Mosul is a frustratingly generic war movie, particularly given its potential as an exploration of Iraq in the wake of the American withdrawal.
Mosul is produced by Joe and Anthony Russo, best known as the directors of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. The pair have leveraged the success of their work with Marvel to produce the work of other filmmakers, including past collaborators. 21 Bridges was a star vehicle for Black Panther leading actor Chadwick Boseman. Extraction starred Thor actor Chris Hemsworth and was directed by stuntman Sam Hargrave who had been Chris Evans’ stunt double on Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Iraqqing up an impressive reputation.
Mosul marks the directorial debut of veteran writer Mathew Michael Carnahan, who collaborated with Adam Mervis on the screenplay for 21 Bridges. Indeed, the Middle Eastern War on Terror framing of Mosul feels like an organic extension of Carnahan’s interests as a writer; his first two screenplay credits were for The Kingdom and Lions for Lambs, both released in 2007. As such, tasking Carnahan with making a boots-on-the-ground war film about the chaos in Iraq following the end of American involvement seems like a perfectly logical choice.
To his credit Carnahan understands the language and the logic of war movies. With its emphasis on handheld footage, Mosul occasionally feels like a spiritual companion to something like Blackhawk Down. With its recurring fascination with the absurdity and insanity of the horror of these sorts of conflicts, Mosul plays an extension of the core themes of Apocalypse Now. Indeed, Carnahan cycles through the conventional tropes and clichés of war movies with thrilling abandon, ensuring a propulsive sense of momentum and movement through the film.
“Mosul, Mo’ Problems.”
At the same time, Mosul feels a little too generic and too conventional. There are only a handful of sequences in the movie that feel like they relate specifically to this context, to the particulars of the war being waged in Iraq against Daesh. Too often, the film feels like it could be any war in any place at any time. It doesn’t help that Mosul positions itself more as an action movie and thriller than as a drama or study. Indeed, there are moments when Mosul feels just a little exploitative, as if attempting to extract pulpy thrills from a crisis that is still unfolding.
That said, Mosul hits most of its marks with enough skill and efficiency that none of these problems ever reach critical mass. Mosul bounces quickly from each set-up to the next, never allowing its audience or its characters the space to dwell on the familiarity of its set-up and execution. Mosul is a tightly constructed war thriller, even if it never fulfills its potential.
Commanding presence.
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: apocalypse now, film, iran, iraq, iraq war, mosul, Movie, non-review review, review, the russo brothers, war movies | Leave a comment »
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