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Added trope: artistic license medicine

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* ArtisticLicenseMedicine: Bullet to the leg? You could do an improvised tourniquet with a piece of cloth, but why not just shove the dirt cloth into the hole with your thumb and call it a day instead! Bullet to the gut? Puncturing the intestines is sure to lead to serious infections... slap some dirt on it to make absolutely sure your buddy dies from sepsis.

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** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds. * NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrell says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.

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** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.
* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrell says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.
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The FilmOfTheBook by the same name, Lone Survivor tells the story of Operation Red Wings and the death of SEAL team 10. Starring Creator/MarkWahlberg and featuring an extended cameo by Marcus Luttrel himself (though not ''as'' himself), the story is slightly changed from Luttrel's original telling, and considerably truncated.

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The FilmOfTheBook by the same name, Lone Survivor tells the story of Operation Red Wings and the death of SEAL team 10. Starring Creator/MarkWahlberg and featuring an extended cameo by Marcus Luttrel Luttrell himself (though not ''as'' himself), the story is slightly changed from Luttrel's Luttrell's original telling, and considerably truncated.



* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene: Axelson's final conversation with Luttrel. It's quickly broken up by the fight continuing, though.

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* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene: Axelson's final conversation with Luttrel.Luttrell. It's quickly broken up by the fight continuing, though.



* BreakTheBadass: Dietz breaks down under the stress of the fight, and eventually Luttrel suffers from both injuries and the deaths of his friends.

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* BreakTheBadass: Dietz breaks down under the stress of the fight, and eventually Luttrel Luttrell suffers from both injuries and the deaths of his friends.



* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: How Luttrel is eventually saved - he's found by a local Pashtun and has to almost drag by force to safety from an incoming Taliban patrol.
* CreatorCameo: Director Peter Berg is briefly seen as one of the [=SEALs=] jeering during at Shane Patton's dance sequence. Marcus Luttrel himself also appears in several scenes as the big unnamed [=SEAL=] with the full beard.

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* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: How Luttrel Luttrell is eventually saved - he's found by a local Pashtun and has to almost drag by force to safety from an incoming Taliban patrol.
* CreatorCameo: Director Peter Berg is briefly seen as one of the [=SEALs=] jeering during at Shane Patton's dance sequence. Marcus Luttrel Luttrell himself also appears in several scenes as the big unnamed [=SEAL=] with the full beard.



* DefiantToTheEnd: Luttrel, when he is nearly executed, is still calling out his would-be executioner.

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* DefiantToTheEnd: Luttrel, Luttrell, when he is nearly executed, is still calling out his would-be executioner.



* LanguageBarrier: Naturally between Luttrel and his Pashtun hosts, leading to somewhat humorous exchanges.

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* LanguageBarrier: Naturally between Luttrel Luttrell and his Pashtun hosts, leading to somewhat humorous exchanges.



* MadeOfIron: Luttrel, Murphy, Dietz, and Axelson are all wounded literally ''dozens'' of times before going down. TruthInTelevision, as [[TrainingFromHell [=BUD/S=] training, especially Hell Week]], is designed to weed out everybody except men who are both superhumanly physically tough and mentally ''will not'' quit.

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* MadeOfIron: Luttrel, Luttrell, Murphy, Dietz, and Axelson are all wounded literally ''dozens'' of times before going down. TruthInTelevision, as [[TrainingFromHell [=BUD/S=] training, especially Hell Week]], is designed to weed out everybody except men who are both superhumanly physically tough and mentally ''will not'' quit.



* MoodWhiplash: Luttrel almost getting executed is immediately followed by a comedic scene where he asks for a knife and, due to the language barrier, initially gets a duck instead. This, in turn, is followed by Luttrel using said knife to dig shrapnel out of his wounded leg and ''[[{{Squick}} sloooowly]]'' pull out a shard of metal nearly the size of his hand.

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* MoodWhiplash: Luttrel Luttrell almost getting executed is immediately followed by a comedic scene where he asks for a knife and, due to the language barrier, initially gets a duck instead. This, in turn, is followed by Luttrel Luttrell using said knife to dig shrapnel out of his wounded leg and ''[[{{Squick}} sloooowly]]'' pull out a shard of metal nearly the size of his hand.



** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.

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** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, Luttrell, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.



** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds. * NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrel says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.
* OffWithHisHead: Luttrel comes close to suffering this traditional method of execution, but is narrowly saved by friendly Afghan Pashtun villagers.
* PetTheDog: Luttrel's scenes with the village boy.

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** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds. * NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrel Luttrell says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.
* OffWithHisHead: Luttrel Luttrell comes close to suffering this traditional method of execution, but is narrowly saved by friendly Afghan Pashtun villagers.
* PetTheDog: Luttrel's Luttrell's scenes with the village boy.



** The film leaves out the extended period of time Luttrel spent with the villagers, all the relationships he built therein, and how Taliban fighters repeatedly broke in at night to beat and torture him. There is, however, a brief nod to it when he hugs a kid who helped him and says "thank you" right before leaving.
** In the movie, a battered Marcus Luttrel stands up and limps to Mohammad Gulab's village. In real life, Luttrel had suffered multiple bullet and shrapnel wounds, a broken leg, and fractured vertebrae, and couldn't even get up on his knees. Instead, he ''crawled'' to the stream where Gulab found him. ''[[MadeOfIron Across ten Goddamn miles of the Hindu Kush Mountains]]''. The producers [[RealityIsUnrealistic didn't think anyone would believe that]].
** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a democratic vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel.

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** The film leaves out the extended period of time Luttrel Luttrell spent with the villagers, all the relationships he built therein, and how Taliban fighters repeatedly broke in at night to beat and torture him. There is, however, a brief nod to it when he hugs a kid who helped him and says "thank you" right before leaving.
** In the movie, a battered Marcus Luttrel Luttrell stands up and limps to Mohammad Gulab's village. In real life, Luttrel Luttrell had suffered multiple bullet and shrapnel wounds, a broken leg, and fractured vertebrae, and couldn't even get up on his knees. Instead, he ''crawled'' ''[[InjuredSelfDrag crawled]]'' to the stream where Gulab found him. ''[[MadeOfIron Across ten Goddamn miles of the Hindu Kush Mountains]]''. The producers [[RealityIsUnrealistic didn't think anyone would believe that]].
** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel Luttrell casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel Luttrell chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a democratic vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel.Luttrell.



* RuleOfDrama: Most of the Pashto is untranslated, as Luttrel didn't know it. However, when he's about to be executed by the Taliban and one of the Pashtun invokes SacredHospitality to keep him alive, we're briefly given subtitles so that the Taliban not executing him would be reasonable and not seem like a DeusExMachina.

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* RuleOfDrama: Most of the Pashto is untranslated, as Luttrel Luttrell didn't know it. However, when he's about to be executed by the Taliban and one of the Pashtun invokes SacredHospitality to keep him alive, we're briefly given subtitles so that the Taliban not executing him would be reasonable and not seem like a DeusExMachina.



* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a conservative Christian from Texas who has effectively no common ground with the equally conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], he admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.
* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: In the end, the Taliban that does find Luttrel starts to beat and toss him around, instead of simply putting few bullets into him.

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* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel Luttrell is a conservative Christian from Texas who has effectively no common ground with the equally conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], he admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.
* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: In the end, the Taliban that does find Luttrel Luttrell starts to beat and toss him around, instead of simply putting few bullets into him.
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* BilingualBonus: The old goat herder tells the team in Pashtun 'you will all die tonight.'
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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel.

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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a democratic vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel.
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* AluminumChristmasTrees: Again, the [=SEALs=]. In the film adaptation, at least. This is TruthInTelevision: Most of the pictures of [=SEALs=] who participated in Operation Red Wings show them with beards.
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Removing ROCEJ sinkhole as per discussion.


** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].

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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father claiming that his son would never hold a vote to decide if someone should live or die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lone_survivor_06_3470.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:SEAL Team 10]]

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lone_survivor_06_3470.org/pmwiki/pub/images/e55a30e5_d9d5_45e3_b270_f0854a10f247.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:SEAL Team 10]]
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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father denying his son would allow a vote to determine whether to kill or spare somebody. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].

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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father denying claiming that his son would allow never hold a vote to determine whether to kill decide if someone should live or spare somebody.die, let alone a civilian. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].
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* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from Texas, and has effectively no common ground with the also very conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], he admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.

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* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from Texas, and Texas who has effectively no common ground with the also very equally conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], he admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.
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** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published, and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father denying his son would allow a vote to determine his action. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].

to:

** In the book, the team takes a vote to decide the fate of the goatherders, and Luttrel casts the deciding vote after Murphy states he would go along with what Luttrel chose. This sparked a considerable controversy after the book was published, published and prompted a statement from Lt. Murphy's father denying his son would allow a vote to determine his action.whether to kill or spare somebody. In the film, the team debates, bickers, begins to vote... and Lt. Murphy steps out from behind a tree and announces in ringing tones that ''he'' is in command and will make the decision. Theoretically, the only living person who knows the actual sequence of events is Luttrel. [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And that's all that can be said on that]].
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* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from Texas, and has effectively no common ground with the also very conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], and admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.

to:

* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from Texas, and has effectively no common ground with the also very conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], and he admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.
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None


* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from the American South, and has effectively no common ground with the also very conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], and admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.

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* ValuesDissonance: {{Invoked}}. Luttrel is a very conservative Christian from the American South, Texas, and has effectively no common ground with the also very conservative Muslim Pashtun. Still, he admires their courage and commitment to ''their'' idea of honor, and when he describes the [[StayInTheKitchen the Pashtun attitude towards women]], and admits that while their extreme views "may not work for downtown Dallas," it seemed to work well enough for them.
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Dewicked trope


* BadassBeard: Again, the [=SEALs=]. In the film adaptation, at least. This is TruthInTelevision: Most of the pictures of [=SEALs=] who participated in Operation Red Wings show them with beards.

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* BadassBeard: AluminumChristmasTrees: Again, the [=SEALs=]. In the film adaptation, at least. This is TruthInTelevision: Most of the pictures of [=SEALs=] who participated in Operation Red Wings show them with beards.

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* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrel says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.

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* NiceMeanAndInBetween:
** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.
** TheSpock: Axelson, who suggests killing the shepherds for the sake of the mission.
** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.
* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Luttrel says he's from Texas near the end of the film, but Mark Wahlberg doesn't lose his signature Boston accent.



* PowerTrio:
** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.
** TheSpock: Axelson, who suggests killing the shepherds for the sake of the mission.
** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.

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* PowerTrio:
** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.
** TheSpock: Axelson, who suggests killing the shepherds for the sake of the mission.
** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.

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* ShirtlessScene: Taylor Kitsch gets one in the beginning of the film.

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* ShirtlessScene: ShirtlessScene:
**
Taylor Kitsch gets one in the beginning of the film.film.
** Played for drama when Marcus is undressed later on to be put him into clean, less conspicuous clothes, and all the multiple wounds he had taken already are being shown up-close.


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* TakingYouWithMe:
** Once the whole operation goes sideway, Murphy and Luttrell have a semi-serious exchange they now gonna have easier time killing their targets, given they are surrounded and probably won't make it alive anyway. It very quickly stops being funny.
** Marcus is eventually desperate enough to keep carrying a grenade just to make it clear, despite the LanguageBarrier, that he doesn't trust the people around him, even if they seem to be helpful.

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* AllThereInTheScript: Numerous characters aren't named in the movie, but get both their names listed in the credits and are identified by their - often full - names in the book.



** Two Chinook choppers without any support speed up to the rescue. You can probably predict how this goes.

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** Two Chinook choppers without any support speed up to the rescue. You can probably predict [[HopeSpot how this goes.goes]].



* ChekhovsGun: The Makarov pistol Taraq is shown carrying is used in the finale. [[spoiler: Against him]].




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* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: In the end, the Taliban that does find Luttrel starts to beat and toss him around, instead of simply putting few bullets into him.

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I guess not telling the local militia there are enemy soldiers hiding nearby is now being "ungrateful"


* AgonyOfTheFeet: ''Multiple'' gunshot wounds to feet. By the time they end up separated, Marcus is the only soldier that wasn't shot in his feet yet.



* BrickJoke: While going over the rules of engagement and mission plan in the briefing, they discuss their radio protocol. The team is told to call in every two hours, and it is decided that if the team misses two consecutive radio calls, to "wake someone up" - slang for take serious action. Later, the CO is woken up by the team calling in on an unsecure satphone...after missing two consecutive radio calls.
* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: How Luttrel is eventually saved.

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* BrickJoke: While going over the rules of engagement and mission plan in the briefing, they discuss their radio protocol. The team is told to call in every two hours, and it is decided that if the team misses two consecutive radio calls, to "wake someone up" - slang for take serious action. Later, the CO is ''literally'' woken up by the team calling in on an unsecure satphone...after missing two consecutive radio calls.
* TheCavalry:
** Two Chinook choppers without any support speed up to the rescue. You can probably predict how this goes.
** In the end, the full air rescue is send to the Kandish village, just in time to turn the tide of the ongoing skirmish.
* ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive: How Luttrel is eventually saved.saved - he's found by a local Pashtun and has to almost drag by force to safety from an incoming Taliban patrol.



* DefiantToTheEnd: Luttrel when he is nearly executed.

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* DefiantToTheEnd: Luttrel Luttrel, when he is nearly executed.executed, is still calling out his would-be executioner.



* {{Determinator}}: The entire [=SEAL=] team.
* DevelopingDoomedCharacters: Done very well.

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* {{Determinator}}: The entire [=SEAL=] team.
team, but most notably Axelson. He keeps going until he runs out of bullets for both his rifle and his side arm and only then stops moving. That after taking multiple wounds of all kinds himself, including a (grazing) one to his head.
* DevelopingDoomedCharacters: Done Considering the sheer premise of the story, done very well.



* ForegoneConclusion: Even if you hadn't heard the story the title is a less-than-subtle hint.
* FromBadToWorse: The ''entire film.''

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* {{Fingore}}: Dietz gets two of his finger shot off very early on - and he doesn't realise the actual damage until few minutes later.
* ForegoneConclusion: Even if you hadn't heard the story the title is a less-than-subtle hint.
hint. Unfortunately, this actively deflates any possible drama, because the story really is this simple and the title alone summarises first 80 of the 110 minutes running time.
* FromBadToWorse: The ''entire film.''film'' is a story of an operation that went horribly wrong and the longer the engagement lasts, the worse it goes for the protagonists, with more and more things going sideways - including [[spoiler: their cavalry being shot down]].



* GunshipRescue: [[HopeSpot Subverted]] the first time. Played straight the second time.

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* GunshipRescue: GunshipRescue:
**
[[HopeSpot Subverted]] the first time. time, when one of the transport choppers is shot down and the other has to be pulled out.
**
Played straight the second time.time, where a proper rescue operation with full support is performed.



* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: Justified; the [=SEALs=] have had years of training that the Taliban members (who rely on strength in numbers and more firepower) can't possibly compete with. During the first confrontation, not a single member of the team gets hit.
** Taken almost UpToEleven during Axelson's death; it takes three bullets for the Taliban just to hit him from close range, whereas he and the rest of his team had been hitting and killing Taliban members from thrice the distance.

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* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: Justified; ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy:
** ZigZagged for
the most part. The [=SEALs=] have had years of training that the Taliban members (who rely on strength in numbers and more firepower) can't possibly compete with. During Said that, the first confrontation, not a single member of Taliban come off as bad shots by simple comparison, rather than actual poor accuracy, and then there is also the team gets hit.
gear disparity to account for.
** Taken almost UpToEleven during Axelson's death; it Played straight when Axelson is being finally killed. It takes three ''three'' bullets for the Taliban just to hit him from close range, whereas he range of just few paces, where missing such shot shouldn't be even possible.
* InstantDeathBullet: One of the most notable subversions in modern cinema. All the [=SEALs=] take multiple gunshot
and the rest of his team had been hitting even shrapnel wounds and killing Taliban members just keep going. Granted, their do break down from thrice the distance.fatigue and blood loss, while their combat capacity is gradually worn down, and three of them eventually get killed. But it takes multiple shots to bring each of them down and over prolonged time.



* MetaTwist: When Axe and Marcus are having a heart-breaking chat about what is to be passed to Cindy, the whole scene is build up for the cliche [[spoiler: "shot in the head mid-sentence"]]. It never happens.



* TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.
** TheSpock: Axelson, who suggests killing the shepherds for the sake of the mission.
** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.



* PowerTrio:
** TheMcCoy: Luttrel, who votes to spare the captured shepherds, thereby dooming the mission.
** TheSpock: Axelson, who suggests killing the shepherds for the sake of the mission.
** TheKirk: Lt. Murphy, who weighs both sides and ultimately chooses to abandon the mission and spare the shepherds.



* SacredHospitality: The reason why Marcus is being helped. To the point where the locals would rather fight to defend him, on the ground of how sacred the hospitality is, than simply let him be captured and executed. He never quite can wrap his head around to why ''anyone'' would do such a thing.



* UngratefulBastard: The young Taliban member that the team lets go ''immediately'' rats them out.
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* TrainingMontage: The film's opening is a montage of real-life [=SEALs=] training. And not even the combat or survival training itself, just the Hell Week portion in which candidates are wet, sandy, sleep-deprived, and hypothermic (San Diego winters my be relatively mild, but the water gets ''cold'') for eight days straight, in which most quit voluntarily. Despite it being only a few minutes long, it's more than enough to show how [=SEALs=] get to be such badasses.

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* TrainingMontage: The film's opening is a montage of real-life [=SEALs=] training. And not even the combat or survival training itself, just the Hell Week portion in which candidates are wet, sandy, sleep-deprived, and hypothermic (San Diego winters my may be relatively mild, but the water gets ''cold'') for eight days straight, in which most quit voluntarily. Despite it being only a few minutes long, it's more than enough to show how [=SEALs=] get to be such badasses.

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