When an elite eight-man British SAS team is dropped behind enemy lines, their mission is clear: take out Saddam Hussein's SCUD missile systems. But when communications are cut and the team finds themselves surrounded by Saddam's army, their only hope is to risk capture and torture in a desperate 185-kilometer run to the Syrian border. Based on the true story of a British Special Forces unit behind enemy lines during the Gulf War, Bravo Two Zero explores the tragedies and triumphs of men taken to the edge of survival in the Persian Gulf War.
Reviews
Based on the book of the same name by Andy McNab, a pseudonym for the squad leader of a real life, ill-fated SAS patrol during the Gulf War, Bravo Two Zero tells the story of several soldiers stuck behind enemy lines. They're outnumbered, hopelessly ill-equipped, and surrounded by the Iraqi army, conveniently standing in the way of their extraction point. Patrol leader Andy McNab (Sean Bean) elects to go to Plan B, make a 160 km trek to the Syrian border through the freezing desert as Iraqi forces close in. What ensues is a desperate struggle for survival. The group gets split up, frost bite sets in, skirmishes transpire... It's a story of heroism and courage. But it's more than that. We also see how these men are only human, how in spite of their bravery they make a series of significant, occasionally deadly mistakes. Many claim McNab changed or exaggerated parts of the story to save face and look good, but I'm mostly indifferent to the controversy. Whether or not parts were fabricated or the enemy kill count was embellished, the movie as it stands is a terrific modern warfare film boasting realistic tactics, believable characters, and the depiction of an immeasurable will to survive. 9/10
When I first saw this movie, I really liked it. It is a gritty, low- budget movie that seemed very realistic and not too preachy.But then I started reading about the movie and I felt really ripped off- this movie tries to come across as the sincere, truth story of an SAS raid behind enemy lines in Iraq, complete with firsthand narration.IF you research the movie, there are all sorts of allegations as to its truthfulness, many coming from former SAS members. I read a lot and concluded McNab's tale was mostly fictional/grossly exaggerated, and this movie is likely a collection of lies and manipulations. Read up on it yourself and draw your own conclusions.I understand movies are meant to entertain, and can be entirely fictional. But I have a huge problem of a movie trying to hold itself out as something it isn't, particularly if it made be a "reputable" company such as the BBC, and I really can't give it a decent grade because of that.
I bought the DVD after seeing a few clips of the film on YouTube, and after some of the more ridiculous things thrown about in Ultimate Force on ITV (which is a pretty poor TV station anyway), I decided to see the BBC's take on the SAS. As it turned out, I wasn't disappointed! Unlike ITV, the BBC had really done their homework (and being someone who knows a little about the SAS myself, I liked what I saw).The storyline was very true to the nature of the book, and unlike with ITV, the characters, atmosphere, acting and all the details gave you the right idea.The film fell down in quality a little on a few points. Sean Bean still unaccountably carried his Yorkshire accent when playing the Londoner Andy McNab. The three characters who were killed were vaguely mentioned and brushed aside as if they never mattered, and some of the firefights were a little ridiculous, though I think the latter is to do with the nature of the book rather than anything else.However, aside from that, the film really did well and I was quite impressed with it. The actors were excellent, and also believable, so I give it the thumbs up!
While it is refreshing to see a non-American version of the Gulf War, Bravo Two Zero is a clumsy and crude attempt that fails in holding your interest at almost all times, mostly because it does not even try to be serious. Most of the action scenes are so lackluster it's not even funny.It appears that this UK production must have had such a low budget when making the film that they had to substitute key scenes with real-life footage. For example, the shot of the men leaving their families and taking off to the Middle East on a plane looks like some genius sneaked up on the landing runway of an airport and started filming a random passenger flight with a camcorder. Then they just decided to put this in the film. Also, in spite of this being a WAR movie, it is obvious that the production never used any real fighter aircrafts, but again, put in some random footage from a Gulf War documentary to pass off as their own. I found all of this totally hysterical and distracting.So, Bravo Two Zero is basically like one of those re-enacted documentaries used for educational purposes. It has all the elements: cut-rate cinematography, hammy acting, "home-made" feel and seemingly unknown actors. Sean Bean was in it, however, as the lead role of Andy McNabb. Bravo Two Zero actually improves considerably when it moves away from the cheesy battle scenes and into a more character-driven mode as the soldiers are held captive in Iraq. Some of the torture-scenes are surprisingly realistic. Bean is pretty much why I watched this film but it should be obvious to the viewer that this is simply pretty laughable. 3/10