This is a movie based on a real life person. Someone might characterize this movie as a biopic but deep down it's just a story about overcoming obstacles as well as achieving personal bliss and happiness. Which is the most important part of our lives and we tend to appreciate it the more we age.
Megan Leavey, struggling to find her purpose in life (sadly, as we all know this is still a very well-known and relevant struggle for the newer generations) decides to join the US Marines and is fated to find the best friend she has ever had in her whole life.
With some past trauma affecting her life, Megan takes a leap of faith and bets her life on the lifestyle and strict rules of the US Marines. With the hope of climbing out of the big hole she's dug she encounters the animal that will save her life: A dog. A dog that taught her more about life's real treasures. Of love and deep affection for others. Of being there for him no matter what. The lengths Megan takes herself in order to be with Rex is simply inspiring. Her dedication to this dog, as one particular character says in the movie, is "admirable".
Kate Mara was a good choice for the part of Megan Leavey. Her calmness, awkwardness and dry humor keeps us engaged and rooting for her. Of course there are also the men in this movie. Ramón Rodríguez playing the stoic and funny and also the "friend-boyfriend" of Megan, also sells quite well. Last but not least, Tom Felton's appearance as Sergeant Andrew Dean was a surprise, to say the least. His American accent is a whole lot better than the accents of many British actors that tend to play American characters nowadays. On the other hand, you can feel the cringe-ness in many scenes (the script isn't the greatest and sometimes Mara's deliveries are a bit off) but the ending makes those moments worthwhile.
It's been almost 10 years since this movie hit the theaters and we haven't gotten a similar one. We might never will, for many more years to come. A respectable movie about a woman joining a military force is not done frequently. Still, it doesn't mean that what the movie showed us is necessarily the reality of the many women who join these types of institutions in real life. Regardless of whether or not the story was rooted in reality or even depicted the real life story of the real Megan Leavey well, we can't argue that this is a well-made movie with a good cast and has a good and inspiring story attached to it.
