The Wall (2017)

Finally a different Iraq war movie !! Kept me on interested all movie and liked the actings...Dont like my review? deal with it

What I loved about this movie is that it gives you a perspective of what an enemy thinks of a soldier who is in the enemies country. The Iraqi sniper has two advantages...he speaks english and knows Army "lingo". It doesn't take long for the American to figure out that the person he is speaking to by radio is his enemy. He is being taunted by this Iraqi who has the advantage of being hidden from sight and can see the two Americans. Aaron Taylor-Johnson gives a brilliant portrayal of a desperate, badly injured soldier who is desperate to find the location of the Iraqi sniper. This is really a one man movie which I stumbled upon and can't understand why I had never heard of it before. I love movies that are psychological thrillers and "The Wall" certainly falls into that category. I don't have any military experience so I wasn't focusing on what equipment these guys were using which some other reviewers who most likely have experience in combat, were commenting on what a soldier would be carrying aka binoculars. It's unfortunate that they are missing the point of this movie which to me is the Iraqi is not buying into the American reasons for being in his country. The Iraqi is questioning the insanity of blowing up a school in his country and then thinking that by sending teams to reconstruct infrastructure that Americans themselves previously destroyed was somehow going to make up for all the death and destruction.

In between 2014's brilliant Sci-Fi romp Edge of Tomorrow and last year's underrated thriller American Made, director Doug Liman took a detour to the more sombre space of movie-making and directed this character driven Iraq based thriller about two rival snipers trapped in a life or death battle in the harsh surrounds of the middle-eastern dust bowl.Forgoing his usual hand-held frenetic style of filmmaking, Liman has clearly tried to find his films thrills in other ways with The Wall but this small ensemble piece that largely focuses its time on Aaron Taylor-Johnson's wounded American solider Isaac as he enters into a battle of wits and sharp shooting with the never seen, only heard Iraq sniper "The Ghost" is in dire need of more pulse pounding action as we begin to realise that Johnson hiding behind a wall for an hour is only going to take us so far in the entertainment stakes.There's certainly nothing wrong with films forgoing the grand-scale to instead focus on the tension of a small-scale life or death event (Buried springs to mind, even the epic Das Boot) but Liman's film struggles to maintain its initial intriguing set-up as the bullets stop flying and the so-so nature of what Liman is trying to achieve starts taking full effect.Having The Ghost communicate and taunt Isaac as the two spar over a radio as Isaac's comrade Matthew's lay motionless before him (John Cena fans should look elsewhere to see their beloved ex-wrestler ply his acting chops) can only take the film so far and while Liman is trying to show the two sides of the war and those that fight in it there are better ways to tell both sides of the story.Unusually also for a Liman film, The Wall's action is second rate and with the tension deflated by long and arduous sections of Isaac looking at a trash heap or The Ghost quoting Edgar Allen Poe poems, even when things ramp up a notch it's not enough to make The Wall worth your time even with a committed Taylor-Johnson trying his best with a role that didn't exactly provide him with the best of material to work with.Final Say - What could've been a white-knuckle battle of wits and survival instincts instead ends up being a bit of a dust-filled bore. It's nice to see Liman try his hand at something a little different to his usual repertoire but The Wall is neither exciting enough or smart enough to recommend, while it's misguided ending makes the whole experience that much more frustrating upon reflection.2 bags of Skittles out of 5

Over all, this was a decent war flick if you're wasting some time or washing the dishes etc.First, the one-star reviews calling this 'anti-American' or 'anti-military' are silly as hell. Of course the other side is going to say things against the American military. What would have pleased you? If he had just jabbered "Mohammed Jihad durka durka" the whole time? To be a realistic character he is going to say things that are against the American military... that's sort of the point of him being the enemy. Don't be so sensitive.The movie itself is well-shot and fairly well-acted. John Cena seems to be more of a fill-in to bring in viewers than anything else. The main actor playing Isaac "Eyes" does a pretty good job. To those saying he ends up "acting like a bit**", well, I imagine most people eventually would soften up a little after bleeding out in the desert for hours.Anyway, the pace of the movie can be a little slow (how can it not be at 90 minutes with a guy hiding behind a wall). The premise is a little silly once all is revealed at the end - the military has checks in place to not allow this to happen over and over.Military vets/serving members will find it a little silly, the decisions and tactics make no sense, the equipment they choose to bring, etc. But if you can put this aside it is a decent enough flick. 6/10 for being well-shot and well-acted, but unbelievable in too many ways.