Guy Ritchie's The Covenant (2023) Review

How long you been here? Five years. You like it? It's a job, sir. Well, Achmed, this unit specializes in finding Taliban munitions and explosive sites. Basically, we get into trouble. Sadly, we lost our last interpreter. Understood. Hello, everyone. I'm Johnny, and today we're taking a look at Guy Ritchie's The Covenant. This is, of course, a war movie, one that focuses on the Afghanistan War. It's an ambitious film because it was released after the pullout from Afghanistan, when much of the general public was either mad about the war or wanted to forget it ever happened. I recommend it, though, because the film offers some critical and rare perspectives on the war. The Covenant was unfortunately a box office flop, making about $22 million in revenue compared to its $55 million budget. The reason why the movie flopped was not because it's a bad movie. It more likely had something to do with America and NATO's exhaustion over the conflict. Let's reflect on the conflict from an American perspective. America was involved in the Afghanistan War for 20 years and suffered a loss of 2,459 military personnel, with another over 20,000 injured. The cost of the war in dollars was $2.3 trillion. When America withdrew from Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, it was a messy affair, culminating in the loss of 13 U.S. service members, with another 45 wounded. Additionally, more than 170 Afghan civilians lost their lives during this time. Afghanistan was America's longest war ever, and once America left, the Taliban retook control of the country within a week. Many Americans are familiar with the war's cost, or at very least the withdrawal. The Covenant fills an important and overlooked aspect of the war, which is what happened to the thousands of Afghans who worked for America and her allies during and after the war. When the Taliban took over, they viewed these men as traitors, many of whom helped the Americans directly battle and kill Taliban forces. It is estimated that Taliban forces killed hundreds of the thousands of interpreters left behind, but it's hard to know the exact number. Many interpreters further worked for private companies and were fired during the withdrawal, leaving visa applications in chaos. The Taliban to this day hunt interpreters left behind. The Covenant follows Jake Gyllenhaal as Master Sergeant John Kinley, part of a special forces team designated with finding and disrupting the Taliban's production of explosives and weapons. Part of Kinley's team is their interpreter, Ahmed, played by Dar Salim. Ahmed proves himself invaluable to the team with his street smarts, on several occasions effectively saving Kinley and his men from danger. This leads up to one of the major events of the film, where Ahmed risks his life transporting a wounded Kinley over several days through hostile territory to safety. At first you might think this is going to be a survival story. However, the survival escape the Taliban segment of the film only serves to, in a concentrated way, highlight the many Afghan interpreters who risked their lives in this conflict and saved the lives of American servicemen. That's not to say that Afghan civilians and forces didn't also pose risks to servicemen. This is also highlighted in the film. The rescue scene really is only part one of the conflict in the movie, which is followed by Kinley returning to the United States, where he undergoes a lengthy personal campaign to now save Ahmed, and is blocked by bureaucracy at every turn. But Kinley views himself as in debt to Ahmed, feeling he has a covenant with him. And though the American government may issue statements of appeasement regarding saving interpreters, the issue of saving this man is personal. One of the strongest lines in the film is Kinley stating that debt demands a result and not an appeasement. Powerful words in the face of politics and policy. The latter half of the film focuses on Kinley returning to Afghanistan to save Ahmed, using a private contractor. What is most critically highlighted in the film is that Afghan interpreters not only risked their lives but also the lives of their families. The Taliban was and is infamous for threatening and targeting entire families, for what they view as the guilt of one. Meeting Ahmed's pregnant wife in the film is juxtaposed on several occasions with Kinley's family, save at home in the United States. Besides messaging, the film is a win in the acting department. Jake Gyllenhaal is very believable as a sergeant facing PTSD and survivor's guilt. Ahmed, played by Darsa Lim, is equally excellent. It was also cool to see Anthony Starr, aka Homelander, playing a private security contractor. The weakness of the film comes in the battle scenes, but only if you are a tactically-minded sort of person. Battles and action scenes are cinematic enough, but they are executed in a way that is often reckless, such as a small squad breaking up and searching a mine site where there is a decent likelihood of a large enemy force. The survival-escape scene also favors dramatic flair over logic. One frustration here is that the Taliban are doing a much better job at searching the area for Kinley and Ahmed than the American military, who is well aware of the missing men in their last known position. But that would of course spoil the chase, and it is an interesting chase involving several twists and turns. At one point, Ahmed acquires a truck and develops an impressive cover story, which he tests, and it works well. However, he later trades the truck, which he is using to transport a wounded Sergeant Kinley, for a push cart, clearly meant for a donkey. He then proceeds for what is presumably days pushing Kinley through the countryside, hoping he won't die along the way. Lastly, the rescue of Ahmed at the end of the film lacks any tactical consideration. For example, no concern is given for whether or not Kinley's rescue plan might actually put Ahmed and his family in grave danger, which of course it naturally does. Ahmed and his family are nearly killed during the rescue attempt. It was certainly possible the street-smart Ahmed could have lived safely in Afghanistan without the rescue. Alternatively, he simply could have been given information or documents to make his way to safety on his own, possibly fleeing to Pakistan before making his way to America. But then maybe that would make for a boring film. Or maybe that would have made for a more interesting film, had the movie been more from Ahmed's perspective. A Day in the Life of a Wanted Afghan Surviving Under Taliban Rule would have been a more realistic story, bringing the audience closer to the the movie's objective. Many of the scenes at the beginning of the movie are the strongest, with the interpreter and Kinley's team searching buildings and interacting with locals. More of this would have been excellent. The director-writer-producer Guy Ritchie's strong suit has always been excellent dialogue in his movies. Ultimately, the movie is successful with its objectives, some cinematic battle sequences, and most importantly, highlighting the abandonment of translators. When you invade a country, no matter the failings of that country, you adopt that mess and the mess you make. And though America has helped almost 200,000 Afghans since the chaotic 2021 U.S. withdrawal, many were left behind, and many who are now in the United States still have no clear pathway to permanent residency. Alright, I'm Johnny, thanks for watching. Do check out Guy Ritchie's The Covenant. It's one of those great historical movies that offers a different perspective of events and history. I think everyone will further appreciate the great acting in the film. So yeah, you know, like or subscribe or whatever, and most importantly, have a nice rest of your day.