Bay's 13 HOURS Trailer Generates Controversy

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Submitted by RJ Carter on Fri, 07/31/2015 - 12:08

13 Hours Michael Bay Benghazi Critical Blast

When I saw what 13 HOURS was going to be about, I actually expected Oliver Stone to be the director. However, when your story calls for massive explosions, there's really only one go-to guy: Michael Bay (TRANSFORMERS).

So what's the controversy here? Military films based on recent history are nothing new. Perhaps it's the textual disclaimer that comes near the end of the trailer: "This is a true story." Not "based on," but "is." And depending on what the definition of "is" is, you can upset all the right people.

Bay's approach takes the viewer into Libya with a team of elite ex-military operatives who receive the call, "We need immediate assistance." When the team tries to respond, they are told "You are not the first responders. You are the last resort." In apparent defiance of these orders, the team proceeds anyway. I don't want to spoil the ending, but they don't make it in time to save the U.S. Ambassador.

With a screenplay from Chuck Hogan (THE STRAIN) who adapts Mitchell Zuckoff's book of the same name (overwhelmingly 5-starred on Amazon), 13 HOURS is going to be analyzed from every angle from everyone along the political spectrum. That its release comes during a campaign season which finds Hillary Clinton, the U.S. Secretary of State during the events depicted, now running for the Democratic nomination for U.S. President, is either opportunistic or fortuitous, depending on your outlook.

Check out the trailer below and make your own decisions. Will you be seeing 13 HOURS?