Jeff's Reviews

Thoughts on every movie I've ever seen.

Thirteen Lives (2022)

Directed by Ron Howard

Starring Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, Joel Edgerton

Author

Good companion piece to The Rescue. This one’s basically the same, only with a bit of Hollywood polish.

Beautifully shot. The cave scenes were surely hard to shoot and so claustrophobic that they’re hard to watch.

Viggo and Colin, both playing low-key simpletons, do a nice job with the accents and successfully come off as heroes. Nice ensemble of Thai actors. Where did they find them all?

The story is dramatic, but something is missing for me. There’s no real arc or journey or growth for any of the characters. While it would require overdramatizing or fictionalizing real-life events, that’s what would make this story really special. But the writers must be authentic to the real-life events. Tough creative spot to be in.

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