Not for the Faint of Heart, 'Valiant One' Demonstrates Value of Self-Sacrifice
For better or for worse, people are sometimes put into compromising positions that seem unfathomable. Some people rise to the challenge while others fail miserably when faced with such adversity. Unfortunately, the predicament people sometimes find themselves in is a life or death situation. It is how one reacts that determines whether we succeed or fail.
In a new movie opening in theaters nationwide this Friday called Valiant One, such was the case for a group of young U.S. servicemen. Based on a true story, when a routine mission spirals out of control and results in their helicopter crashing on the wrong side of 38th Parallel in North Korea, this brave yet terrified group must make a daring escape across the treacherous Demilitarized Zone.
While the film explores the themes of self-sacrifice and leadership, the survivors turn to an unlikely pair to lead them from danger.
Starring Chase Stokes (Outer Banks) and Lana Condor (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before), interestingly, Valiant One is actually produced by Monarch Media, the same creative team that brought moviegoers the faith-based musicals A Week Away and Journey to Bethlehem.
CAUTION: While a faith-based production, in the spirit of genre authenticity Valiant One is Rated R due to a wealth of profanity.
I recently sat down with Valiant One director Steve Barnett and producer Alan Powell to discuss why they chose to depart from musically themed movies for more graphically intense fare, valuable life lessons that can be learned from the film, and how the concept of self-sacrifice can lead us closer to Jesus.
If you were trying to encourage a friend or family member to take the time to get out to the theater to see Valiant One what would you say to convince them?
Steve Barnett: If you're interested in seeing a hero's journey I would say this is a movie that is for you. We set out to make this movie and do a film that was pro-military. There's nothing in the film that I could think of that is negative towards that experience and what the military provides these folks. We didn't want to do a straightforward Navy Seals-type go in and take care of business type movie. Those have been done, and I love those films. But we wanted to do something that was a little bit more of a reluctant hero, somebody who was not prepared for this. Somebody who didn't even want to be there. And that checked a lot of boxes, in my opinion, for a character that's relatable. He starts out as somebody who's a little bit indifferent to his world, his military world, his job, his place, and it's really just a stepping stone for something later on. That provided us the start of a character who will learn the values that the military provides these folks. It's a pretty straightforward story about a guy who goes from being selfish to willing to sacrifice himself. And I think that's a nice parallel to some of the stuff that we've made, some of the things we've done in our other films.
Speaking of other films, you are known as the creative team behind two successful musical movie projects, A Week Away and Journey to Bethlehem. This is essentially a war film. Why such a departure here with this one?
Alan Powell: For us, we have to know the heartbeat behind the movie. We have to all support that heartbeat and feel passionate about it. That was true for A Week Away. That was true for Journey to Bethlehem. And it’s absolutely true for Valiant One.
Every time I interact with this story and watch this movie, I'm inspired by the theme of selflessness. That's a theme that we can get behind and have gotten behind. When I watch this movie I think, ‘Man, am I putting others first in a way that I can be proud of in a way that truthfully aligns with my values?’ That to me, is what this movie is about. Like Steve said, you start with a character who cares about only himself, and by the end, he's willing to sacrifice himself for others. If that's not a theme that aligns with our faith, I'm not really sure what is. That's similar to what we did with ‘A Week Away’ and what we did with ‘Journey to Bethlehem’. We framed it differently with this type of movie because it needs to be authentic. And this is a world that we wanted to create within. We wanted to reach a wider audience with a theme and a message that we feel is important.
You have alluded to this a bit already but what valuable life lessons can be learned from the actions and spirit of the affected soldiers in Valiant One?
Steve Barnett: Learning that we all have a leader and a hero inside of us. Whether you want to be that or whether you believe in yourself or not, I think this is a pretty traditional hero's journey from reluctance to acceptance to action. I think that's a valuable lesson. The valuable lesson is that sometimes you have to take the lead whether you like it or not, and you have to make tough decisions whether you like it or not. And you can do that. There's a quote at the beginning of the film that says, “Leaders aren't born, they're made.” We've all seen various versions of the same quote. And that's really what this movie's about. Clearly, there's some leaders that are born. But I think for the vast majority of us, we all have to find that. We might find it when we're young. We might find it after we get into the military. But I think that's the value here, that everyone is a leader, everybody's a hero in their own right.
Alan Powell: One of the things that we did in the film that impacts me every time, is about halfway through the movie, our soldiers meet a North Korean family. They're in the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) and North Korea is the enemy. And certainly, we disagree deeply with a lot of North Korean values, certainly politically. That goes without saying. But one of the things we do in the film that I am moved by every time is that it shows us a North Korean family that's also just a father, a mother, and a daughter who are doing their best to live life. And they're humans as well. There's this search for empathy and this is a moment where empathy is a meaningful theme.
In this movie, people are people and people have value inherently, regardless of where they were born and what their political ideology is. We need to care about each other, and we need to reach out to each other. We need to be there for each other and be kind to each other, regardless of who those people are. Strangers matter, because they're human, because God cares about them.
You guys are known for your faith-based movies like the ones I mentioned at the top of our conversation. Are there any key elements of faith that you can point to for Christian audiences who are fans of your earlier projects?
Alan Powell: Listen, one of my favorite quotes in this film is, “There are no atheists in a foxhole.” We've heard that and we've certainly seen that portrayed in other military films. And I think for all of us who have been through things, whether we've served in the military or not, there are moments where you really need help and you're really in a tough spot. We're all crying out for something outside of ourselves, to reach down through existence and help us. And that's what we see here. There's a moment very specifically that we put in the film where one of our early leaders, who doesn't make it out of the crash, knows it's his last few moments. And what does he do? He recites the Lord's Prayer. We have this beautiful montage of cutting between that and our soldiers as they're trying to escape. That's the real heart. That's the real heartbeat of the movie such that, honestly, I think Steve actually put a heartbeat sound in the background.
I think the theme of selflessness and progressing to absolute self-sacrifice, which is the example that (Jesus) Christ set for us when He was willing to sacrifice Himself. That's what we see. We see our lead (character) grow from somebody who's only concerned about himself to somebody who's willing to sacrifice himself for those around him. If that's not the ultimate theme of our faith, I'm not really sure what is.
After audiences have had the chance to watch Valiant One what would you like to see people take away from the viewing experience? What is your greatest hope for the film?
Steve Barnett: I hope that people have a newfound perspective on soldiers and on our men and women in uniform. For me, it would be to have people walk away and feel good about and have more respect for the folks who wear the uniform. I feel like that's slipping a little bit over the last few years. And it bothers me. So I would hope that people would walk away with a newfound respect.
Alan Powell: I go back to what has moved me about the story from the very beginning, which is people walking away and asking themselves, what would I do? Would I step up and be willing to sacrifice myself and be willing to do what is necessary to protect those around me? That's what inspires me. Every time I watch the film. It's a self-reflection as we put ourselves in our lead character’s shoes and ask, what would I do in that scenario? My hope is that the audience is asking themselves that question.
WATCH A TRAILER FOR VALIANT ONE:
