so later by the end of Osama bin Laden, so these elite fighters are the ones we look to for military prowess.

I can only hope this film's regular release contains the introduction by the two principals behind this project. They were embedded with a platoon of Navy SEALs in hopes they would get enough material for a movie. It quickly became obvious to them that there are NO Hollywood actors who could approach the calibre of the men they were with, in terms of fitness, devotion to their families, intelligence, and skill levels. Consequently, they cast a group of active duty SEALs! (Shooting was occasionally delayed while cast members were briefly deployed.) When we know those guys up there on the screen have actually done the things we see, it adds immeasurably to our involvement; plus, many of the scenes were shot using live ammo!

The upshot is, even though the Bandido Platoon is a fictitious one, this story is based on feats of the most elite, highly trained group of effective warriors in the modern world, using up-to-the-minute technology under highly challenging circumstances. Because of artistic license, we see the same seven men off the coast of Somalia, in the Ukraine, in the tropical forests of Costa Rica and just south of the Mexican border. They are trying to stop a chilling plot that uses ceramic pellets in suicide vests. Ceramic doesn't set off metal detectors, so terrorists plan a coordinated attack in crowded areas: football games, shopping malls, concert arenas and airports. When explosives kill and maim hundreds, the economic impact will be devastating (like 9/11).

This film starts with the rescue of a kidnapped CIA operative, which leads to the terrorists, who are linked to drug cartels in Mexico (they know how to penetrate America's borders). The domino effect of international terrorism and drug trade is compelling stuff. How can the American drug consumer ignore the down-range impact of his or her folly! Expect lots of gunfire, SCUBA diving, some really satisfying blowie uppie stuff, and stealth warfare (when these seven guys silently break the surface of that stream... goosebumps!).

I found this far more involving than your average run-of-the-mill action film. It's clear that these guys are SEALs, not actors, but there wasn't a moment when anyone's attention strayed; we were rooting for them to complete their mission so they could all return home to their families. As the tag line says: The only easy day was yesterday.

I will request notification when this DVD is available on Amazon.com.

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Saw it in a theater, and had heard all the news stories about bad line delivery and bad acting, and on and on.

Having worked with professional men like this in the past, from various branches, all I saw was real men talking like men talk. I didn't see stuttering or off character delivery of lines, etc. So, I have no idea what bet wetters were so concerned about the dialogue. I think some people in Hollywood, or somewhere, must have been concerned about the idea that actors weren't necessary, and in fact, would have made it not so great a picture. (IMHO) It was good to see the real deal, and see them get some credit for what they do, while we sleep peacefully in our beds at night.

As for other critics who said it was a video game, well, you just have no clue. Where do you think FPS video games get their ideas from, watching reruns of Gilligan's Island? They get it from someone, somewhere who had it going on. So, pardon me if it looked like a video game to you, but it looked like what SEALs do, and in some cases, what other elite forces do. If its a video game to you, so be it.

I was proud to see the real men doing the job, even though the plot was fictional, it was cool to know these men really do stuff like this, so it was a good movie all around. I'd like to see more like this!

The ending, I thought the transition from the end into the credits was a good move back to reality, painful, but good.

'Nuff said.

BZ guys!