Think I'm gonna see this one.
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...this might be the most atypical Guy Ritchie film to date. Sure, there’s a certain numbing familiarity to American military dudes exchanging mock-gay banter as if the very notion of queerness in uniform is hilarious, and the dialogue in the script by Ritchie, Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies indulges in one or two Big Noble Speeches. But for the most part, the project shows a new maturity, avoiding the glib facetiousness and tricksy plotting that have so often been part of the Ritchie stamp.
What’s surprising about The Covenant is that the usual gung-ho American military bravery is mostly downplayed to focus on the strategic backup provided by on-the-ground interpreters, who risked being branded as infidels, ostracized by their compatriots and tagged for Taliban reprisals.
Shot by Ed Wild in the mountainous landscapes of Alicante, Spain, the movie has a big, muscular look, with lots of expansive drone shots to isolate the characters in vast stretches of hostile territory. Without over-relying on the visual cliché of handheld agitation, the camerawork is nimble and exciting in both the central gunfight and the climactic clash at a dam designated as the safest extraction point. (Wild cites the late British conflict-zone photojournalist Tim Hetherington’s work as an inspiration.)
Ritchie and his regular editor James Herbert maintain a steady but propulsive pace over the two-hour duration, pushed along by a suspenseful score from Chris Benstead that makes evocative use of dissonant strings.
Gyllenhaal and Iraq-born Danish actor Salim are well matched in what’s at heart a two-man show, resulting in a solid, satisfying war thriller that spreads its attention evenly between hellish combat and resilient humanity. [
+]