Capsule reviews of new movie releases

In this high-quality recruitment video, sissy things like plot and character development have been chased out of the theater as if by a barking drill sergeant. Instead of narrative and story, the film takes its propulsion from its verisimilitude. Directed by Mike "Mouse" McCoy and Scott Waugh, it was made in collaboration with the Navy, and stars active duty SEALs in missions based on real ones. The action revolves around the abduction of a CIA agent (Roselyn Sanchez) in Costa Rica following a terrorist explosion at a school in Indonesia. The SEALs are dispatched to a rescue mission in Costa Rica, which unspools a global terrorist plot that stretches to Somalia, Mexico and â€" if they don't act fast â€" the United States. The main thrill of the film, which was written by Kurt Johnstad ("300"), is its action pieces. The SEALs' sheer mastery of a skill â€" their seriousness of purpose and deep pride in their work â€" can make its own drama. But "Act of Valor" is just as much a fiction as anything Hollywood can create. It's a flashy piece of patriotic propaganda that by exalting the SEALs as supermen, kills their humanity amid the old cliches of action movies. R for strong violence including some torture and for language. 101 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.