In this espionage action thriller Mile 22, Mark Wahlberg plays Jimmy Silva, who leads a U.S. Intelligence team called Overwatch, so elusive that they operate off the government grid. Silva has had a hard life and is not very likeable on the outside, but cares deeply about his team and accomplishing the mission. As a team member, Sam Stone, played by Ronda Rousey of WWE fame, comes across as tough and empathetic.
In the opening scene, the team bursts in on a seemingly tranquil suburban home in the woods that turns out to be a Russian safe house. A blood bath ensues which sets the stage for the remainder of the film. It is interesting that during missions the team members’ vital signs are monitored by a computer team lead by Bishop, played by John Malkovich, to help them through their operations.
The assignment is to escort likeable mystery triple agent Li Noor, played by Iko Uwais, the 22 treacherous miles to an airplane that will transport him to the U.S. The condition is that he must give the code to open a disk with the location of stolen Cesium shipments, which can be used to make nuclear weapons. Time is of the essence as the disk is set to self-destruct in eight hours. The route is filled with sabotage and killings at every turn, so be prepared for a myriad of grenades, bombs, weapons, and car crashes. My husband and I agreed that that you have to like hard-core action to enjoy this movie.
This is the fourth collaboration between Wahlberg and Director Peter Berg, of Lone Survivor, who is also in the film. There is buzz of a sequel with Wahlberg leading new teams on more dangerous missions.
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Genre: Action, Adventure
Director: Peter Berg
Written By: Lea Carpenter, Graham Roland
Actors: Mark Wahlberg, Lauren Cohan, Iko Uwais, John Malkovich, Ronda Rousey, Terry Kinney
Running Time: 94 minutes
Rating: R (strong language and violence throughout)