13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi | |
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Directed by | Michael Bay |
Screenplay by | Chuck Hogan |
Based on | 13 Hours by Mitchell Zuckoff |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Dion Beebe |
Edited by |
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Music by | Lorne Balfe |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 144 minutes [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $50 million [2] |
Box office | $69.4 million [2] |
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (also known simply as 13 Hours) is a 2016 American biographical [3] action-thriller film [4] [5] [6] directed and produced by Michael Bay and written by Chuck Hogan; it is based on Mitchell Zuckoff's 2014 book of the same name. The film follows six members of the Annex Security Team who fought to defend the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya after waves of attacks by militants on September 11, 2012. The film stars James Badge Dale, John Krasinski, Pablo Schreiber, Max Martini, David Denman and Dominic Fumusa, with supporting roles by Toby Stephens, Alexia Barlier and David Costabile.
Filming began on April 27, 2015, in Malta and Morocco. The film was released on January 15, 2016, by Paramount Pictures. Upon release, 13 Hours grossed $69 million worldwide against a production budget of $50 million (not including advertising and distribution), and became one of Bay's lowest-grossing films until the 2022 release of Ambulance. 13 Hours also received many mixed reviews from critics. While the film was praised for its acting performances, action sequences, and dark tone, the script was criticized for its historical liberties. Bay's direction also received a mixed response, with many criticizing his emphasis on over-the-top action, but some also noting it as one of his most mature and grounded films. [7] [8]
The film received an Oscar nomination for Best Sound Mixing at the 89th Academy Awards. [9]
In 2012, following the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, Benghazi in Libya is named one of the most dangerous places in the world, and countries have pulled their diplomatic offices out of the country in fear of an attack by militants. The United States still has a diplomatic compound, not an official consulate, open in the city. Less than a mile away is a top secret CIA base, "The Annex", which is protected by a team of private military contractors from Global Response Staff (GRS). New to the detail is former US Navy SEAL Jack Silva, who arrives in Benghazi and is picked up by fellow former US Navy SEAL Tyrone "Rone" Woods, the commander of the GRS team and a personal friend of Silva. Arriving at the Annex, Silva is introduced to the rest of the GRS team: former US Marines Mark "Oz" Geist, John "Tig" Tiegen and Dave "Boon" Benton and former US Army Ranger Kris "Tanto" Paronto and the CIA Chief of Station, "Bob", who constantly gives the team strict reminders to never engage the citizens.
Prior to the US Ambassador's arrival, the GRS team members visit the Special Mission, where the Ambassador will be staying. They review the location and warn Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Agents Scott Wickland and Dave Ubben about the risk of minimal-security arrangements and the high probability of a surprise attack due to the weak central government. US Ambassador Chris Stevens arrives in Benghazi to maintain diplomatic connections amid the political and social chaos, with limited protection from five DSS Agents, principally Wickland and Ubben, along with guards hired from the local February 17th Martyrs Brigade militia, nicknamed "17-Feb". On the morning of the eleventh anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Stevens notices suspicious men taking pictures of the compound and notifies his security detail. Back at the Annex, Silva finds out that his wife is pregnant.
That night, a group of militants from Ansar al-Sharia assault the compound. The 17-Feb guards are quickly overrun, which allows the attackers easy access to the compound. Wickland takes Stevens and Sean Smith, an IT specialist, to the safe room. Unable to breach the safe room, the attackers set the building on fire, hoping to burn the men out. Wickland escapes but loses both Stevens and Smith. At the Annex, the GRS team desperately wants to go to the compound to help, but the Chief refuses for fear that the team's departure would expose the Annex. However, the team dispatches to the compound anyway and meets up with the DSS Agents, with the team splitting up: Silva, Woods, and Tiegen head to the consulate, while Paronto and Benton head to the back gate, assisted by a few 17-Feb militants. Silva and Woods enter the building searching for Stevens and Smith but find only Smith's body. After an intense firefight inside the compound against the militants, the DSS team retreats in a car, but after a beat-up Wickland goes the wrong way, they are followed by militants on their way back to the Annex. Later, the GRS team also retreats to the Annex.
Knowing that an attack by the militants is imminent, the CIA staff of the Annex makes several desperate calls for help, but only former US Navy SEAL Glen "Bub" Doherty, a GRS operator in Tripoli, helps. He forms a team, including two Delta Force operators, that flies to Benghazi after several delays. Meanwhile, the GRS team fends off the militants as they try to breach the Annex perimeter. After repelling the largest attack wave, the Annex receives word from ISR that help is coming.
The Tripoli GRS reinforcements arrive and begin to prepare the CIA and DSS staff for their departure to the airport. The militants launch a mortar attack in which Ubben and Geist are wounded, and Geist's left arm is partially severed. Woods rushes to aid Geist and is killed by another mortar round. Doherty is also killed when a third mortar detonates directly in front of him.
While a wounded Geist and Ubben are being tended to, the Delta Force operatives roughly dump Woods' body from the roof for transport, angering Silva. With the GRS team compromised and the Annex now vulnerable, the remaining GRS operators watch as a convoy of vehicles rolls toward the Annex. Fearing the worst, the operators prepare to make a final stand until it is revealed that the convoy is an element of the Libya Shield Force militia that is escorting the GRS reinforcements. They also find out that Stevens had been found behind the compound but was pronounced dead at the hospital.
At the airport, the CIA staff and the wounded Geist board the plane to Tripoli while the remainder of the GRS team waits for the next plane with the bodies of Stevens, Smith, Woods, and Doherty. Paronto is approached by his 17-Feb allies and gives them some keys to Gaddafi's old armored vehicles. Meanwhile, Silva speaks with his wife and tells her that he is finally coming home; however, he tearfully relays the news that Woods didn't make it. Shortly after, he briefly recalls a conversation with Woods they had at the annex and zips his bodybag up. Closing titles reveal that Libya had become a failed state and is now a stronghold for ISIS, and that all of the surviving members of the Annex security GRS team received contractor medals at a private ceremony, have since retired from the GRS team, and live with their families and that Geist was able to save his arm after several surgeries after the military reenlists him so that he can receive the best medical care possible.
On February 10, 2014, it was announced that Paramount Pictures was in talks with 3 Arts Entertainment to acquire the film rights to the book 13 Hours , written by Mitchell Zuckoff, with Erwin Stoff to produce. [19] Chuck Hogan was set to adapt the book, based on the true events of the Benghazi attack by militants on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, on the evening of September 11, 2012. [19] The film would focus on six members of a security team that fought to defend the Americans stationed there. [19] On October 29, 2014, Michael Bay was set to direct and produce the thriller. [20]
On January 14, 2015, John Krasinski was cast to play a leading role, playing a former US Navy SEAL. [10] On February 3, Pablo Schreiber also signed on to star in the film, playing Kris "Tanto" Paronto, one of the six-man security team. [15] On February 6, James Badge Dale was set to star, as the leader of the security team. [12] Max Martini was cast as another member of the security team on February 17, 2015. [13] David Denman signed on to star in the film on March 3, 2015, playing Boon, an elite sniper. [16] On March 5, 2015, THR reported that Dominic Fumusa also signed on, to play John "Tig" Tiegen, one of the members of the security team, who is also a former Marine with weapons expertise. [14] Freddie Stroma was added to the cast on March 17, 2015, to play the role of an undercover CIA officer in Libya. [17] On May 7, 2015, Toby Stephens was set to play Glen "Bub" Doherty, another of the security team members. [21]
Principal photography began on April 27, 2015, in Malta and Morocco. [16] [22] A large film set was built in March 2015 in Ta' Qali, Malta at 35°53′58.9″N14°25′42.6″E / 35.899694°N 14.428500°E . [23] [24]
On June 30, 2015, Paramount announced that the new title would be 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, and set the film to be released on January 15, 2016, on the MLK Holiday weekend. [25] The film premiered on January 12, 2016, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, [26] benefiting the Shadow Warriors Project, which supports private military security personnel and other groups. [26]
Unusual for a major American film, the film was given only a limited release in Canada during its American wide opening weekend, playing in select theatres in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa. The film expanded to a wide release in Canadian theatres the following weekend, January 22–24. [27] [28]
Paramount specifically marketed the film to conservatives, [29] in a method similar to previous films Lone Survivor and American Sniper, both of which had beaten box office expectations. This included screening the film for key Republican Party figures in order to generate endorsement quotations. [30]
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 7, 2016. Likely due to a boost from the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election, the film made $40 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales by August 2016. [31] [32]
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi was released on 4K UHD Blu-Ray on June 11, 2019. [33]
13 Hours grossed $52.9 million in North America and $16.5 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $69.4 million, against a production budget of $50 million, [2] making it Michael Bay's lowest-grossing directorial film to-date. [34]
The film was projected to earn around $20 million in its four-day Martin Luther King weekend debut. It faced competition from fellow newcomer Ride Along 2 , as well as holdovers The Revenant and Star Wars: The Force Awakens . [35] Other films in a similar vein that had opened on the MLK weekend in previous years, American Sniper ($107.2 million in 2015) and Lone Survivor ($37.8 million in 2014), found success, although they had faced weaker competition, and were considered less politically divisive. [36] However, The Hollywood Reporter noted that the film could outperform expectations if it was buoyed by waves of patriotism. [36] The film made $900,000 from 1,995 theaters during its Thursday previews and $16.2 million in its opening weekend, finishing fourth at the box office. [37] The film added 528 theaters in its second weekend and grossed $9 million, a 39.8% drop. [38]
13 Hours received mixed reviews from critics, though some viewed it as a welcomed tame effort from Michael Bay. [39] [40] [41] [42] [43] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 51% based on 222 reviews, with an average rating of 5.60/10. The site's consensus reads, "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is a comparatively mature and restrained effort from Michael Bay, albeit one that can't quite boast the impact its fact-based story deserves." [44] On Metacritic the film has a score of 48 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [45] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. [37] [46]
Soren Andersen, writing for The Seattle Times , gave the film 3 stars out of 4, criticizing the lack of distinctive characters but ultimately summarizing 13 Hours as "engrossing" and "a ground-level depiction of heroism in the midst of the fog of war". [47] Richard Roeper similarly praised 13 Hours in his review for the Chicago Sun-Times . Although he lamented the script, Roeper found the film to be a "solid action thriller with well-choreographed battle sequences and strong work from the ensemble cast". [48] Like Roeper's review, New York Daily News ' Joe Dziemianowicz was less receptive toward the script, but applauded the film's focus on the real-life attack, summarizing: "War is gritty here, not glamorous... [ Michael Bay ] delivers a gripping, harrowing, and heartfelt film." [49]
In a mixed review, Inkoo Kang of TheWrap praised 13 Hours for its action scenes, but panned Bay's direction as "myopic". She writes, "13 Hours is the rare Michael Bay movie that wasn't made with teenage boys in mind. But that doesn't make his latest any less callously juvenile." [7] Lindsey Bahr of the Associated Press was critical of the film's direction and cinematography, and found the screenplay to be confusing. [8] Similarly, The Economist described the film as "a sleek, poorly scripted and largely meaningless film". [50]
The film caused controversy in Libya. [51] [52] Many Libyans believed it ignored the contributions of local people who attempted to save the US ambassador. [53] Libya's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Salah Belnaba, denounced the film's portrayal of the Libyan people and described it as "fanatical and ignorant." [54] Culture and Information Minister, Omar Gawaari, also criticized the film saying: "the movie shows the US contractors who actually failed to secure the ambassador [...] as heroes", adding that Michael Bay "turned America's failure to protect its own citizens in a fragile state into a typical action movie all about American heroism". [53] [54] [55]
At the 89th Academy Awards, 13 Hours received a nomination for Best Sound Mixing. [56] However, Greg P. Russell (one of the four nominees from the film) had his nomination rescinded when it was discovered that he had contacted voters for the award by telephone in violation of campaigning regulations. [9]
The film's historical accuracy has been disputed. In the film's most controversial scene, the CIA chief in Benghazi (identified only as "Bob") tells the military contractors there when they seek permission to go defend the embassy to "stand down" and thus denies them permission. The real-life CIA chief stated that there was no stand-down order. [57] However, no help was sent even though officials at the highest levels had found out about the attack within the first few hours out of the 13. Also, the National Review commentator David French argues that the Senate committee cited above found plenty of evidence of the "stand down" order in the form of personal testimony from multiple witnesses but chose to rule that the contrary testimony outweighed it. [58]
Kris "Tanto" Paronto, a CIA contractor who was involved in action during the event, said, "We were told to 'stand down'. Those words were used verbatim—100 percent. If the truth of it affects someone's political career? Well, I'm sorry. It happens." [59] The CIA base chief portrayed in the film has directly contradicted Paronto's claims, saying "There never was a stand-down order.... At no time did I ever second-guess that the team would depart." [60]
Also disputed is the film's portrayal that air support was denied. A House Armed Services Committee report found that air support was unavailable or that it would have arrived too late to make a difference. [50]
Michael Benjamin Bay is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget, high-concept action films characterized by fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use of special effects, including frequent depictions of explosions. The films he has produced and directed, which include Armageddon (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001) and the Transformers film series (2007–present), have grossed over US$7.8 billion worldwide, making him one of the most commercially successful directors in history.
Pablo Tell Schreiber is a Canadian-American actor. He is best known for his stage work and for portraying Nick Sobotka on The Wire, William Lewis on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2013–2014), Mad Sweeney on the Starz series American Gods (2017–2020), and as George "Pornstache" Mendez on Orange Is the New Black (2013–2017), for which he received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. He stars as Master Chief in the Paramount+ live-action series Halo (2022–present) which is based on the franchise of the same name.
Maximilian Carlo Martini is an American actor, writer, and director known for his roles as Corporal Fred Henderson in Saving Private Ryan, Wiley in Level 9, First Sergeant Sid Wojo in The Great Raid, and as Master Sergeant Mack Gerhardt in the CBS military drama television series The Unit. He also starred in the film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi as Mark Geist.
David Giuntoli is an American actor. He portrayed Det. Nick Burkhardt in the NBC supernatural drama Grimm (2011–2017), and Eddie Saville on the television series A Million Little Things (2018–2023). He has appeared in films such as 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016) and Buddymoon (2016).
Throughout the Cold War, the U.S. conducted operations focused on combatting socialism in Turkey, executed chiefly through Operation Gladio's Turkish branch, the Counter-Guerrilla. The Syrian civil war has seen a resurgence of CIA activity in Turkey in recent years.
Frederic Wilhelm C. J. Sjöström, known professionally as Freddie Stroma, is a British actor. He is known for his work in roles including Cormac McLaggen in the Harry Potter film series, Adam Cromwell on the Lifetime series Unreal, Brit Vayner in 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016), H.G. Wells in the ABC series Time After Time, and Adrian Chase/Vigilante in the DC Extended Universe series Peacemaker.
Field Marshal Khalifa Belqasim Omar Haftar is a Libyan politician, military officer, and the commander of the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army (LNA). On 2 March 2015, he was appointed commander of the armed forces loyal to the elected legislative body, the Libyan House of Representatives.
Following the end of the First Libyan Civil War, which overthrew Muammar Gaddafi, there was violence involving various militias and the new state security forces. This violence has escalated into the Second Libyan Civil War (2014–2020).
The release of the anti-Islamic short film Innocence of Muslims triggered numerous demonstrations across North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. On September 11, 2012, dozens of protestors scaled the walls and entered the courtyard of the U.S. embassy in Cairo, Egypt. On September 13, 2012, protests occurred at the U.S. embassy in Sana'a, Yemen, resulting in the deaths of four protesters and injuries to thirty-five protesters and guards. On September 14, the U.S. consulate in Chennai was attacked, resulting in injuries to twenty-five protesters. Protesters in Tunis, Tunisia, climbed the U.S. embassy walls and set trees on fire. At least four people were killed and forty-six injured during protests in Tunis on September 15. Further protests were held at U.S. diplomatic missions and other locations in the days following the initial attacks. Related protests and attacks resulted in numerous deaths and injuries across the Middle East, Africa, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
Sean Patrick Smith was an American diplomat and information management officer with the United States Foreign Service who was killed during the September 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
The 2012 Benghazi attack was a coordinated attack against two United States government facilities in Benghazi, Libya, by members of the Islamic militant group Ansar al-Sharia.
Ansar al-Sharia in Libya was an Al-Qaeda-aligned Salafi Jihadist militia group that advocated the implementation of Sharia law across Libya. Ansar al-Sharia came into being in 2011, during the Libyan Civil War. Until January 2015, it was led by its "Amir", Muhammad al-Zahawi. As part of its strategy, the organization targeted specific Libyan and American civilians for death and took part in the 2012 Benghazi attack. The group was designated as a terrorist organization by the United Nations, Iraq, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The February 17th Martyrs Brigade was a militia to secure law and order in Libya.
The timeline below details the ongoing investigation into the September 11, 2012 attack upon the American diplomatic mission at Benghazi, in Libya. The attack and the investigation are the subject of much controversy in the American political sphere.
13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi is a 2014 historical book by American author Mitchell Zuckoff that depicts the terrorist attack by Islamist militants at the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya on September 11, 2012. The book is an account from the point of view of the compound's defenders and does not address any of the political controversy surrounding the attacks.
Four Americans died in the 2012 Benghazi attack: Ambassador Chris Stevens, Information Officer Sean Smith, and two CIA operatives, Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods, both former Navy SEALs. Stevens is the first U.S. ambassador killed in an attack since Adolph Dubs was killed in 1979. Senior intelligence officials later acknowledged that Woods and Doherty were contracted by the Central Intelligence Agency, not the State Department as previously identified, and were part of Global Response Staff (GRS), a team that provides security to CIA case officers and countersurveillance and surveillance protection.
Ten investigations were conducted into the 2012 Benghazi attack, six of these by Republican-controlled House committees. Problems were identified with security measures at the Benghazi facilities, due to poor decisions made by employees of the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security, and specifically its director Eric Boswell, who resigned under pressure in December 2012. Despite numerous allegations against Obama administration officials of scandal, cover-up and lying regarding the Benghazi attack and its aftermath, none of the ten investigations found any evidence to support those allegations. The last of the investigation committees issued its final report and shut down in December 2016, one month after the 2016 presidential election.
The Battle of Benghazi (2014–2017) was a major battle of the Second Libyan Civil War that raged from October 2014 to December 2017, between the Shura Council of Benghazi Revolutionaries, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Libya, and the Libyan National Army (LNA), and paramilitaries supporting the Libyan National Army in the city. The battle was a direct consequence of the failed Benina Airport Offensive by the Benghazi Revolutionaries and their Allies, which allowed LNA Forces to regroup and attack deep into Benghazi.
Kristian Joaquin "Tanto" Paronto is an American author, businessman, and former U.S. Army Ranger and CIA security contractor. He is known for his actions while part of the CIA annex security team during the 2012 terrorist attack on the U.S. Ambassador to Libya, J. Chris Stevens and the CIA compound in Benghazi. He is featured in the book 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi and is credited as a co-author, and is author of the self-help books The Patriot's Creed: Inspiration and Advice for Living a Heroic Life and The Ranger Way: Living the Code On and Off the Battlefield.
Ahmed Hammoud is a Moroccan actor. He is best known for the roles in the films 13 Hours, Mimosas and Zanka Contact.
Paramount Pictures' controversial 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is coming in lower than its $20M-$23M industry projection, but stronger than anticipated with a $19.65M FSSM and $16.2M in its 3-day B.O.