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‘WAR MACHINE’ Rated R on Netflix
In the years since the horrific attack on U.S. soil on September 11, 2001, there have been several movies focused on the War on Terror and the battles that ensued in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Released in 2009, “The Hurt Locker,” which portrayed the mission of an American military bomb squad to locate and defuse improvised explosive devices during the Iraq war, won six Academy Awards, cementing its place as one of the best modern war films.
As for the Afghanistan war, “The Outpost,” directed by Rod Lurie (an Army veteran himself), turned a nonfiction book about a remote American military outpost being ambushed by hundreds of Taliban fighters into a recounting of one of the bloodiest battles at the time in 2009.
With a title like “War Machine,” the Netflix film conjures up the impression of wartime battle in the fields of some wretched corner of the world where an implacable foe poses grave danger.
Interestingly, within the past decade Netflix has two films with the same title. The 2017 “War Machine” starred Brad Pitt as General Glen McMahon, a character based on General Stanley McChrystal who served a brief time as the commander leading all American forces in Afghanistan.
The Brad Pitt “War Machine” is described on Wikipedia as “a satirical war comedy film” based on a nonfiction book about events involving General McChrystal who submitted his resignation to President Obama due to his unflattering remarks about the Administration in a “Rolling Stones” article.
Afghanistan is the setting, at least initially, for the current “War Machine,” which has no genesis, either satirical or otherwise, based on true events of military conflicts in a forsaken land.
The brawny Alan Ritchson (known for his titular role in the “Reacher” streaming series), serving as a Staff Sergeant, shows up to assist his brother’s (Jai Courtney) convoy under heavy artillery attack from the Taliban.
Ritchson’s brother insists that they should both apply to become elite Army Rangers. Sole survivor of the ambush, the Staff Sergeant suffers a severe leg injury and attempts to carry his mortally wounded brother back to the base, only to pass out and wake up in a hospital.
Two years have passed, and the Staff Sergeant, who remains nameless, enrolls in the Ranger Assessment Selection Program (RASP), a grueling course of physical and mental toughness training where those who graduate are assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment.
Remaining in his comfort zone of a stoic character, Ritchson’s sergeant, like all other RASP candidates, is given number “81” as his identification, which is how he’s known to fellow enlistees and to the brass.
During training, 81 shines but remains aloof and fails to bond with fellow recruits, and neither does he wish to be a team leader. He nearly drowns when he walks underwater carrying heavy weights, but nothing will get in his way of being one of the few not dismissed from the program.
His superior officers, Sergeant Major Sheridan (Dennis Quaid) and First Sergeant Torres (Esai Morales) who are exceedingly hard on their charges, deem 81 to have mental health issues and want him to take a break.
Stubborn and determined, 81 stays in the game, and his superiors decide to let him remain in RASP and assign him to be the team leader, to the dismay of some of the recruits, for the final test of a practice mission to rescue a pilot from a crash in the forest.
The mission takes a wild turn into science-fiction territory when 81 and his fellow incipient Rangers encounter a hostile alien creature that moves swiftly on mechanical legs shooting death rays that fry anyone in its path.
However, a television news report flickering in the background about an asteroid potentially heading towards Earth could be a tip-off that something disturbing may be afoot. But a killer robot doesn’t immediately come to mind.
The exercise in the forest was presumed to be a test of resolve of the recruits for their endurance of this challenge. They get more than bargained for when required to elude a giant killing machine. Now the test is survival, not physical stamina.
The alien robot, impervious to explosive devices planted by the soldiers, begins gunning down the helpless troops, with the result of charred and dismembered bodies strewn everywhere. The machine also emits a red scan before vaporizing its victims with a blue ray.
Thrilling action includes a dangerous crossing over raging waters, an escape with a tank under heavy fire, and the climatic showdown when 81 fights the robot with a bulldozer and bravely rescues an injured teammate.
The action scenes are well-staged with plenty of spine-tingling and thrilling sequences, as the result of experience gained by director Patrick Hughes with films like “The Hitman’s Bodyguard” and “The Expendables 3.”
Hughes delivers in “War Machine” what action fans crave, and don’t be surprised if a sequel turns up in the works for a subsequent global invasion.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.