This superb - though very violent - mix of comedy, drama and action is set at the end of the Gulf War. Hearing a rumour that Saddam Hussein has stashed stolen gold in bunkers, US soldiers George Clooney, Ice Cube and Mark Wahlberg embark on a secret field trip with the help of a map they find concealed about an Iraqi soldier's person. It seems simple enough: grab the bullion and be rich for the rest of their lives. However, their quest for wealth is diverted when they reluctantly agree to help a group of Iraqi dissidents who are being tortured by Saddam's men. Wittily scripted by director David O Russell, it boasts terrific performances (especially from Clooney) and takes some well-aimed stabs at the late-20th-century phenomenon of war waged on television. It's reckless, gripping and unmissable.

A group of American soldiers stationed in Iraq at the end of the Gulf War find a map they believe will take them to a huge cache of stolen Kuwaiti gold hidden near their base, and they embark on a secret mission that's destined to change everything.