"13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi" (2016)

When I went to the sneak-peak screening and saw this film come up, I was curious to see what exactly all the controversy surrounding this event. I had heard a lot of the news but wanted to see a narrative. As things moved along I went from curious to perplexed. The acting was good (really good) and the story seemed comprehensible, but there was something wrong.

More than the lack of perspective about things going on away from the action—the decisions being made away from the action in Benghazi, the stuff we really have questions about—it was what was added that felt out of place. After all, you could understand a creative decision to put us completely in the world of the people on the ground, with all of the questions and disbelief of a lack of help. But what feels so out of place in a serious film about a terrible event in recent history are all of the wise-cracking moments.

Not that men fighting for their lives can’t deliver Schwarzenegger-worthy quips in real life. But it is tonally off, and makes things feel “Hollywood,” i.e. fake.

Then, I remembered who was directing this and everything became clear. Michael Bay can deliver a music video, or a brainless action flick that you will forget the next day, but he seems unable or unwilling to present a coherent, serious dramatic story.

So, I am still wondering what happened on September 11, 2012.