User reviews

This is a pretty simple movie, really. One man, a wall, a voice on the radio and an unending tension. That simplicity presents a strong challenge though. Aaron Taylor-Johnson has to carry the whole thing pretty much by himself and he does a great job.

It's an entertaining movie, well acted and paced. It's good, just not quite great.

What starts out as an insular, straight-forward war thriller soon becomes a somewhat sillier, 'Phonebooth (2002)'-esque affair that's really only carried by our two leads' willingness to get down and dirty in the desert sand as they scramble for cover from the chatty sniper pinning them down. The pace in 'The Wall (2017)' is usually slow but there are several genuinely suspenseful and otherwise more energetic moments peppered throughout. The general design of the piece is also relatively realistic - including some stellar sound design that has the crack of each distant shot echo out only after the splat of its impact. This means that there are tangible stakes in almost every scene, even when there isn't any real entertainment. 6/10

The Wall is the latest thriller from director Doug Liman and features Aaron Taylor-Johnson and John Cena as a two man recon team stationed in Iraq who are pinned down by sniper fire and must take refuge behind a wall. Their calls for help are heard by no one...except the enemy sniper. As the battle of wits rages on so does the courage of the two men and their will to survive. This proves to be very beneficial for this film because, honestly, it did not feel like it would be able to sustain a feature length film. However, with the sheer intensity of the film and the perfect performances from Johnson and Cena, The Wall works even when it doesn't.

First off, the film is a lean, mean 80 minutes. As soon as the film starts, it starts. There is no warming up to it, it drops you in the movie unapologetic. What comes next is a reckoning of pure adrenaline pumping cinema. Much like last year's The Shallows, The Wall benefits from its bare bones approach. There isn't big explosions or typical warfare, this is more a war of wits which has been done before (and better) but this film is successful in the way that it doesn't need huge action numbers to sustain suspense. Director Doug Liman knows what it is and he knows the strengths are in the performances. It makes for a very interesting addition in the new age war film genre, sitting nicely between The Hurt Locker and American Sniper.

Despite all that is well with the film, there are a few moments where you're expecting the film to go one way and then it absolutely does not take any risks and gives you exactly what you expected. For that, I have to say that it was disappointing to not see as much innovation with such a bare bones film. For me, I like when characters are forced to use their environments for their benefit. The Wall definitely did that but in sort of a half-assed way. There really isn't anything clever or cool about the way it all pans out. With that being said, it still makes for an intense movie even if sometimes it feels a little cheap.

Overall, The Wall is a short yet intense film that will keep you hanging on until the last frame. The performances from Aaron Taylor Johnson and John Cena are nothing short of amazing. This is especially for John Cena, who absolutely blew me away with his fantastic performance as Matthews. While Cena shines, so does Aaron Taylor Johnson who bucks up and carries the movie on his shoulders without even thinking about it. It stands as Johnson and Cena's best performances to date and it definitely is worth watching.

It's effectively a remake of Phone Booth transposed to the Iraqi desert. It works very well. Very tense, very involving and very watchable. Recommended.

I liked this film partly because it's different. Most military films have guns, bombs and explosions but this focused on the tension. Pretty simple idea and very cheap to make but that's a good thing. Well worth a watch

Greetings again from the darkness. When a director's filmography includes "big" action movies like Edge of Tomorrow, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and The Bourne Identity (the original), the last thing we expect is a stripped-down war movie whose camera focuses on a single character almost the entire run time. Director Doug Liman certainly understands how to use the camera in creating tension and stress, yet while he and writer Dwain Worrell seem so intent on proving the confusion and futility of war, they seem to forget that a thriller needs either a hero to cheer or a villain to jeer.

It's late 2007, and the war is winding down as rebuilding efforts are underway. Hulking Staff Sergeant Matthews (John Cena) and his fellow soldier Isaac (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) have been perched and camouflaged on the side a hill for more than 20 hours as they carry out reconnaissance on the site of an under-construction oil pipeline. All they have seen is the remains of a massacre – 8 bodies with no signs of life. Peering through his malfunctioning scope that once belonged to a now-dead friend, Isaac (known as "Ize" – get it?) and his training thinks something doesn't seem right. When Matthews deems the site safe, he heads down to check it out. Of course, all heck breaks out and soon enough, an injured Isaac takes shelter alone behind a teetering stone wall. It turns out a sniper, more patient than the American soldiers, had been biding time for the moment.

The first eight bodies are construction contractors and a security detail … none of which mattered to the sniper. The hook here is that the sniper hacks into Isaac's radio and seemingly wants to chat it up, rather than finish him off. We never see the sniper, and neither do Matthews or Isaac … but we do hear him plenty. Laith Nakli voices Juba – known to American soldiers as the Angel of Death, responsible for dozens of US casualties. The film spirals into a psychological game of chess – or, more fittingly, the torture of Isaac. This isn't the war we've come to expect in movies. Isaac's situation seems hopeless, and banter with the man responsible never strikes him as a worthwhile pursuit.

The biggest issue here is that Juba seems the most interesting character, and not only are we never provided a way to connect with/hate him, we don't even get enough backstory to bond with Isaac. Plenty of obstacles are thrown at Isaac: blowing sand, lack of drinking water, skittles for sustenance, blazing sun/heat, radio issues, and a brutally painful knee wound courtesy of Juba. The success of the movie depends on two things: Aaron Taylor-Johnson selling us on Isaac's predicament, and the radio dialogue between he and Juba. The former is fine, but the latter falls short.

Better sniper movies include American Sniper and Enemy at the Gates, while more effective (mostly) one-character thrillers include Locke, Buried, and 127 Hours. The film makes excellent use of sound, but the little jabs at American ideals grows old quickly (such as asking who is the real terrorist). A different approach to a familiar topic deserves a chance, but while Juba only misses on purpose, the efforts of Mr. Liman and Mr. Worrell miss the mark by not engaging the viewer with the character(s).

If you expect a war movie full of action then you should just skip The Wall. If you expect a war movie with a lot of different characters then you should just skip The Wall. But if you're in to watch a war movie with psychological warfare, where a sniper plays with the life of a couple American soldiers then The Wall is worth giving it a shot. Because that's what you get. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is the main character and you will almost watch him for the entire movie. His mate played by John Cena has a much smaller role. The other big role is for Laith Nakli playing the sniper but him you won't even see, he's just a voice in an earphone. So not much characters, not much action, but still enough suspense to make it an interesting war movie to watch.

The movie is a snap of what happened, happens and would happen at war with lives, hopes, and disguise at stake. There is no wonder that the American soldier is depicted as one with a heart, with hope for life, and with a brain. Yet, if you look at the movie from an alien point of view you would understand that the soldier is a foreign land whom he has no idea why he is there, who he is fighting for, or even whether this war he's fighting and involved will change his world or the worlds of other. In other words, if your house is made of glass, don't throw at people stones. The producer tries to depict the lost souls who unwillingly fought for their countries or rather for their superiors and the so-called enemies who are on a mission to get back at them being pushed by what happened to them or to their countries. What separates truth, untruth, life and death is a mere wall that can collapse at any time.

The Wall is directed by Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Edge of Tomorrow), stars Aaron Taylor Johnson and John Cena and it tells a story about two American soldiers attacked by a sniper in Iraq and one of them gets behind this wall and tries to think of how to escape.

It's a decent premise and this could have been very suspenseful. But, while there are a few intense moments, the grip doesn't last. It should have been intense all the way through. It's not boring, but you'll be only half-interested. At least I was. It also sets up some thought-provoking themes but never really builds on that. It's just put there and they do nothing about it.

Still, what sells the anxiety in some scenes is Aaron Taylor Johnson's incredible performance. John Cena is okay, but Johnson is the star here. The whole thing feels pretty realistic actually and you won't be bored while watching this. But it's also not something you'll remember.

"The Wall" (2017 release; 93 min.) brings the story of Isaac. As the movie opens, we are reminded that "It's late 2007, and the Iraqi was is winding down". We then meet two servicemen who are out somewhere in the desert looking for an Iraqi sniper who has killed US contractors. After 22 hrs.,, Matthews decides to go in, but when he does he is shot. In the ensuing chaos, Isaac also gets shot, and in desperation throws himself behind a wobbly wall to hide out. It's not too long before Isaac is in radio contact with the Iraqi sniper (pretending to be an ally). At this point we're not even 15 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from director Doug Liman, best known for action movies like his previous film "Edge of Tomorrow". Here, he goes a very different direction. It is in essence a (mostly one-man) theater play set in the desert and in three scenes: the opening 10 min., the middle 60 min, and the concluding 20 min. The meat of the film is the 60 min. (playing out in real time) in which Isaac and the Iraqi sniper are playing mind games with each other (but we only see Isaac). The performance from Aaron Taylor-Johnson is amazing (for one thing, he is out of breath the entire movie--due to heat exhaustion and from being shot). He carries the movie on his shoulders, both figuratively and literally. Along the way we also understand how it is that Isaac and Matthews ended up there, with no apparent backup or rescue plans. The movie does not contain any music (but for one instrumental playing over the end credits). Please note that the movie is shown here on Amazon and also other sources (such as IMDb) as having a running time of 81 min. This is simply not correct: the version I saw in the theater ran a few minutes over an hour and a half.

"The Wall" opened in theaters this weekend, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Saturday early evening screening where I saw this at here in Cincinnati was attend okay but still on the low side (considering it's the movie's opening weekend). Given the nature of the movie (a theater play in the desert) and its subject matter (the war in Iraq), I can't imagine this will play very long in theaters, so if this is something that might appeal to you, there's a good chance that you'll end up checking it out on Amazon Instant Video or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.

Thank you Doug Liman for wasting 1:29 mins if my time. Can't believe he's the same guy who gave us jumpers, edge of tomorrow, Mr and Mrs smith. Whatever happened man. Its a shame. Aaron Taylors acting is good, but his character has been written very very badly. You will curse him throughout the movie. There's hardly 5 mins of john cena...that's it. He doesn't appear in 98% of the movie. What were you trying to prove Doug liman ? This is just a single location concept film. Please don't waste your time. Before this one I had watched The Covenant by guy Ritchie and it is a far better film...this movie turned up in the recommendations. Big mistake to watch.

This is what you can call The One-Man Movie , Way way underrated movie .. Aaron Taylor-Johnson ( Isaac ) makes a tremendous effort in this movie , Perfect performance and I really give him most of the credit .. Laith Nakli ( The Sniper ) also does a great job in performing the mysterious man of the show even by only his voice !

The movie itself is intelligent thriller till the last moment of it . I liked the dialogues , the convincing acting , the way Isac's thinking was portrayed and his insiders were shown . I mean , I really could feel him and found myself in his position

The Location , The Shots , The Directing and The General Atmosphere were all perfectly carried out

The Absence of music nearly the whole movie gets you living it in a more focused way

Important point to consider is that this isn't mainly a war movie , It's a thriller one .. So Don't expect finding battles , fights , tanks and helicopters and so on

Such a low budget film , few cast and under 90 minutes is considered in my opinion as a very pleasant experience which I heavily recommend for any fan of thriller genre movies .. Just keep it running till the end , You won't regret it

Just when you thought there only is the song the Wall ... there comes the movie the wall. Ok I'm obviously stretching here. But what I was really surprised about, that Doug Liman had done this and I had not heard about it. Then again the movie is quite the slow burn .. it almost plays like a theatre play ... on a battle field. One with violence and cursing ... is that not like other plays? What do I know, right? Again, just kidding.

War is not fun though ... for anyone. And I reckon this raises some question about why the USA is where they are and why people there act the way they do. I would not say that anyone has the ... (moral) high ground - pun very much intended. Fine performances and an ending that you may feel is fitting or too much ... but the movie is intense throughout and you might end up on the edge of your seat .. not being able to move at times - to not be spotted. Sorry I just can't help myself.

I have to say I agree with the better reviews that this was a very well done one-man show. Aaron Taylor-Johnson carried the movie flawlessly. I was glued to my seat and very engaged. My only problem is that I don't know why it was made.

No this isn't The Great Wall with ponytailed Matt Damon. Its much better anyways. Doug Liman is quite solid as a filmmaker. The first Bourne film is the best out of the lot, and Edge of Tomorrow was fairly creative and engaging. Here he brings a small budget, a tiny cast, and a single locale. Yet this film brings an enormous amount to the table in terms of tension, sufficient writing, and gripping action that revives around acting for survival.

The film follows two soldiers who watch over a site for pipeline construction. The sergeant is shot down by a hidden Iraqi sniper, while his spotter runs behind a wall after being shot in the leg. The spotter (played by a really good Aaron Taylor-Johnson) must not only try to save himself but also his sergeant while communicating with an extremely dangerous and accurate sniper. The thing about this film is that its minimal in production yet offers so much.

I'm very impressed with ATJ this year. He was the best part of the excellent Nocturnal Animals and is very convincing as Isaac in this film. The film is a really thrilling survival film that specializes in tense moments, substantial character development, and a riveting game of cat and mouse. You never even see the sniper in the film but wow is he a menacing force. The film is short and doesn't overstay its welcome which really works in its favor. Its also not as predictable as one would think.

I'm most impressed by the fact that a film that I expected absolutely nothing from ended up being worthwhile. It's not going to win any awards or earn plaudits but it shows the strength of its lead actor and the strength of Liman with such limited use of pieces. Definitely worth a watch and remains fresh enough to avoid being a bland Iraq-American war film.

7/10

First of all, John Cena was. A bad choice for the support act in this two man movie(actually just a one man movie and a voice) but it does not take away form the thriller that it is.

Really enjoyed this movie and the suspense between the sniper, where is he, is he moving, is he bluffing... Watch right until the end.

It's a decent war movie with a single character. It keeps you fairly engaging throughout and being less than 90 minutes helps. What helps is lack of mindless shooting, machoism and loud background scores. The wireless interaction between the two (you hear only the voice of the other character) is deep. To sum up, definitely worth a watch once and better than so many of the recent sniper movies. And the other thing i noticed here is a lot of negative reviews, especially giving really low scores. I feel those are just people with hurt ego who can't get above the fact that the ending is not what they would have liked. If you're not a trigger happy American, it's more likely you'll like this movie than not.

This movie happens during the Iraq war as two soldiers are checking out a wall where they get to see many casualties. So they suspect something is not right that's when they come across a haji sniper and then their fight for survival begins. To say about the story it was good but I have come across many movies like this. Acting vise it was good but I would have rated this movie just an average if the ending was not so good. I loved the ending. Yes I would recommend this movie to anyone I know. I would say give it a shot.

Notable Acting

Aaron Taylor-Johnson famous for his movies like the kick ass franchise and Godzilla.

John Cena he is a famous wwe wrestler

My Rating 7/10

'THE WALL': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A war thriller about two American soldiers that are pinned down in Iraq by an enemy sniper. The film was made on a budget of just $3 million, and it stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, John Cena and Laith Nakli. Doug Liman (who also helmed 'THE BOURNE IDENTITY', 'SWINGERS', 'GO', 'EDGE OF TOMORROW', 'MR. AND MRS. SIMITH', and more) handled directing duties, while Dwain Worrell (a regular writer of the superhero TV show 'IRON FIST') wrote the screenplay. The movie received mostly positive reviews from critics, but it also only got a limited release in theaters.

Staff Sergeant Shane Matthews (Cena) is a US Army sniper that's sent to investigate some shootings at a pipeline construction site in the Iraqi dessert. He's assisted by his spotter, Sergeant Allen Isaac (Taylor-Johnson). After waiting for over 22-hours, Matthews determines that the site is clear. When he approaches the bodies though, he's shot by an unseen Iraqi sniper (Nakli). When Isaac tries to help Matthews, he's also shot, and then he's trapped behind a collapsing wall that he uses for cover (while Matthews appears to be dying). The sniper than converses with Matthews over a military radio, and a psychological showdown develops between the two men.

The film has a great premise, a talented cast, and a decent director. The screenwriter just wasn't able to stretch the plot out enough to make a very decent feature length thriller though (so it's surprising to me that this script made the 2014 Black List). It's definitely not a boring film, or a pain to sit through, but it isn't that thrilling either. Not in a very memorable way at the very least. It's a decent war film though, and it's worth seeing if you're a fan of the genre.

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