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Tears of the Sun
Directed by Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Bruce Willis, Monica Bellucci, Cole Hauser, Fionnula Flanagan
Running Time: 2:00
Country: USA
Year: 2003
Web: Official Site
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Originally conceived as a new entry in the Die Hard franchise, Tears of the Sun marks the return of Bruce Willis as an action hero in the role of A.K. Waters, the head of a group of marines charged with repatriating Dr. Lena Hendricks (Monica Bellucci) in a African country plunged into chaos.
While the actor returns to the heroic figure that made him famous after a successful incursion into more dramatic film, Willis seems to have matured through the years, and his "myth of invincibility" has been broken; he's voluntarily put in harm's way by director Antoine Fuqua. Stripped of John McClane's ironic bravado, Waters is a laconic and effective character closer to 24's Jack Bauer than to McClane. Disparaging a latent sexuality—his attraction to Hendricks—Waters assumes his role until the end but at the price of many sacrifices, that of his men but also of his own cinematic invulnerability. The character thus finishes the film crawling, injured, almost disfigured while 2/3 of his group of GI Joes are decimated by an enemy on their heels in the jungle (Fuqua wanted no one to get out alive at the end), unquestionably bringing Tears of the Sun closer to another film by John McTierman, Predator .
Arriving on screens at the worst time, the film could incorrectly be considered like a patriotic vehicle endorsing the belligerent inclinations of the American government. Here, however, this is far from the case since the only goal of military intervention is to rescue nationals without worrying about the political situation and genocide victims. It is Waters' individual and moral action rather than a political decision that will make the difference, along with a point of selfishness directly related to the doctor's charm. A message suddenly darkens the end, placing the picture back into the current political context in an unwelcome gesture that can probably be attributed to Willis' camp, as his political inclinations are well known.
Out of current context, the film oscillates between two genres—war and political—and two visions—that of a filmmaker wishing to use his film as a vehicle carrying a message and that of an actor deciding to re-conquer a faded glory in one of the roles that made his reputation. Stretched between the two camps, the film makes us discover a country that's prey to carnage before wavering in a second half of pure action. Touched by the events shaking certain African countries, Fuqua—who seems to express himself through the character of the African American marine—elaborated a startling central scene where the audience witnesses the massacre of a village. The process is not new; Platoon already established the stakes of a politicized war film, and this film surely does not go very far in terms of explaining the situation. Just like Windtalkers, Tears of the Sun has the merit to wake up the conscience of the audience and combine a message with the Hollywood entertainment.
Without ever pretending to compete with the most ambitious works of the genre (Apocalypse Now, The Thin Red Line, Platoon, Full Metal Jacket), Tears of the Sun fulfils its status as a muscular action film with script flaws. Though the characters are hardly outlined—particularly as Bellucci is limited as a passive extra—even useless—and the colonel is always on the phone while planes are taking off—the camera embraces the jungle with respect, avoiding a postcard approach with many scenes in semi-darkness, while Fuqua shows his dexterity with the action scenes after the disappointing Replacement Killers. As for many criticisms which disparaged the doctor's improbable beauty, had she resembled the bearded lady Willis's character certainly wouldn't have been as "touched" by her distress and the change of direction would not have had any legitimacy. Constantly in the foreground, sober and solid, Willis carries the picture on his shoulders, owns it, thus ensuring the modest success of the enterprise.
Fred Thom
 Training Day
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