Tears Of The Sun (2003) Movie Information:

Tears Of The Sun (2003) Directed by: Antoine Fuqua Tears Of The Sun (2003) Written by: Patrick Cirillo, Alex Lasker Tears Of The Sun (2003) Cast: Bruce Willis, Monica Bellucci, Cole Hauser, Eamonn Walker, Nick Chinlund, Fionnula Flanagan, Malick Bowens, Tom Skerritt, Johnny Messner, Paul Francis

Tears Of The Sun (2003) U.S. Distributor: Columbia TriStar Tears Of The Sun (2003) U.K. Distributor: Sony Pictures

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Tears Of The Sun (2003) Synopsis:

Navy SEAL Lieutenant A.K. Waters and his elite squadron of tactical specialists are forced to choose between their duty and their humanity, between following orders by ignoring the conflict that surrounds them, or finding the courage to follow their conscience and protect a group of innocent refugees. When the democratic government of Nigeria collapses and the country is taken over by a ruthless military dictator, Waters, a fiercely loyal and hardened veteran is dispatched on a routine mission to retrieve a Doctors Without Borders physician, Dr. Lena Kendricks. Dr. Kendricks, an American citizen by marriage, is tending to the victims of the ongoing civil war at a Catholic mission in a remote village. When Waters arrives, however, Dr. Kendricks refuses to leave unless he promises to help deliver the villagers to political asylum at the nearby border. If they are left behind, they will be at the mercy of the enormous rebel army. Waters is under strict orders from his commanding officer Captain Bill Rhodes to remain disengaged from the conflict. But as he and his men witness the brutality of the rebels first-hand, they are won over to Dr. Kendricks' cause and place their lives at risk by agreeing to escort the villagers on a perilous trek through the dense jungle. As they move through the countryside on foot, Waters' team, experts at evasion and concealment, are inexplicably and ferociously pursued by an army of rebels. They are confounded until they discover that, among the refugees, is the sole survivor of the country's previous ruling family, whom the rebels have been ordered to eliminate at all costs. Waters and his small band of soldiers must weigh the life of one man against their own and the refugees they feel obliged to protect.

Tears Of The Sun (2003) Movie Review:

Bruce Willis leads an elite strike force into war-torn Nigeria to rescue an aid-relief doctor and her staff before a massacre ensues. Why is this all necessary for just one woman?

Willis plays A.K. Waters, a Special-Ops commander who is instructed to go into a Nigerian relief hospital and save Dr Lena Hendricks (Monica Bellucci), a priest and two nuns at all costs. The tension builds when Hendricks decides she won’t leave until 70 refugees are evacuated with her. This turns her rescue mission into a battle of wills and emotions, which could spell the deaths of Waters and his SEAL team.

For almost three-quarters of this film, I felt a strong encompassing feeling of déjà vu. I kept telling myself that I had seen this film at least a half a dozen times before. Then I remembered all those oodles of films made about Vietnam and the conflict of wills a lot of those situations and characters had. I also remembered the films about the liberation of American POWs in Vietnam prisons. Can anyone say "Rambo: First Blood Part 2" or "Missing in Action"? Each of these kinds of themes can be compared to the plight felt in this film.

I watched the stone-chiseled face of Bruce Willis grunt and frown under his black military camouflage and didn’t have a single clue or inclination to what this Marine was thinking. Did he give a damn or was it just another mission? The whole film hinged on if the plight effected the Marines but with so much ambiguity it was so hard to tell. The audience knew what Monica Bellucci’s character Lena was going through because every time the camera went to her we saw the heart of the film. Why wasn’t there some hint of humanity in Willis?

With so war movies made in recent months, I found myself finding it hard to get into this film. "Training Day" director Antoine Fuqua lays a lot of heavy night scenes in his film and the majority of the film is filled with darkness and rain. I wanted to be able to see the actors as they struggled with their predicament. I also found Fuqua’s action sequences very tame. When audiences have been exposed to the raw realism of "Black Hawk Down", "Windtalkers" and "Saving Private Ryan", these do come off as tame.

I understand the atrocities and murders crippling countries like Nigeria but this film barely sheds ray of light into the truth. The film doesn’t succeed in delivering its message because there are a lot of plot-holes and circumstances that will leave the audience frustrated.

What is good about the film is rising star Monica Bellucci, the film’s score and the film’s dramatic conclusion. "Tears of the Sun" is a slow watered-down and boggy version of what could have been an intriguing war film.

So Says the Soothsayer

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Tears Of The Sun (2003) review written by: Dean Kish