Guy Ritchie's The Covenant - Movie Review — The Reel Deal Movie Reviews

Directed by Guy Ritchie

★★★

Guy Ritchie notoriously makes bombastic and over-the-top films, typically with a lot of testosterone and filled to the brim with explosions and action set-pieces. His latest flick, egregiously titled Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant, has a few of his signature traits but is by far his most toned-down and human film to date.

Inspired by true events, Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant juxtaposes two intersecting point-of-views throughout the course of the film. The heart of the story comes from the vantage point of a native Afghani interpreter (Dar Salim) during America’s response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, highlighting the distrust and push-back he receives from his American soldier counterparts. The other point of view is from Jake Gyllenhaal’s commanding officer, who cautiously accepts Salim as an ally.

The bulk of the story follows Salim’s struggles to prove himself to his fellow soldiers, but once an ambush occurs, he must make a difficult and treacherous trek to safety while dragging along Gyllenhaal’s seriously wounded body. Luckily for the viewer, Ritchie ends this about halfway through and shows Gyllenhaal’s recovery and his search to help find Salim and bring him and his family to safety.

Ritchie adopts a very straightforward approach to the movie’s subject matter and maintains the film's roots in a damning reality despite trite soldier-isms. However, the film rests solely on Salim’s very capable shoulders. Salim has a very knowing sense of self. He displays every bit of his character’s past and present on his face, with pained restraint. Gyllenhaal is also reliably great, but this is Salim’s victory.

The film's greatest weakness (despite Salim’s second billing) is the focus on Gyllenhaal’s character in the movie's second half. Though true in nature, the film teeters into “white savior” territory at times, often taking a step backward when it should be moving forward. It’s notable in its ambition to show equality in both men’s attempts at saving the other, but it's the writing that causes side-eye when the story switches focus to Gyllenhaal’s sometimes whiny character.

Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant may not be the crowning achievement in tonal shift Ritchie was looking to accomplish, but it is by far a more mature and toned-down piece of filmmaking. Ritchie accomplishes what Michael Bay often seeks to do here but in a far more effective and honest way.

Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant

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