When neighboring country Veragua suddenly attacks Curaçao and Aruba, the Dutch government and military are thrown into chaos as they try to identify the source and reason for the military invasion. In Aruba, the attack occurrs at a Marine barracks where the corrupt former Veraguan Chief of Intelligence is being held prisoner. As the small group of soldiers on site struggles to stave off the much larger attacking army, they try to come up with a plan to escape with the prisoner. Meanwhile, government officials in The Hague scramble to figure out the correct diplomatic approach to the situation; including what to do with the Dutch ambassador in Veragua, Maurits Caan (Gijs Scholten van Aschat), who has tried to escape embassy, only to find himself pursued by the Veraguan military. And in Belize, three young Dutch soldiers—Andy (Tarikh Janssen), Jack (Gijs Blom) & Noa (Ortál Vriend)—are finishing up their final exercise before becoming full-fledged Marines when the attacks occur. Unable to return to their barracks in Aruba, the solders are redirected to a Coast Guard ship off the coast of Curaçao, where Andy’s brother Judsel (Jasha Rudge) happens to be stationed. The inexperienced soldiers soon discover that it may ultimately come down to them to save the day, if they are up for the task.

Invasion is a tense and exciting film. There are a lot of twists and turns to the story—whenever it seems like things are starting to look up for the Dutch military, some new issue or tragedy gets thrown into the mix that the soldiers must overcome. The filmmakers have also foud this perfect blend of drama and action, with a touch of humor to lighten the mood. Initially the film jumps around between the various fronts and parties involved in the attack, and it feels like we are being introduced to a lot of characters all at once. However, the soldiers all look different enough, making it is easy to keep track of who is who. The writers have also done a great job of fleshing out each of these characters and their motivations, getting the viewer invested in them and their journeys—which makes some of their demises even more devastating. Ultimately all of the various storylines come together by the end to reach a satisfying conclusion.

Some of the story elements feel like tried and true war movie tropes—parts of the film felt identical to another recent film, Valiant One, which has a similar theme of some young soldiers trapped behind enemy lines. However, I still found the film to be very engaging and exciting. The effects are also well done, making the attacks and battle sequences feel real. The film has a lot of tense action, and some of it may be slightly over the top, requiring some level of suspension of disbelief, but that’s what I enjoy in a good popcorn movie.

Invasion is currently released in limited theaters, and on digital. I don’t believe any physical media release date has been announced as of yet. Normally in my reviews, I would comment on the audio and video presentation of the release, but since I watched this film via a watermarked screener, I’m not sure how it compares to the final quality of the consumer product. The version I watched was presented in its original Dutch language with English subtitles, though there is a little bit of English spoken here and there. I found the subtitles to be well-written and easy to follow. I’m not sure if digital providers are also offering the film with an English dub option.

The digital release does not include any bonus material.

What’s Included:

Digital specs may vary by platform/retailer.

Film: (1:32:00)

• 1080p / Widescreen 1.78:1
• Audio: Dutch Dolby Digital 5.1
• Subtitles: English, French

Extras:

No bonus material included.

Final Thoughts:

If you enjoy modern warfare/soldier dramas, Invasion will definitely scratch that itch. The film features a great blend of interesting character drama and exciting, tense action sequences. The characters aren’t just generic one-dimensional soldiers. The characters are well-defined and fleshed out, making you get really invested in them and their stories. This is an easy recommendation—I quite enjoyed this film, and would definitely watch it again.