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12 Strong Is an Underwhelming Tribute to the ‘Horse Soldiers’ of the Afghan War
Vulture ^ | January 20th, 2018 | By David Edelstein

Posted on 05/17/2018 6:56:15 PM PDT by Mariner

The newest ode to the American warrior is 12 Strong (subtitle: The Unclassified True Story of the Horse Soldiers), which follows a dozen Special Forces soldiers who are surreptitiously choppered into northern Afghanistan less than two months after 9/11. Their mission was incredibly perilous, but they weren’t on the ground to fight. Their job was to embed themselves with warlords in the Northern Alliance; ride on small-ish, mountain-ready horses through the yawning passes; and radio coordinates of Taliban strongholds to U.S. planes that had previously been bombing blind. Securing the north — and the key city of Mazar-i-Sharif — would set up the U.S. and its allies for a full-scale invasion of Kabul. Until then, those 12 Americans were alone in a land they didn’t know amid tribes whose actions they couldn’t predict and with tens of thousands of nearby Taliban fighters itching to carve them up, slowly.

(Excerpt) Read more at vulture.com ...


TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans; TV/Movies
KEYWORDS:
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I watched this movie on Blu Ray last night.

And this is the very best "professional" review I could find.

Apparently the critics hated it. Most certainly due to it's pro American and Pro Soldier theme.

But don't be dissuaded by those a$$holes.

This is a GREAT movie. The mounted cavalry combat scenes will not be forgotten. Just like the men who accomplished this amazing feat.

Rent it!

Who else has seen it?

1 posted on 05/17/2018 6:56:15 PM PDT by Mariner
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To: Mariner

Loved it but I had a single technical objection:

Our guys proved able to land almost ALL shots, single-handed, from a horse running at tippy-top speed.

Anyone who has shot from a moving vehicle even with GREAT suspension and BOTH hands free knows hitting anywhere near your target is a toss-up:

How much more difficult is it with one hand on the reigns on a HORSE..?

A pretty picky objection to an otherwise great movie.


2 posted on 05/17/2018 7:02:34 PM PDT by gaijin
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To: Mariner

3 posted on 05/17/2018 7:04:38 PM PDT by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: gaijin

It was a movie lol

The good guys ALWAYS are better than the bad guys.

Besides, all 12 DID return home.


4 posted on 05/17/2018 7:08:29 PM PDT by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: Mariner
ok movie, fast and loose on facts
5 posted on 05/17/2018 7:08:44 PM PDT by Chode (You have all of the resources you are going to have. Abandon your illusions and plan accordingly.)
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To: Mariner

Whoops!

Another:

No scene showed the truth of our guys having to put up with routine boy-rape, “dancing boys” stuff.

The big question of heroin and drug addiction there was also set aside.

Instead most Northern Alliance guys were depicted as duskier, bearded would-be Americans, more or less —pretty romanticized.

The trajectory of the Americans is a smooth one, from culture shock to happy mutual trust.

Realistic..? :/

In fact a lot of guys come away from their tours highly ambivalent about the Afghanis, with the seeminly ever-present risk of Green-On-Blue killings, etc.

Still a good movie, though.


6 posted on 05/17/2018 7:09:12 PM PDT by gaijin
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To: gaijin

a horse at full gallop is a pretty smooth ride.


7 posted on 05/17/2018 7:10:21 PM PDT by dirtymac
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To: gaijin

I went to a speech given by some of the real legion guys and they had a lot of laughs about that. Hollywood


8 posted on 05/17/2018 7:10:57 PM PDT by babble-on
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To: Mariner
no they did not... the first two KIA in Afghanistan were killed by an errant US bomb strike on the last day of the operation
9 posted on 05/17/2018 7:11:12 PM PDT by Chode (You have all of the resources you are going to have. Abandon your illusions and plan accordingly.)
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To: gaijin

Ever watched a jousting tournament? Kids snag a 1/4” ring at the end of their lance riding at a full gallop.


10 posted on 05/17/2018 7:13:10 PM PDT by WhattheDickens? (Is anybody there?)
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To: gaijin

You’d enjoy reading “My Sixty Years on the Plains: Trapping, Trading, and Indian Fighting” by W. T. Hamilton. It’s a first person account of a mountain man who set out with a mountain party when he was 18. His tales of shooting from horseback at full gallop are amazing.


11 posted on 05/17/2018 7:15:22 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: Mariner

Extremely well done war movie and an incredible story.


12 posted on 05/17/2018 7:24:07 PM PDT by bray (Pray for President Trump)
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To: Mariner

All it was missing was George Peppard, Mr. T., and a lunatic who can fly anything with wings.


13 posted on 05/17/2018 7:29:51 PM PDT by Paal Gulli
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To: Mariner

Awesome movie


14 posted on 05/17/2018 7:32:08 PM PDT by Pikachu_Dad ("the media are selling you a line of soap)
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To: Mariner

Good movie. Just assume and get over the Hollywood embellishments as to shooting, etc. and get to how amazing the core story is. These men provided a much needed service at a critical time in our nation’s history.


15 posted on 05/17/2018 7:35:24 PM PDT by Boomer One ( ToUsesn)
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To: Chode

The movie did not cover all aspects of combat operations in Afghanistan. The poster was referring to the twelve men under the command of the movie’s main character. I believe all those did return alive.


16 posted on 05/17/2018 7:38:17 PM PDT by SoCal Pubbie
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To: gaijin

I used to do mounted shooting. I’ll have to watch the movie.
You would be surprised what a good rider/shooter can do.


17 posted on 05/17/2018 7:39:02 PM PDT by Cold Heart
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To: Mariner

.........I watched it several weeks ago on either Amazon or Netflix. I forget which.

I gave it a 9 on a 10 scale. Like everything coming out of Hollywood it’s pcbs was off the charts. But for that, it would be a ten.


18 posted on 05/17/2018 7:44:11 PM PDT by Cen-Tejas
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To: Mariner

Haven’t seen the movie. Just read the book.

Excellent portrayal of the hard men who protect us.


19 posted on 05/17/2018 7:45:46 PM PDT by cyclotic ( WeÂ’re the first ones taxed, the last ones considered and the first ones punished)
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To: Cold Heart

Shooting is easy on horseback. It is reloading that is a hassle. I’ve used a lance on horseback too. Once the basics are learned it combines riding and balance to perfect the art.


20 posted on 05/17/2018 7:55:14 PM PDT by vetvetdoug
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