This week on screen | Ordinary people doing the extraordinary

Three years ago, on a train bound for Paris, a terrorist attack was prevented by three American men. They saved the lives of more than 500 passengers that day and their story is now being showcased on the big screen, where they play themselves.

The film follows the course of the friends' lives, from the struggles of childhood through finding their footing in life, to the series of unlikely events leading up to the attack. Throughout the harrowing ordeal, their friendship never wavered, making it their greatest weapon and allowing them to stop a terrorist with an AK-47 rifle from massacring defenceless passengers on the train.

The film is directed by four-time Academy Award winner Clint Eastwood and stars the real-life heroes; former US Air force airman Spencer Stone, Alek Skarlatos, and Anthony Saddler. The screenplay is written by Dorothy Blyskal and based on the autobiography The 15:17 to Paris: The True Story of a Terrorist, a Train, and Three American Soldiers, the courageous trio who were awarded the Legion of Honour - the highest French order for military and civil merits by French President Francois Hollande. They were also recognised by former US President Barack Obama.