COURAGE UNDER FIRE
Jack Choo
Directed by : Edward Zwick
Produced by : 20th Century Fox
Cast :Denzel Washington (Lt. Col. Serling) Meg Ryan (Cpt. Karen Walden) Lou Diamond Philips (Monfrieze) Matt Damon
Rating : **** out of *****
COMING TO GRIPS WITH A COSTLY ERROR
Lt. Col. Serling (Washington) leads one of the many tank batallions into the major offensive against Iraq during the Gulf War. His section meets with minimal resistance from the enemy, and just as everyone in the outfit is comfortable with victory, they come under heavy tank fire. In the panic, Serling mistakes a friendly tank for the attacking enemy and destroys it. The military does not allow Serling to release the details of that attack and covers up the incident. During the post-war period, he is assigned to a special committee to validate medal-of-honour recommendations. His first task: to justify the nomination of Cpt. Karen Walden (Meg Ryan), a medical helicopter pilot who's supposedly to have save some soldiers under fir e.
Naturally, he goes out into the field for some standard interviews, but after conducting interviews with the assisting helicopter gunner Monfrieze, and the medical officer on board the helicopter (Damon), he finds that their recollections of the incident differ immensely. Sensing something amiss, he barrages through pressure from the his superiors and his own problems with his experience in the war, determined to seek out the the truth on what actually happened to Cpt. Walden.
COURAGE UNDER FIRE marks Denzel Washington's third outing in a military role; the first in GLORY (also by director Edward Zwick, where Washington won an oscar for best supporting actor) and the second, CRIMSON TIDE (last year's submarine thriller). Meg R yan, however, is treading on new ground for this film, breaking out of her usual typecast mould in quirky romantic comedies. Both give commendable performances, though Meg Ryan's character lives only through the flashbacks retold by others.
Although Washington is not a stranger to such films, in COURAGE UNDER FIRE, he is not like the intense and principle abiding XO he played CRIMSON TIDE. Here, he is a man of honour who cannot come to terms with his wrong-doing unless he has told the truth, and in that search for Cpt. Walden's truth, he ultimately manages to break the authority which bars him from revealing the facts about what happened during on that fateful day during the Gulf War.
In its most obvious form, COURAGE UNDER FIRE is a military drama. Even so, it tells a story of a man coming to terms with himself despite going against personal principles and external pressure. Washington gives a good performance here. The action scenes are spectacular though not in abundance, but they are not nearly as import ant as the story itself, which moves along smoothly, thanks to good all round acting and production values. Highly recommended.
The Flying Inkpot Rating System:
* Wait for the TV2 broadcast.
** A little creaky, but still better than staying at home with Gotcha!
*** Pretty good, bring a friend.
**** Amazing, potent stuff.
***** Perfection. See it twice.
Other film reviews by this writer can be obtained from the InkVault by doing a key word search with this writer's name.Other film reviews by other writers can also be obtained from the InkVault through key word searches.
Explore the Flying Inkpot
They're Alive!
Concert Reviews
Bit deadish:
Other Resources at The Flying InkpotHome
