13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
| 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Michael Bay |
| Produced by |
|
| Screenplay by | Chuck Hogan |
| Based on | 13 Hours by Mitchell Zuckoff |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Lorne Balfe[1] |
| Cinematography | Dion Beebe |
| Edited by | Pietro Scalia[2] |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 144 minutes[3] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $50 million[4] |
| Box office | $21.1 million[4] |
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (credited onscreen as 13 Hours) is a 2016 American war film directed and co-produced by Michael Bay and written by Chuck Hogan, based on Mitchell Zuckoff's 2014 book 13 Hours. It recounts the true life events of six members of a security team who fought to defend the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, after waves of terrorist attacks on September 11, 2012. The film stars James Badge Dale, John Krasinski, Max Martini, Toby Stephens, Pablo Schreiber, David Denman, Dominic Fumusa, Freddie Stroma, and Alexia Barlier. Filming began on April 27, 2015 in Malta. The film was released on January 15, 2016, by Paramount Pictures. Although the film's trailer states "this is a true story," the film's historical accuracy has been criticized.[5][6][7]
Contents
[show]Plot[edit]
On the evening of the eleventh anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a group of Islamic militants attacked the American diplomatic compound and the nearby CIA "Annex" building in Benghazi, Libya. A small team of CIA security contractors—military veterans who served with the Navy SEALS, Marine Force Recon and Army Special Forces—undertake a desperate defense of the American Ambassador and his staff within the diplomatic compound.[8][9]
Cast[edit]
- James Badge Dale[10] as Tyrone S. "Rone" Woods. Dale found his character, Rone, a compelling figure. He said, "As much as he wants to be home with his family, he had this purpose. He was a complicated man who was very good at what did professionally and had baggage like we all have baggage."[11]
- John Krasinski[9] as Jack Da Silva
- Max Martini[12] as Mark "Oz" Geist
- Dominic Fumusa as John "Tig" Tiegen, a former Marine and one of the members of the security team.[13]
- Pablo Schreiber[14] as Kris "Tanto" Paronto, a former U.S. Army Ranger.
- David Denman[15] as Boon
- Matt Letscher as Ambassador Chris Stevens[16]
- Toby Stephens as Glen "Bub" Doherty, a Global Response Staff (GRS) officer, security team member, and good friend of Jack Da Silva.[17]
- Alexia Barlier as Sona Jillani, an Exxon Oil representative, protected by the six ex-military on the security team.
- Freddie Stroma as Brit Vayner, an undercover CIA officer in Libya.[18]
- David Costabile as 'The Chief', the Benghazi Chief of Base, CIA[19]
- Andrei Claude as Bandolier, the leader of a militia who carry out the attacks on the U.S. embassy and CIA annex in Benghazi.
- David Giuntoli as Scott Wickland
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
On February 10, 2014, it was announced that Paramount Pictures was in talks with 3 Arts Entertainment to acquire the film rights to the book 13 Hours written by Mitchell Zuckoff, which Erwin Stoff would produce.[8] Chuck Hogan was set to adapt the book, based on the true events of the Benghazi attack by militants on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, on the evening of September 11, 2012.[8] The film would focus on six members of a security team that fought to defend the Americans stationed there.[8] on October 29, 2014, Michael Bay was set to direct and produce the thriller.[20]
Casting[edit]
On January 14, 2015, John Krasinski was added to the cast of the film to play one of the lead roles as a US Navy SEAL.[9] on February 3, Pablo Schreiber also signed on to star in the film, playing Kris "Tanto" Paronto, one of the six-man security team.[14] on February 6, James Badge Dale was set to star in the film as the leader of the security team.[10] Max Martini was cast to star as another member of the security team on February 17, 2015.[12] David Denman signed on to star in the film on March 3, 2015, playing Boon, an elite sniper.[15] on March 5, 2015, THR reported that Dominic Fumusa also signed on to play John "Tig" Tiegen, one of the members of the security team, who is also a former Marine with weapons expertise.[13] Freddie Stroma was added to the cast on March 17, 2015 to play the role of an undercover CIA officer in Libya.[18] Toby Stephens was set on May 7, 2015 to play Glen "Bub" Doherty, one of the security team members and a Global Response Staff (GRS) officer who is a good friend of Krasinski's character.[17]
Filming[edit]
Principal photography began on April 27, 2015 in Malta and Morocco.[15][21] A large film set was built in March 2015 in Ta' Qali, Malta.[22]
Release[edit]
On June 30, 2015, Paramount announced the new title would be 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi and set the film to be released on January 15, 2016 during the MLK Holiday weekend.[23] The film premiered on January 12, 2016, at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas,[24] benefitting the Shadow Warriors Project, which supports private military security personnel and other groups.[24]
The film was given only a limited release in Canada for the weekend of January 15-17, playing in select theatres in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa. The film will go to wide release in Canadian theatres the following weekend.[25][26]
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
13 Hours was projected to earn around $20 million in its four-day Martin Luther King weekend debut. It faced competition with fellow newcomer Ride Along 2, as well as holdovers The Revenant and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.[27] Other films with similar genres that opened on MLK weekend in previous years, American Sniper ($107.2 million in 2015) and Lone Survivor ($37.8 million in 2014), found success, although those films faced weaker competition, as well as playing well in both red states and blue states.[28] However, The Hollywood Reporter noted that the film could easily outperform expectations if it is buoyed by wave of patriotism and is bound to do well in markets where there are military bases.[28] The film made $900,000 from 1,995 theaters during its Thursday previews and $16.2 million in its opening weekend, finishing fourth at the box office.[29]
Critical response[edit]
13 Hours was praised for its acting, direction, pace, and action scenes; however, many critics felt the film did not deliver an informed or accurate recollection of the events that occurred.[30][31][32][33][34] on Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 59%, based on 112 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's consensus reads, "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is a comparatively mature and restrained effort from Michael Bay, albeit one that can't quite boast the impact its fact-based story deserves."[35] on Metacritic the film has a score of 49 out of 100, based on 35 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[36] on CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[29]
Soren Andersen, writing for the Seattle Times, gave the film 3 stars out of 4, criticizing the lack of distinctive characters but ultimately summarizing 13 Hours as "engrossing" and "a ground-level depiction of heroism in the midst of the fog of war."[37] Richard Roeper similarly praised 13 Hours in his review for the Chicago Sun-Times. Although he lamented the script, Roeper found the film to be "solid action thriller with well-choreographed battle sequences and strong work from the ensemble cast."[38] Like Roeper's review, New York Daily News' Joe Dziemianowicz was less receptive towards the script, but applauded the film's focus on the real-life attack, summarizing: "War is gritty here, not glamorous... [Michael Bay] delivers a gripping, harrowing, and heartfelt film."[39]
In a mixed review, Inkoo Kang of TheWrap praised 13 Hours for its action scenes, but panned Michael Bay's direction as "myopic". She writes: "13 Hours is the rare Michael Bay movie that wasn't made with teenage boys in mind. But that doesn't make his latest any less callously juvenile."[40] Lindsey Bahr of the Associated Press was critical of the film's direction and cinematography, and found the screenplay to be confusing.[41] Similarly, The Economist described the film as "a sleek, poorly scripted and largely meaningless film."[42]
Historical accuracy[edit]
Although the film's trailer and the film itself states "this is a true story", the film's historical accuracy has been criticized on several points. The CIA chief ('Bob') at the time in Benghazi has stated that there was no stand down order.[43] His claim is supported by the bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee's finding that there was "no evidence of intentional delay or obstruction by the Chief of Base or any other party."[5] To the contrary, former Special Forces Officer Kris "Tonto" Paronto, one of the CIA contractors who fought that night, states in an interview with Politico, "There is no sensationalism in that: We were told to 'stand down'. Those words were used verbatim — 100 percent. ... If the truth of it affects someone's political career? Well, I'm sorry. It happens."[44] Zack Beauchamp directly addressed the questionable nature of the "true story" claim: "The movie's attempt to make a real-life event into an action movie, and raise the stakes by telling an audience what they're seeing is a 'true story,' requires it to distort the events of September 11, 2012 — in some cases twisting it beyond recognition. And in doing so, the movie lends credence to some of the most pernicious conspiracy theories about Benghazi out there."[5]
Also refuted is the film's claim that air support was denied. A House Armed Services report found that air support was unavailable, or it would have arrived too late to make a difference.[6][7]
See also[edit]
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