A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this movie.
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Positive Messages
some
Pays tribute to the uncredited "shadow soldiers" who protected the state department and CIA agents; per the movie, they prevent the Benghazi incident from becoming even deadlier. Suggests that disobeying orders is OK if it means saving lives and that bureaucracy is the reason so many lives were lost that night in Libya.
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Positive Role Models
a little
The men in the movie -- privately paid individuals who are no longer working in the armed forces as soldiers -- are indisputably brave. That said, the movie glamorizes self-proclaimed "warriors" over agents with years of international diplomatic and intelligence experience. Few agents are shown as courageous except for a chef and a female spy. Some viewers may take issue with the way Muslim characters are depicted.
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Violence & Scariness
a lot
Combat scenes include shoot-outs between heavily armed U.S. forces/security detail and a Libyan militia. Machine guns, RPGs, and explosions. Men die from bullet wounds and smoke inhalation. A man walks around with part of his forearm and wrist detached from his body, spraying blood everywhere. Another man with debris stuck in his body also bleeds profusely. Lots of blood and dead bodies are visible. A prominent character's dead body is thrown off a building.
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Sex, Romance & Nudity
very little
No sex, but an American man asks a Libyan man whether Gaddafi's guard was really composed of solely beautiful women, and a Libyan man makes gestures indicating big breasts and a curvy, tall build. A female CIA agent is tender and almost flirtatious toward a male contractor, but there's nothing between them but obvious fondness.
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Language
a lot
Lots of swearing in the movie's high-stakes, life-or-death environment, including "f--k," "s--t," "a--hole," "s--tstorm," etc.
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Products & Purchases
a little
Almost all of the tricked-out, bullet-proof cars are Mercedes.
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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
a little
Adults smoke cigarettes and a hookah and drink in a few scenes.
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Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is an action-heavy thriller based on eye-witness accounts of the events leading up to the attacks on the temporary American mission in Benghazi and the secret CIA annex on Sept. 11, 2012. Directed by Michael Bay, the movie is based on a memoir written by a group of CIA contractors who claim they were ready to help the ambassador and his small U.S. State Department detail but were told to stand down by their base chief. The movie is seen as highly political by some and shouldn't be considered an impartial narrative of what happened on that fateful night. Frequently violent and bloody, the movie shows dead bodies, including that of a prominent character. People die from bullet wounds, explosions, and fires/smoke inhalation. There's also a fair bit of strong language ("f--k," "s--t," and more) and a few mild innuendoes. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
What's the Story?
13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI is director Michael Bay's adaptation of the same-titled memoir about the deadly 2012 night in Libya that cost four American lives -- including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens -- and remains one of the most hotly debated events to take place during President Obama's administration. Focusing on six commandos who were in Libya as CIA contractors on a special security detail (all ex-special forces -- SEALs, Deltas, etc.), the movie's protagonist is Jack Silva (John Krasinski), the latest to join the Benghazi crew under his fellow SEAL Tyrone "Rone" Woods (James Badge Dale). They guard a secret CIA annex led by surly base chief Bob (David Costabile), who doesn't think the soldiers' presence is necessary. After Ambassador Stevens (Matt Letscher) relocates to Benghazi, the team is on high alert, and on Sept. 11, 2012, in what seems like a calculated series of attacks, local militia attacks both the compound where the ambassador lived and, later, the supposedly secret CIA annex.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about "historical" movies that are only a few years removed from the events they're dramatizing. How are they different than movies made decades after the fact? Do you need time and distance from a subject to treat it fairly/objectively?
How does the violence in this movie compare to what you might see in a comic book or horror movie? Do different types of media violence have different impact?
Does 13 Hours have political implications? Should viewers believe this account of what happened? Why or why not? Is any film truly impartial?
Does the movie treat the CIA agents fairly? Do you think they would have a different perspective on the way the night unfolded? What about base chief Bob?
