Code Name Geronimo

I gave it a one because it was the lowest rating possible. If we were to edit this movie down to the facts, it would have been about five minutes long.

It's one thing to take some artistic licence with a true story, but this movie didn't take licence. It seemed like they didn't get any support from the military and they didn't do much research. A lot of the details I noticed probably wouldn't have been noted by the average viewer.

However, the most glaring detail was the way the military was portrayed - like a bunch of high school drama queens. The kind of garbage portrayed in this movie was unrealistic at best.

Please, PLEASE don't waste your time.

With all the hype, I thought for certain this would be a strong 2 hours of television. Wrong. Little character development; less in depth behind the scenes; even the acting was bad. Without the actual footage of of September 11 and Pres. Obama, it would have been even worse. Then NatGeo filled the program with commercials and seemingly ran the same set of spots at each break. Just brutally bad. For contrast, go watch Showtime's Homeland. Indeed, this looked very much like a low budget, independent production filmed on a back-lot south of Los Angeles. I was truly looking for an engaging 'documentary-style' film. I am not quite sure what I saw tonight. And if you haven't seen it, don't. Go watch Swamp People or FashionPolice. I am sure they are better!

Seems that any work of art depicting big historic moments must somehow live up to the subject in its own right. What would normally be a very entertaining, well made TV movie about a Seal operation now becomes a sub standard replication of a historic event that is maybe much too important to be told in such a light format. Or is it?

I don't think it has to be anything more than what it is. If I leave politics out of the equation, all I see is a pretty neat piece of entertainment. Plus points: Camera, lighting, soundtrack, choice of actors, acting performances. Minus points: script, storytelling, at times unlucky mix of real and fake footage.

The performances of William Fichtner and Robert Knepper were especially enjoyable. Knepper did an awesome job in annihilating his T-Bag persona, especially in scenes where the two were together. I admit, you look for that moment where one of them slips back into that Prison Break character. But nope, this was a new ballgame. Kathleen Robertson was the only one who came across non-authentic too many times, making the viewer slip out of the story. Once past her scenes, you slip right back into what is a well made, entertaining evening filler.

All in all I'd say the movie doesn't deserve the bad ratings it got. It's definitely in the upper third. Especially noteworthy are the camera and lighting. Another thing worth mentioning is the low- key acting of Anson Mount and Xzibit. The real world illusion that Kathleen Robertson destroyed was build right up again with the performance of these and the other actors.

If you're not a politically motivated person and you're not looking for a great message or statement, or an up-to the minute precise documentary of the actual events, this movie is well made, light entertainment.

I think its a good movie, except for the Obama propaganda aspect of it. It does credit to those who actually are responsible for killing Bin Laden. To those with intelligence and who are informed, it will be hard to ignore the fact that the man who was least responsible for the missions success and had to be dragged kicking and screaming to approve this mission, is made out to be the hero. I am disappointed, but not surprised, that National Geographic made and aired this. It has ruined their reputation and exposes its political bias. I would advise to stay clear of this movie. Its government propaganda that has little to do with facts.

Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama bin Laden (2012)

*** (out of 4)

Made-for-TV docudrama taking a look at the Seal operation's twenty-two minute mission that led to the death of Osama bin Laden. The film starts off nearly a year earlier when the CIA comes across information of a possible hideout for the terrorist and then we follow the steps it took to take him down. SEAL TEAM SIX certainly isn't a masterpiece and there are all sorts of flaws in it but at the same time I think it gets the job done with a high entertainment factor. I think the film works best as pure entertainment because there's really a lack of drama or suspense that keeps it from being better. I'm not even certain how accurate everything is but this here doesn't matter too much because there's no question that the film grabs your attention right from the start and doesn't let it go. I think the best moments in the film are all the behind the scenes stuff where we get to see what was going on inside the CIA as they were trying to get the President to sign off on the operation. I enjoyed seeing this stuff as the CIA would have to discuss what proof they had that bin Laden was in this building as well as having to look at what would happen if they were wrong. The performances were all very good and one really couldn't ask for more. The flaws of the film include some very weak CGI effects at times as well as an annoying use of real photographs to try and build drama. Most of the photographs are of President Obama and having still frame photos in the movie just made the thing feel cheap and it certainly didn't add anything. We'll have to wait and see how the second, theatrical bin Laden movie will compare but while this one is flawed it's at least entertaining.