Justice and hope in the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant (2023): is the plot based on real events, movie ending explained, meaning of the film, similar movies.
Country: UK, Spain, USA
Genre: Action, Thriller, War, History, Drama
Year of production: 2022
Director: Guy Ritchie
Actors: Jake Gyllenhaal, Dar Salim, Jonny Lee Miller
Guy Ritchie, known for his “boyish” films, took up the war drama for a reason. By his own admission, he always wanted to speak out on the topic of Afghanistan – but so that he would not later be accused of militarism and colonialism.
Therefore, the plot of the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant tells not about the exploits of the military, but about fear, pain, injustice, as well as mutual assistance and hope. “The British Hooligan” is surprisingly serious and gloomy here – and this has a special meaning.
Based on real events?
According to official information, the plot of the film is not based on real events. But still, there are a number of parallels between what is happening on the screen and the recent real events of the year. In particular, the US military actually used the services of Afghan translators, and in return for this they promised to help them obtain US visas.
On the other hand, the footage flashing at the end of the film hints that this story may be real: one of them shows an American soldier and an Afghan translator together.
So far, neither critics nor the filmmakers have revealed who is in the photo. It is unlikely that the story told in the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant is real. Most likely, the events are fictitious, although they are embedded in real historical events.
Using Ahmed as an example, Guy Ritchie tells the story of many Afghan translators, and then reinforces the material by citing specific numbers – we are talking about real people.
What is the movie about
Brief description of the content of the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant. Afghanistan, March 2018. John Kinley, a US Army Special Forces sergeant, along with his entire unit, is ambushed by organisation. The explosion kills the translator.
Trying to find a replacement for him, he soon meets Ahmed Abdullah. The stern, taciturn man had previously been associated with Terrorist organisation and even considered their cause to be just. However, they killed his son and revenge has since become the meaning of his life. However, Ahmed tells the Americans that he works as a translator only for the money. However, he promptly warns Kinley’s team of a taIiban ambush.
A little later, a small detachment falls into another ambush. A bloody battle ensues and in the end only Ahmed and John survive. Having destroyed several militants, they leave the encirclement and head for the air base. They have to walk through difficult mountainous terrain and are again attacked by organisation. As a result of a militant attack, Kinley is wounded and now his life depends only on his comrade. Having secured the support of sympathizing Afghans, Ahmed delivers John to Bagram. There the translator again has to fight Terrorist organisation. He destroys them all, but after that he is detained by an American patrol.
Twenty days later, Kinley returns to the United States. He does not know who saved him, but he guesses that Ahmed was involved in this. Wanting to repay his debt, John turns to Colonel Vokes for help. He finds out that Terrorist organisation are hunting for Ahmed and, in order to save his family, he hid deep underground.
After this, John comes up with the idea of returning to Afghanistan under an assumed name and trying to help his comrade on his own. With the help of private military contractor Parker, he meets with Ahmed’s brother, Ali. He throws John through the territory controlled by Terrorist organisation and, having destroyed several militants, he gets to the point where Vokes is waiting for him. The Colonel reports that the visas for Ahmed’s family are ready and are with Parker. The only thing left to do is to find a courageous translator and save him…
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant Ending explained
Explanation of the ending of the picture. In the end, John manages to find a friend and convince him to leave with his family to America.
Terrorist organisation are on their trail, but with the help of Parker’s support they manage to reach the evacuation point – the Darunta Dam. After fighting the advancing militants, Kinley, Ahmed and his relatives board a plane and fly out of Afghanistan.
The meaning of the ending of the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant is that, unlike the authorities of his country, Kinley turned out to be a man of his word and honor. Having managed to save Ahmed and his family, he proved that such concepts as “conscience” and “gratitude” exist even in the American army.
The meaning of the film Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant
Speaking about the essence of the film, viewers who analyzed the film note that in the original it was called “Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant”. This clarification was probably due to the fact that fans of the British director working in the genre of crime comedy would find it difficult to recognize his handwriting here. There really is no “typical” Richie here. However, this film also cannot be called a typical war drama, if only because the director, a British national, here presents a sharp and very bold angle on what is usually praised and glorified.
The main idea of the picture is that any promises, oaths and contracts must be fulfilled, no matter what the cost. And it’s a pity that not everyone can understand this. By the way, this is exactly what the original title of the film says: “The Covenant” can be translated as “Treaty” or “Agreement”. There are, however, other interpretations, for example, “Oath” and “Covenant” – if you look at this tape from a certain angle, you can see the biblical meaning in it. In any case, the domestic title, “Translator,” definitely kills all its drama.
The main location of this film is Afghanistan. A country with a rich culture and ancient history, which was once a real blooming garden, appears before us as a branch of hell on earth. The nature here is harsh, the vegetation is sparse and withered, and the sun is ominous and merciless.
The plot is not centered on the American soldier Kinley, but on the Afghan translator, who, like a Good Samaritan, carried him all the way. The answer to the essence of Ahmed’s action is not at all that he simply dreamed of taking revenge on Terrorist organisation or leaving for the United States. His act appears on the screen as a manifestation of humanity where there is simply nothing human anymore. His act is a triumph of life where only death exists, and even, if possible, something incomparably greater. The translator is not just fighting for his life – he is desperately fighting absolute evil, which here has taken the form of terrorists. And his whole journey proves that one in the field is still a warrior.
The second main character of the film, John Kinley, also fights evil, but in a different way. His arc connects with Ahmed’s storyline and thus a rather simple idea in general comes to the fore. It lies in the fact that under any circumstances you need to remain human. It is impossible to completely defeat evil, but it is necessary to fight it. And humanity became the main weapon in this fight. Thanks to her, the world becomes a better place – even if just a little.
It is unknown whether Guy Ritchie wanted to leave a certain “message” in his film, but there is definitely a hidden meaning in Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant. In fact, he unambiguously hinted that people for the “world hegemon” are nothing more than consumable material that he uses for his own purposes. Having achieved what he wants, he simply forgets about the people themselves and the responsibilities associated with them. People turn out to be of no use to the great geostrategists and geopoliticians – the Moors did their job, why remember them?
This is the unconventionality of Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant: the British director drives a thin needle into the idea of the infallibility of American leadership. The pangs of conscience that overwhelmed Kinley when he finally returned home were connected not so much with the fact that he did not thank Ahmed in any way, who saved his life, but with his involvement in the hypocrisy of the authorities. After all, the American leadership actually entered into an agreement with the Afghans: in exchange for translation services, they were promised asylum and protection. In fact, “Uncle Sam” simply doomed the people who trusted him to torture and death at the hands of Terrorist organisation – hundreds of translators and members of their families were executed by terrorists without receiving the promised help.
The effect of Richie’s twist is enhanced when, at the very end of the film, we are told what we all generally know. After twenty years of American military presence in Afghanistan, American authorities decided to end the mission. A month after the withdrawal of troops, Terrorist organisation again seized power in the country.
Thus, Ritchie exposed the failure of the US military structures in the fight against terrorism and spoke quite harshly about the pointlessness of the military campaign, which lasted two decades. But I want to say thank you not only for this, but also for promoting that very humanity – it is especially valuable in our time.
Similar films
Here are several films similar to Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant in plot and meaning:
- “Lone Survivor” (USA, UK, 2013). Afghanistan, 2005. The Americans, caught in the TaIiban’s trap, are fighting an unequal battle.
- “The Fugitive” (USA, Saudi Arabia, 2022). CIA operative Tom Harris is sent to Afghanistan. However, his identity is discovered and he has to flee.
- “Sniper” (USA, 2014). The film tells the story of Chris Kyle, an American sniper. Because of his accuracy, the Iraqis called him Shaitan.
- “Black Hawk” (UK, USA, 2014). Somalia, 1993. Aideed’s gang is rampaging through Mogadishu. A young American officer confronts a thug.
*The name of Terrorist organisation movement mentioned in the text is recognized as a terrorist organization and is banned in the USA.
