Jake Gyllenhaal and Dar Salim go on the run from the Taliban and must get back to the U.S. base on foot after an ambush.
Guy Ritchie is best known for making ensemble gangster comedies, but occasionally, he surprises us with something completely different – such as The Covenant.
The war thriller is set in Afghanistan in March 2018 and follows U.S. Army Special Forces Sergeant John Kinley (Jake Gyllenhaal) and his team as they try to find IED (improvised explosive device) factories.
His interpreter, Ahmed (Dar Salim), is the newest member of the team and proves he can offer more than his language skills. When the team are ambushed by the Taliban during a raid on a potential factory, Kinley and Salim end up on the run together.
The film follows the two vastly different men as they try to get back to Bagram Air Base on foot over treacherous terrain with the Taliban on their tail.
This thriller tells a deeply satisfying story with serious dramatic stakes and several gripping action sequences, particularly the ambush and the climactic showdown.
It shines a light on an aspect of the War in Afghanistan that people may not have considered before.
It makes you think about how local Afghan interpreters were treated by the Taliban for working with the American military, particularly after the U.S. fully withdrew from the country in 2021. They are supposed to be protected in exchange for their service but this isn’t always the case.
Gyllenhaal has starred in a war movie before but it is clear to see why he has returned to the genre – The Covenant is very different to 2005’s Jarhead in most respects – the story, the tone, and the war it depicts, to name a few.
He is the big name here and his performance is excellent but the star of the show is Salim. Ahmed is a hero who selflessly goes above and beyond the call of duty to help an American.
Salim is terrific as the character, who is given just as much backstory, depth and screentime as his counterpart.
He is not an Afghan stereotype, like we’ve seen in many films before; he is an intelligent, hardworking and heroic character.
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant has flown under the radar in the U.K., which is a shame because it deserves to be seen by a much wider audience.
On Prime Video now.
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