Rolling Stone's quotemonkey Peter Travers is the movie critic that other movie critics hate. He has bad taste. He has no taste. He likes everything and loves getting his insipid quotes on movie posters. "5 Stars. So Funny You'll Die, Says Rolling Stone's Peter Travers".
These are old complaints. "Travers is a cheerleader; he likes practically everything and his overwrought clunky enthusiasm is embarrassing." Spy 1989
Even Rolling Stone has been trying to get their quotemonkey off their back lately. But considering this is Rolling Stone, Peter Travers makes an exception for 13 Hours, which he really, really hates. Why? Peter Travers isn't the kind of guy who hides his motivation.
Have no fear Hillary Clinton. Michael Bay is not guilty of using his new blast of mind-numbing noise, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, as a battle cry against your shot at the Democratic presidential nomination. He's leaving that to Bernie Sanders. Clinton's name is never mentioned in this telling of the siege on a diplomatic outpost that occurred under her watch as Secretary of State. Still, enough blame is implied to make 13 Hours Donald Trump's early pick for movie of the year.
So what's actually wrong with the movie? Travers can't explain. He does focus in on the political angle which tells you all you need to know. There's no attack on Hillary Clinton. Quite. But Travers, who isn't a subtle guy, suspects Michael Bay, who is even less subtle, of having some hidden agenda here.
These guys not only have to contend with liberal wussies at home, but also condescending CIA elitists (Bay hates pencil pushers). In the words of the local CIA chief (David Costabile), mysteriously named Bob: "You're hired help, act the part." Bob is also criminally indecisive about giving the order to move on the CIA Annex a mile away and rescue U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens (Matt Letscher), who died of smoke inhalation. Is there any hard evidence that anyone — Clinton, Obama, our boy Bob — ever issued a "stand-down" order? The film both exploits and dodges the issue.
So even though the movie has no politics, Travers suspects it of sort of possibly maybe having some politics. So on the safe side, Pete pans it. But don't worry, Peter Travers call James White the "find of the year" and calls Trumbo "timely". He hails movies like I Smile Back, Crimson Peak, Rock the Casbah and Truth that everyone else hated. But at least Trumbo and Truth have the right safe politics.