Mark Wahlberg portrays real-life Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell in the 2013 film, “Lone Survivor.” In 2005 in Afghanistan, Luttrell, and three other SEALs went on a recon mission as part of Operation Red Wings to take out Taliban leader Ahmad Shah. The team was spotted by Afghan goatherders, but they spared the unarmed men. Later on in the film, the Afghans are suspected of alerting a group of Taliban fighters of the SEALs’ presence. The Taliban then surrounds the SEAL team and a terrible battle ensues. Only Luttrell would make it out alive.
These moments from the movie dive deep into the mission of these brave SEALs (be sure to turn the sound on, on the video player):
This hair-raising scene shows the moment these SEALs notice that the Taliban militants know of their presence and began to engage in a gunbattle.
In this heart-wrenching scene, Michael Murphy, one of the four Navy SEALs reaches the top of the mountain to call for help and carry out his final point of battle. This emotional and raw clip shows his dynamic bravery up until his last breath. It depicts the actions for which Murphy was awarded the Medal of Honor, becoming the first U.S. Navy recipient of the medal since the Vietnam War.
This scene shows the moment in which the SEALS were delivered a brief glimpse of hope with the arrival of a Chinook helicopter carrying 16 special operations forces. However, a Taliban RPG fired at the helicopter, killing all service members on board, and denying the surviving SEALs the chance of rescue. At the time, the incident served as the largest loss of U.S. life since the beginning of the Afghan War.
This scene shows Luttrell’s struggle to trust an Afghan man Mohammad Gulab who appears to be offering him help. Luttrell eventually accepted Gulab’s help, and Gulab assisted Luttrell back to the village where he shielded Luttrell from the Taliban and helped inform the U.S. military of his whereabouts. Not shown in the movie, Gulab faced threats from the Taliban for helping Murphy and eventually escaped Afghanistan with U.S. assistance.
This clip depicting the ultimate rescue of Luttrell speaks for itself. “You’re safe, Marcus. You’re going home.”
