Released: February 2018(USA)
Director: Dante Lam
Run Time: 140 Minutes
Not Rated
Distributor: Well Go USA(USA)
Genre: Action/War
Cast:
Yi Zhang: Yang Rui
Johnny Huang: Go Shun
Hai-Qing: Xia Nan
Jiang Du: Xu Hong
Luxia Jiang: Tong Li
Fang Yin: Li Dong
I’m a huge fan of war movies. Why? I like history, particularly military history which includes war. It gives you a glimpse into that particular period in history and to me, it’s very interesting to see how the world worked at that time. Some of my favorite war movies include Saving Private Ryan and Glory. One of the reasons why I like those movies is the attention to detail and the reality of war. Saving Private Ryan changed the way war movies were done. Instead of romanticizing war, Ryan gave us a very brutal look at how terrible war truly is. The opening D-Day invasion was one of the most gut-wrenching, gruesome and brutal sequences I’ve ever seen in a movie. It wasn’t just to shock you, but it was meant to show you the sacrifices and the challenges that our soldiers had to go through to save the world from tyranny. However, a lot of the war movies that I enjoy are from the perspective of a Westerner. We generally don’t see war from the perspective of another country, and that’s why I try to find war movies from other countries including Russia, Japan, or anywhere that isn’t the United States or Western Europe. One of the more interesting war films to come out in the last year or so was a little flick called Operation Red Sea from Hong Kong. Does this film stack up at all with OUR war films? Yes. Yes, it does.
Loosely based on the evacuation of Chinese citizens from Yemen during the Yemeni Civil War in 2015, Operation Red Sea opens as the Chinese Navy is engaging a group of pirates that have hijacked a frigate. Successfully freeing the ship and arresting the pirates that attacked, one of the navy’s soldiers is critically wounded in the fight and has to be replaced. Shortly after, they are informed that Chinese citizens in the fictional country of Yewaire are caught in the middle of a vicious civil war between insurgents and the country’s rebels. Ordered to evacuate the citizens, the Chinese Navy heads towards Yewaire. Meanwhile, a reporter on the ground in the country discovered that the insurgents have managed to locate large amount of material that can be used to create “dirty” bombs. A number of folks have criticized movies like Wolf Warrior and Operation Red Sea as “propaganda” films. I definitely noticed that in the first Wolf Warrior picture, but it seems to have been toned down a bit for Operation Red Sea. It’s still there, as there is still quite a bit of patriotic imagery, but it’s been balanced out by some pretty brutal and violent imagery. Some critics have compared this film to something like say Saving Private Ryan or Black Hawk Down. I would say the film is more comparable to Black Hawk Down as it deals with a very different kind of war than what you see in Saving Private Ryan. The story is nothing new and it is based on an actual event, but thankfully, Dante Lam keeps the story right to the point and it works very well for this film.
If you’ve come to this film for the action, then I am pleased to say….HOLY SHIT. From the opening attack on the hijacked freighter, the movie kicks into high gear and it rarely slows down. I’m not kidding, when the boots hit the ground in Yewaire, the action goes straight to 11. In a lot of action movies these days, there would be a ton of shaky cam and other nonsensical camera-work that would distract you from what’s going on. Not here. There is definitely some shaky-cam going on, but it’s done to elevate the realism of the situation and gets you more involved in what’s happening on screen. I’m actually very surprised at how violent this film is. Operation Red Sea doesn’t screw around and it doesn’t pull any punches. Yeah, you’ve got really big explosions and amazing gun fights, but the film doesn’t shy away from the gore or putting innocent people in the crossfire. Again, the purpose is to highlight the ugliness of war and the crap that was going on in Yemen was brutal. Nobody is safe in this film and it keeps you guessing until the end on who survives and who doesn’t. In terms of the violence and the scope of the film, I’m pleasantly surprised that this film manages to hold its own against some of OUR war movies. That’s not an easy thing to accomplish, yet director Dante Lam has done just that, especially when it comes to the action. It’s visceral to the point of being almost callous, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
This movie is absolutely insane, especially in terms of its pacing. Once it starts, it rarely slows down. The stunts that come later in the film are absolutely incredible. There is a sequence in which some of the soldiers use wing-suits to reach a particular location and it’s one of the most thrilling sequences in the film. The whole movie appears to have been shot on location in Morocco, so the lack of green screen is very much appreciated. Shooting on location, especially in a war movie, is very important. It adds to the grit and the realism so that the tension is hightened to white-knuckle status. Operation Red Sea had me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire picture, and I have to commend the film-makers for that. There are some downsides to the film. The main characters really aren’t fleshed out and there’s no single protagonist/antagonist. So, you’re kind of not attached to anybody, with the exception of the reporter. This isn’t necessarily the worst thing, as there are some pretty horrific acts of violence that are happening in the film. The acting is still really solid, so you still get a little invested, but this a movie where the action takes center stage. There’s also the occasional CGI explosion, but for the most part, the effects are mostly practical, especially the gore. I was genuinely surprised at the amount of gore in this film.
Now, concerning the “propaganda” aspect of the film, you have to realize that when it comes to the military, the Chinese government takes the portrayal of their armed services very seriously. So, you don’t see the Chinese military portrayed in a negative light in a Hong Kong production very often. The Chinese government also has some….issues with reporters and journalism that doesn’t acquiesce to their point of view. That being said, Operation Red Sea does a very good job at portraying the horrors of war and how sometimes journalists can help. It has its moments of propaganda, but it doesn’t shy away from being anti-war, considering how it affects everybody involved from the soldiers that are fighting, to the innocent people that get caught in the middle. I, for one, am really glad that this movie was made and that it has earned its place in my collection. If you really like war movies, Operation Red Sea is a must-watch. Highly recommended.
My Final Recommendation: 9.5/10. No snark or snide comment this time, just a solid recommendation.