Guy Ritchie’s “The Covenant” was like a wake up call that echoed through my subconscious, reminding me of a debt that I could pay forward. From the title, you might not know what this film is about. At the end, we are given a definition. Covenant is “a bond” or “a pledge.” The film both a fictionalized story about debts of honor and a plea for very real people left behind in Afghanistan, a country that they belonged to, but now live as furtive fugitives because of their cooperation with US military forces. 

Merriam-Webster defines “covenant” as “a usually formal, solemn, and binding agreement: compact” or “a written agreement or promise usually under seal between two or more parties especially for the performance of some action” or “the common-law action to recover damages for breach of such a contract.” 

The original title according to Deadline was “The Interpreter” and billed as an “action thriller.”  Because there is a 2006 horror flick named “The Covenant,” this film is officially titled “Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant.” While the 2006 film was about descendants of colonial witch families with magical powers, Guy Ritchie’s film is about the horrors of war and the bond between two men: US Army Special Forces Master Sergeant John Kinley (Jake Gyllenhaal) and his interpreter Ahmed Abdullah (Iraqi-born Danish actor Dar Salim). 

We’re introduced to the desert that is Afghanistan to American folk rock trio America’s 1971 song “A Horse with No Name.” 

On the first part of the journey
I was looking at all the life
There were plants and birds and rocks and things
There was sand and hills and rings

The first thing I met was a fly with a buzz
And the sky with no clouds
The heat was hot and the ground was dry
But the air was full of sound

I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert you can’t remember your name
‘Cause there ain’t no one for to give you no pain

The superimposed text tells the viewer:

In retaliation to the 9/11 terror attacks in America,  1,300 U.S. troops were deployed to Afghanistan. By December 2011 this number had risen  to 98,00 U.S. troops deployed. 50,000 Afghan Interpreters were employed by the U.S. Military under the agreement that they would be eligible to apply for Special Immigration Visas and relocation to America. 

In March 2018, Kinley and his unit are manning a vehicle inspection point at Lashkargah. A Taliban truck bomb kills his teams interpreter. In need of a new interpreter, Kinley meets Ahmed. Ahmed is competent, but he’s not used to taking orders. Early on, he corrects Kinley’s English and he saves Kinley’s team from an ambush set up by a compromised Afghani National Army soldier. 

When Kinley decides to try going through unofficial channels to find the bomb factory, his team is attacked bye the Taliban, resulting in the death of everyone except Kinley and Ahmed. Ahmed and Kinley escape on food, but under attack again, Kinley is wounded. Ahmed must then carry and cart Kinley to safety. While Kinley is whisked back to the safety of his home in Santa Clarita, California, Ahmed, his wife and son are forced into hiding. 

Kinley then returns to Afghanistan in order to find Ahmed and his family and bring them to the United States. In repaying his debt, Kinley becomes a hero. The film has a happy ending for Ahmed, but we’re reminded that not everyone was so fortunate because on 30 August 2021:

The U.S. Armed Forces completed their departure from Afghanistan, marking the end of a 20-year long campaign. One month later, the Taliban seized back complete control.

More than 300 interpreters and their families have been murdered by the Taliban for collaborating with the U.S. Military. Thousands more are still in hiding.

This film requires viewers ask themselves questions, not all of them obvious. First and foremost, we must wonder about those 300 interpreters and the thousands in hiding. Within the film, one must recognized when the foreign language isn’t translated in the subtitles, one must wonder if the audience is supposed to feel less sympathy with certain people(s). Lastly, we should wonder what happened to the interpreters from any previous military conflict, including World War II. 

While I’m not a big fan of Ritchie, this film is well-acted and the script by Ritchie, Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies has more depth than most war films. There’s violence, but the focus is on survival and honor. 

“Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant” was released on 21 April 2023. It was streaming on Amazon Prime Video.