Review: Mine

The best one character, single setting films make the most of their limitations, stripping away rather than piling on, ratcheting either the human or physical drama, and very much relying on the necessarily compelling presence of its star. James Franco in 127 Hours, Tom Hardy in Locke, Ryan Reynolds in Buried, and Blake Lively in last year's The Shallows are just a few prime examples of this genre. Mine, the debut feature from Italian writers-directors Fabio Guaglione and Fabio Resinaro, would seem destined to join the ranks of these fine works if one were to judge it on actor Armie Hammer alone, but the filmmaker's early resourcefulness quickly disappears, leaving most of the film to run very much on empty.

Mine begins somewhere in a sun-baked sprawl of a North African desert where U.S. Marine sniper Mike (Hammer) and his annoyingly loquacious spotter Tommy (Tom Cullen) are waiting to carry out their assignment to take out one of the leading figures of a terrorist cell. When the convoy carrying said target arrives and Mike realises that a wedding is about to unfold, he hesitates before firing. That second's hesitation is enough for the target's armed men to start firing and chasing Mike and Tommy, who manage to evade the terrorist cell but now have to cross the desert to reach a village in order to secure an extraction point with their base camp. Unfortunately, they wander upon a literal minefield on which Tommy makes a fatal step. Mike is slightly more fortunate, hearing the trigger click of a mine beneath his boot and forced to remain in place to delay the blast.

As if being exposed to the unforgiving desert elements and being an open target for the terrorist cell aren't enough, Mike learns from base camp that an impending sandstorm has grounded the rescue vehicles and that Mike will have to wait 52 hours before a passing convoy can reach him. Thus, Mike must survive not only the sandstorm which blows his radio out of reach, a pack of vicious desert dogs that come out at night, and his own psychological breakdown as he recalls the abuse inflicted on him and his mother by his father. This childhood trauma has affected his own relationship with girlfriend Jenny (Annabelle Wallis), who understands the demons he's carrying but who wishes he would overcome them so they can commit to one another.

There's also the matter of a Bedouin (Clint Dyer) and his young daughter, who individually visit him now and again; the Bedouin encouraging Mike to overcome his fears, take the next step, and become a free man. Unfortunately, these encounters - which may or may not be hallucinations - are so full of cornball philosophising that one almost wishes the mine would go off of its own accord. Ditto for scenes featuring Jenny and his childhood. As if the narrative weren't already strained enough, the filmmakers not only decide to load more personal revelations but stretch out the final 10 - 15 minutes by employing needless slow motion. With all the cliches at hand, the final sequence only serves to test one's patience rather than build in emotional power.

Despite the faulty narrative and overhanded execution by Fabio and Fabio, Mine is worth tolerating for Hammer's excellent and fully rounded portrayal, which convincingly conveys Mike's resilience, despair, and disorientation.

Mine

Directed by: Fabio Guaglione, Fabio Resinaro

Written by: Fabio Guaglione, Fabio Resinaro

Starring: Armie Hammer, Annabelle Wallis, Tom Cullen, Clint Dyer, Geoff Bell, Juliet Aubrey