13 Hours – Blu-ray Movie Review

This film tells the incredible true story of six elite ex-military operators who fought to protect the CIA against overwhelming odds when terrorist attacked the US diplomatic compound in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012. This is an amazing action film that is surprisingly intense and stirring from the director who is better known for his Transformer movies.

This movie surprised me a bit. The acting was good. Krasinski is only known to me from his work on The Office. Here, he actually gets a chance to act in an action movie and he completely nails it. Second, I hate the over the top Transformer movies. The incoherent action sequences, brash colors, lens flairs and NOISE. But here, Bay takes time to set up the characters and the quickly evolving situation that goes South before the dawns early light. I would put this film up there with American Sniper and other recent war flicks, but Bay does a good job refraining from finger pointing and having the movie take on a political twist. What we are left with is a story of courage, survival and “not on my watch” camaraderie that will leave you on the edge of your seat till the very end. There are men and women all around the world that have America’s back and they have my heartfelt thanks.

The picture looks fantastic with beautiful details, colors and contrast. The fighting sequences are intense, but well choreographed. Explosions and bullets have serious impact so the sub and surrounds are kept busy throughout the movie. Occasionally, there are some lens flairs that appear as purplish blobs across the screen, but they are never excessive. Many shots are from above, looking directly down on the action so you can get a sense of the whole picture as it is taking shape. It was quite effective. Overall, this is a demo worthy film for your “action library”.

Including an HD Copy and DVD, you also get For the Record: Finding the Truth Amid the Noise, Uncovering Benghazi’s Secret Soldiers, and Preparing for Battle, Behind the Scenes of 13 Hours.