SINGAPORE - Lone Survivor is a brutally efficient by-the-book film adaptation about a real-life Navy SEAL mission that went terribly wrong in Afghanistan in 2005.

Mike Murphy, Matthew “Axe” Axelson, Danny Dietz and Marcus Luttrell were tasked to capture or kill Ahmad Shah, the notorious Taliban Army leader believed to have masterminded a series of attacks on American forces in the region. But mid-mission, an ethical decision changed everything for them.

Writer-director Peter Berg, working from Luttrell’s non-fiction book, Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account Of Operation Redwing And The Lost Heroes Of SEAL Team 10, delivers a film that has zero interest in analysing or discussing war and politics. This is, quite simply, a forthright look at four Navy SEAL members and their efforts to stay alive during an ill-fated reconnaissance mission.

Berg redeems himself after his previous film - the terrible Battleship - with his brand of American jingoism surprisingly not overdone. In fact, the movie leaves viewers feeling as bruised, breathless and scared as the soldiers themselves, thanks to its near-documentary style. The nod towards the crucial involvement of local Afghans in protecting Luttrell, at great risk to themselves, and the obvious tribute to the fallen, simply adds to fact that heroism comes in all shapes and forms, and in the most painful of situations.

Mark Wahlberg, Ben Foster, Taylor Kitsch and Emile Hirsch play the foursome and commendably throw themselves into the roles, both physically and emotionally. They effectively convey the bond of brotherhood while honouring the code that exists between the soldiers. Luttrell himself has said in interviews the only instance that the film fudged on the facts is that his team never considered killing the young goat herders who stumbled upon the team.

Considering its overall faithfulness to the events, this is one intense, riveting and all-round draining film that is worth the watch, even when we know the outcome. If only because there is something to be said about highlighting the only good to come from a doomed mission, and celebrating survival and humanity.

(M18, 121 mins)