Today’s quick review: Tears of the Sun. Lt. A.K. Waters (Bruce Willis) and his men are sent into Nigeria in the midst of a rebellion to extract Dr. Lena Kendricks (Monica Bellucci), an American by marriage who’s running an aid hospital there. Kendricks refuses to leave without her patients, so Waters sets out for the extraction site with dozens of civilians in tow. But to make it out, they’ll have to outrun the rebel forces pursuing them.
Tears of the Sun is a war drama and action movie about a hardened Navy lieutenant on a mission to rescue a doctor from a war-torn country. Waters must choose between following his orders to save only Dr. Kendricks and jeopardizing the mission by trying to get her patients out of the country as well. The calculus of that decision drives much of the film’s moral conflict, while the trek through a jungle in wartime provides a sharp element of danger.
The heart of the film is the tension between Lt. Waters and Dr. Kendricks. Waters is a cold man who follows his orders to the letter, while Kendricks is willing to risk everything for the sake of her patients. Neither one is easy to like, but their characters are well developed and their conflicting stances are well-justified. Bruce Willis and Monica Bellucci do an excellent job of bringing them to life, even if the result is tension and strife.
The external conflict deals with the trek through miles of jungle to get to the extraction zone. The rebels are hot on their heels, and Kendricks’ sick and elderly patients threaten to slow the group down to a risky degree. The fighting, such as it is, is tense and realistic. Tears of the Sun does a good job of portraying the tactics and considerations of a special forces team on a covert rescue mission; the mechanics of their journey are fascinating.
The downside of Tears of the Sun is that it focuses on this journey to the exclusion of all else. There’s no sharp distinction between the beginning of the movie and the end of it. To the extent that the characters change, the changes are understated, albeit meaningful. This means that anyone not interested in the initial premise will find little to catch their interest along the way. It also puts pressure on the two leads to carry the film.
Tears of the Sun makes for a single-minded but effective watch, chronicling a dangerous journey through enemy territory and the hard moral choices along the way. Those in the mood for something tense, dramatic, and lifelike should look no further. Those hoping for a popcorn action movie, more blatant heroism, or a more intricate, multifaceted plot should try elsewhere.
For a gritty action movie with a similar premise, try Rambo. For a political thriller set in Africa, try The Constant Gardener.
6.6 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 7.0 for solid execution of a narrow but naturally dramatic premise.