Lions For Lambs Review

By: Subhadeep Bhattacharjee
Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Lion for Lambs is a plot set in post 9/11 world when America is fighting the war on terror in Afghanistan. Republican senator Jasper Irving (Tom Cruise), who offers reporter Janine Roth (Meryl Streep) an exclusive story during a rare interview. In return for this she has to print the story of a new strategy to to occupy by small units, strategic points in the mountains before the Taliban occupy them. He hopes Roth's positive coverage will convince the public of his plans. Roth not happy being a part of the propaganda reluctantly publishes the report as her boss sees huge commercial gains

Two students Arian (Derek Luke) and Ernest (Michael Peria) at a West Coast University inspired by their professor Dr. Malley (Robert Redford) join the US Army to fight the war in Afghanistan. Malley is happy and shocked over their descision. He now devotes time to inspire the frat genius Hay (Andrew Garfield) to be like Ernest and Arian.

The commanding officers knowing the disastrous plan sends his soldiers into harm's way. Ernest and Arian are among them. Their helicopter is hit, Ernest falls out of the helicopter, and Arian jumps after him. Ernest is badly wounded and he cannot move; Arian stays with him. The Taliban arrive. After a gun fight they run out of ammunition and, rather than die lying down, Arian helps Ernest stand up and face the Taliban. They know the choppers wont arrive in time to rescue them. Arian raises his rifle and both are killed in a hail of gunfire whilst scenes from their past lives are flashed on screen.The movie ends with Hay seeing the news scrolling of the the soldiers death scrolling in their TV screens.

The movie is mostly about talks and the three parallel stories fail to complement each other and tend to drag the movie. Director Robert Redford might have hoped to pull in the crowds due to the huge star cast . All in all its a movie which fails to make a strong statement on an issue that people world over are connected.