Legion member Rob Riggle in ‘12 Strong’

Based on the book “The Horse Soldiers” by Doug Stanton, the movie “12 Strong” is about a small detachment of U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers who were dispatched to Afghanistan immediately after the 9/11 attacks.

The unit helped capture the key Taliban stronghold of Mazar-e-Sharif. More than 16 years after 9/11, “12 Strong” – which is in theaters now - invokes the raw emotions of that time with cinematic mastery and accurate storytelling.

Retired Marine and American Legion Hollywood Post 43 member Rob Riggle portrayed Army Lt. Col. Max Bowers, commander of 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group. Bowers was Riggle’s real life commanding officer in Afghanistan.

Riggle said the film was accurate because they had really good source material in the book and also some of the soldiers being portrayed were on set during the making of the movie. “The leads of the movie were there, so you can’t get more accurate than that,” Riggle said. “[Director] Jerry Bruckheimer is very dedicated to getting it right. Even down to the minutiae of the kind of conversations they had with each other.”

The actual battle portrayed in this film was part of Joint Special Operations Task Force North, also known as Task Force Dagger. The 12-man team met up with the CIA and General Dostum, commander of the largest and most powerful Northern Alliance Faction, in the Dari-a-Souf Valley, south of Mazar-e-Sharif. The only way for the group to travel this terrain was on horseback. Many of the Americans had little or no experience riding horses. Dostum was ready to go immediately and the soldiers had to learn at the gallop, on a four-hour ride with their gear banging around. Over the next few days they learned to tailor their gear and load.

Bowers was part of the headquarters element overseeing the operation. Even with his Marine Corps background, Riggle was comfortable with portraying an Army officer. “I just had to remember how they did things, it wasn’t a problem,” he said. “They are a very elite unit, true professionals I would say, so it was an honor to get to play them.”

Riggle was in the Marine Corps Reserve in 2001. After 9/11 he volunteered for active duty and was sent to northern Afghanistan that November. He reported to 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group. “Even though I was a Marine I was working out of Central Command and Central Command sent me forward. I ended up working on Lt. Col. Bowers’ staff, on his command element,” Riggle said. “I briefed him every morning, briefed every evening, and got to work with him quite extensively and then I got to play him in the movie, so I felt like I knew the man.”

Riggle said that sarcasm and colorful humor are a common part of military life and were well exemplified in the film. He described his part as more of a straight role than dramatic, something unconventional for his generally comedic style.

Warner Bros. screened the film in mid-January and invited members of The American Legion as part of a new partnership with an employee veteran group at the company.

American Legion Past National Commander David Rehbein of Iowa saw the movie on the Warner lot in Burbank, Calif. “I think it was very, very well done,” Rehbein said. “I think it was very true to what I know of the Army and Special Forces as they exist now. I think they did a very good job of capturing not only the combat issues that those folks have to deal with but the diplomatic issues as they go in and advise, train and lead foreign troops.”

Rehbein also thought they did a good job of replicating the physical stress and inherent danger of not understanding horses. “One of those guys had an experience like I’ve had as he went to mount the horse,” he said. “A good horse would, as you put your weight in the stirrup, will step under you. And if you are not aware of that, you are very apt to go right over onto the other side. That nearly happened to me at one point and you could see it happen to one of those guys just from lack of experience on horseback.”

Also starring in the film were Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon who played characters inspired by retired Army Maj. Mark D. Nutsch and retired Chief Warrant Officer Bob Pennington. Nutsch and Pennington both were on the set and though not as involved as they would like to have been, they did have some influence on the producers and actors.

“We think the movie definitely portrays the spirit of a Special Forces team in that historic moment in American history,” Nutsch said.