Rating: R
Movie Release Date: March 28, 2008
DVD Release Date: July 8, 2008
Plot 411: After their final tour in Iraq, Brandon and Steve's long-time friendship is tested when one of them is ordered back to active duty.
Review: For some odd reason, this movie totally makes me think of Don Henley's Boys of Summer. I'm not exactly sure why because the themes are different. Maybe it has to do in part with the movie's theme of one's loss of innocence and the melancholy realization that it is gone forever? Brandon (Ryan Phillippe) and Steve (Channing Tatum) have completed their tours in Iraq during which time they've watched many men die. Brandon feels responsible for their deaths but looks forward to being discharged from the military. Unfortunately, because of a policy that allows the government to recall soldiers, Brandon must face his demons and return to war. He refuses to comply and becomes a deserter. Another soldier (played magnificently by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) under Brandon is guilt ridden and plagued with depression. The movie's political themes are evident, but I connected a lot more with the emotional and psychological nature of the film. The turmoil that these characters (and I assume real soldiers) face makes for an interesting, yet heart-wrenching, plot. The political implications are also intriguing and makes you reassess your viewpoints, especially when you see how politics, government, military and war affects real lives and real families.
Watch It: For a different kind of military drama that'll get you thinking and a great performance by Gordon-Levitt.
Skip It: If you're definitely pro-war/pro-military as the characters may just piss you off. You need to view this film with an open mind.
Movie Release Date: March 28, 2008
DVD Release Date: July 8, 2008
Plot 411: After their final tour in Iraq, Brandon and Steve's long-time friendship is tested when one of them is ordered back to active duty.
Review: For some odd reason, this movie totally makes me think of Don Henley's Boys of Summer. I'm not exactly sure why because the themes are different. Maybe it has to do in part with the movie's theme of one's loss of innocence and the melancholy realization that it is gone forever? Brandon (Ryan Phillippe) and Steve (Channing Tatum) have completed their tours in Iraq during which time they've watched many men die. Brandon feels responsible for their deaths but looks forward to being discharged from the military. Unfortunately, because of a policy that allows the government to recall soldiers, Brandon must face his demons and return to war. He refuses to comply and becomes a deserter. Another soldier (played magnificently by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) under Brandon is guilt ridden and plagued with depression. The movie's political themes are evident, but I connected a lot more with the emotional and psychological nature of the film. The turmoil that these characters (and I assume real soldiers) face makes for an interesting, yet heart-wrenching, plot. The political implications are also intriguing and makes you reassess your viewpoints, especially when you see how politics, government, military and war affects real lives and real families.
Watch It: For a different kind of military drama that'll get you thinking and a great performance by Gordon-Levitt.
Skip It: If you're definitely pro-war/pro-military as the characters may just piss you off. You need to view this film with an open mind.
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