The Outpost (2019)

Plot of The Outpost: Camp Kamdesh is one of a number of outposts set up by the American military in northern Afghanistan. It is in the bottom of a remote valley and therefore subject to frequent Taliban attacks from the surrounding hills. The intent of the operation is to “win hearts and minds” of the surrounding villages and at meetings with the headmen the Americans hand over money. In return early on some villagers lay down their arms. Captain Keeting is killed when the vehicle he is driving falls off a narrow road. The replacement, Captain Yllescas, is blown up while walking over a rope bridge. The 50 odd soldiers become used to Taliban attacks from the hills, sometimes eliminating the attackers with mortar fire. The third commander, Captain Broward is by the book, but is relieved because the station is to be closed down. On October 3rd 2009 the guys are warned that the villagers have gone and that they are to be attacked by Taliban forces. Their survival is in doubt.

Content: No sex or nudity, drinking, drug taking or smoking (I don’t think). Under pressure the soldiers are irritated by each other and argue a lot. There are occasional attacks by the Taliban, only heralded by the first bursts of machine gun fire, causing every one to run for cover and return fire. The changing leadership of the base seems to result in Sergeant Romesha becoming the unofficial leader. Meeting take place with the village headmen, obviously resulting in no advantage for the Americans. The final fire fight goes on for ages, as the command call for aerial support, which is not immediately available. So will they be able to hold on, with some isolated in an armoured Humvee due to the intense fire.

A View: This is a true story, which makes one wonder how the American ,military could be so neglectful of the safety of their own personnel. I am a Brit, so did find the jargon and rapid shouty dialogue quite difficult to understand, but actually that hardly mattered, you could feel the sense of doom. I have seen Scott Eastwood in a few films, but think he excels in this outing, becoming his own man, rather than just his dad’s son. It is realistically presented and so is quite harrowing and is a difficult watch. So not for the faint hearted.

Fun Fact: Three of the ex- soldiers who were involved in the real event took part in the film.