Castelo de Areia

After seeing some other disappointing attempts at portraying the Afghanistan and Iraq war, Sand Castle was a very pleasant surprise.

The characters were believable and the story convincing, telling the difficulties faced by American soldiers and Iraqi civilians alike. It didn't need over-exaggerated patriotism nor jingoism, nor did it rely upon over the top action scenes nor special effects.

I was drawn in by the characters and the story, and although it left me wanting more this was in a good way - what it said it said well. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and have no hesitation in recommending it.

I don't know what the budget for this film was but I doubt that it was huge. Even so this is an excellent film about men and war and the aftermath of their actions. Although there is a some conventional war film action this is generally a well-paced, slow moving film which might not appeal to viewers hoping for non-stop action.The characters are well drawn and the acting is first rate. Hoult, in particular, is excellent but Cavill, as well, is fine. There is a little of the usual American gung-ho moments but these are timed and acted well so they help to define the characters rather than simplify them. It's not a preachy film about rights and wrongs and the Iraqis are, the limited fight scenes aside, portrayed as people under duress attempting to continue their lives as best they can. Overall a very good, thoughtful film.

'SAND CASTLE': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A war drama about a US Army rifleman, and his squad, who are trying to restore water to a dangerous Iraqi village. It's based on the real life experiences of it's screenwriter, Chris Roessner, and the script was featured on the 2012 Black List of unproduced screenplays. The film was directed by Fernando Coimbra, and it stars Nicholas Hoult, Logan Marshall-Green, Henry Cavill, Glen Powell, Tommy Flanagan, Beau Knapp and Neil Brown Jr.. It was released by Netflix through it's streaming site, and it's gotten mixed reviews from critics. I found it to be mostly well made, and somewhat effective, but it would have been a lot better with a little more character development.

Private Matt Ocre (Hoult) is a young rifleman in the US Army, who enlisted (in 2001) in order to get financial aid for college. When the Iraq war starts (in 2003) he desperately wants to quit though. He slams the door of a Humvee on his hand, in an attempt to get sent home even. His efforts don't succeed, and he's instead sent to Baqubah, with his squad, to repair a broken water system there. Many of the locals don't want their help though, and Matt has to witness multiple casualties to his unit. This causes him great depression and frustration, naturally.

The movie has all the makings of a good war film, it's well cast (Hoult, Marshall-Green and Cavill are all good in their roles) and it's nicely directed. It has well shot action scenes too, and seemingly effective emotional drama. I didn't know enough about the characters though, to really care for what they were going through. Technically the movie appears really well made, but it's just lacking enough character development to make it really effective.

A decent and straightforward War movie. It's not very combat centered, but rather focuses on the soldier's internal conflicts. I've seen plenty of War films like this before and unfortunately this one doesn't stand out as that unique compared to many others. It feels like an extension of something you'd see on "Generation Kill". It's not necessarily a bad thing, because if that is your thing then you are gonna like this movie.

I will give it this though; I like the story-line of the soldier's giving water to the people in the village. That's actually one of the main missions the characters are given. I appreciate that it explores a simple story like that. Giving water to the people in need is ultimately more important than winning a war. Nicholas Hoult's character seems to find a purpose of being part of the army by doing this act of kindness because he feels that he finally does some good. So, that aspect was well portrayed in this movie.

Henry Cavill is not in the movie that much, but whenever he is on screen he plays his supporting character well. I think they should have utilized him much more, since he really was doing such a good job playing a kind of eccentric captain. A different role compared to what he has played before. The editing in some scenes distracted me. They started zooming in the image on the same shot a few times and I didn't like that. It's better to just let the scene play out in one shot. Don't start jump-cutting and zooming it in all the sudden. You have different angles for that.

The music is great. Some parts gave me "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Apocalypse Now" vibes and the end credits song is very relaxing. So, the movie leaves you with a nice feeling because of the music. It's not bad as I said, just a tad underwhelming. You can watch it and enjoy just fine.

This movie is straightforward and honest, and avoids the clichés that ruin many other films about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Rather than having an agenda of trying to convince us that "War is Hell" or "War is Glorious", it simply tells an interesting story of a group of soldiers who were trying to provide water for Iraqi civilians.

The cast is very good, it was nice to see some new faces instead of overexposed, worn-out actors. The direction is proficient, the combat scenes are realistic and convincing.