'The Outpost': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and everything else about the film on the War in Afghanistan
The last time we saw Orlando Bloom in a war film was in 2001’s ‘Black Hawk Down’ -- we’re not counting ‘Lord of the Rings’. Then he played the role of a young nervous soldier in the U.S. military's 1993 raid in Mogadishu. Close to 20 years later, Bloom will play the soldier again, but obviously a more experienced and mature one. Presenting: ‘The Outpost’.
Release date:
‘The Outpost’ was scheduled to premiere at the 2020 South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival. That, however, did not happen when the convention was canceled because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The film will now release on July 3 on demand and in available theaters.
Plot:
The war drama is based on the 2012 nonfiction book, ‘The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor’, written by American journalist and author Jake Tapper. It’s based on the Battle of Kamdesh.
On October 3, 2009, during the continuing war in Afghanistan, a force of 300 Taliban militants assaulted the American Combat Outpost called Keating near the town of Kamdesh in Nuristan province in eastern Afghanistan. The attack on COP Keating, where the outpost was heavily run over and nearly completely destroyed, resulted in eight American soldiers getting killed and 27 more wounded. The U.S. military later estimated that close to 150 Taliban militants were killed in the clash.
Cast:
Orlando Bloom as 1st Lieutenant Benjamin D. Keating
The 43-year-old British actor is most famous for his role as the elf Legolas in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, a role he reprised in ‘The Hobbit’ film series. Aside from that, Bloom is also well known for his role as Will Turner in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ film series. His other film credits include noted titles such as ‘Troy’ and ‘Kingdom of Heaven’.
Scott Eastwood as Staff Sergeant Clint Romesha
The 34-year-old actor, the son of Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood, has a variety of acclaimed roles to his credit. His filmography includes titles such as ‘Flags of Our Fathers’, ‘Gran Torino’, ‘Invictus’, ‘Fury’, ‘Suicide Squad’, ‘Snowden’, ‘Overdrive’, ‘Pacific Rim: Uprising’, and more.
Caleb Landry Jones as Specialist Ty Michael Carter
The 30-year-old American actor and musician is perhaps best known for his role as Jeremy Armitage, the creepy older brother of Rose in Jordan Peele’s critically acclaimed horror flick ‘Get Out’. He’s also played other memorable roles like the mutant Banshee in ‘X-Men: First Class’, and Red Welby in Martin McDonagh’s ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’.
Trailer:
The trailer for ‘The Outpost’ that dropped on Thursday, May 21, shows us what looks like a war film at its most classic. It builds a premise as fresh-faced American soldiers land in the area. It humanizes the soldiers with personal moments. And then the attack begins.
The war visuals in the film look top-notch as hundreds of militants descend upon a handful of soldiers in a small camp. The film appears to have slightly overdone cheesy heroic lines, but other than that, the effort seems to be well executed.
If you like ‘The Outpost’, you will also like:
‘American Sniper’, ‘The Hurt Locker’, ‘Band of Brothers’, ‘Black Hawk Down’, and ‘Dunkirk’.