I was going to say the acting was the worst I'd ever seen. Then I found out the film starred real-life Navy SEALS. Considering that, they did a great job.

Act of Valor concerns the kidnap of a CIA operative. On the rescue mission, they manage to get a cell phone belonging to one of the group that kidnapped and tortured her. This leads to the discovery of something much deeper -- a terrorist plot against the U.S.

This film is nonstop action, though some situations are telegraphed from the beginning - you'll see what I mean if you see the film.

There are some very exciting sequences, and the movie must have been great to watch on a movie screen. Lots of major explosions, car chases, and shootouts, as well as some beautiful scenery.

There were some actual actors, including Roselyn Sanchez, Jason Cottle, and Nestor Serrano.

At the end, the film lists the SEALS who have given their lives since 9/11. Very moving. The SEALS who appeared in the film are active duty and at times, to make things more realistic, used real ammunition.

Very interesting melding of real life and reel life.

ACT OF VALOUR is a Hollywood war film with a difference: there are no major stars, no big names, and no recognisable faces. Instead, in the interests of realism, the actors playing the film's soldiers are all real-life soldiers themselves, adding a level of authenticity you don't see elsewhere in cinema.

It's a novel idea, but one that didn't really work too well for me. The main thing that the filmmakers forget is that acting is a profession, and actors are generally really good at faking it. So an actor playing a soldier is automatically 'better' than a real soldier playing a soldier: more authentic, better at expressing emotion and camaraderie. As a result of the actors's inexperience, the characters in this film become indistinguishable before too much time has passed.

Elsewhere, it's the usual gung-ho, flag-waving stuff and not dissimilar to a Chris Ryan novel: a crack squad of marines are sent on various missions to eliminate a terrorist cell with plans of attacking the US mainland. Things kick off really well with some gruelling torture and a ferocious firefight in the jungle, but after that point it really changes down a gear and becomes less interesting.

The action is well handled, and like with the recent Stallone flick RAMBO it's good to see a movie that doesn't shy away from revealing the gory effect of gunshot wounds and explosions. But the narrative is lacking and the film is quite simplistic and predictable; the climax should be as gripping as the opening, but it never recaptures those early highlights. A pity, really, because I'm a fan of novel ideas and this could have been something truly great but instead it turns out to be run-of-the-mill.

A SEAL team travels to globe to battle terrorists. Many of the lead actors are real life active-duty Navy SEALs. The problem about the use of real active-duty Navy SEALs is the limited acting skills. The action is more realistic. It's not all the regular Hollywood blow them up fare. The acting isn't really acting. They are just too uncharismatic. The story is just a series of action to uncover a terrorist plot. In the end, it probably doesn't matter. What does a plot have to do with a picture like this anyways. The action is good, but the acting is not so good.