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Reviews
Stop-loss
Predictable, pointless, and sad
By
PETER KEOUGH
|
March 25, 2008
STOP-LOSS
" alt="photo of 'STOP-LOSS'">
2.0
Stars
Stop-loss
It took a war to bring Kimberly Peirce back to the screen after her impressive 1999 debut,
Boys Don’t Cry
. But like everything associated with the Iraq debacle, her new film is a disappointment. The title refers to the military’s Catch-22 bending of the rules by which troops who have served out their assigned time in Iraq return home only to learn they’re being sent back. That’s what happens to Texas hero Sergeant Brandon King (Ryan Phillippe), who’s fresh from a Baghdad ambush (the most cinematically successful part of the film) in which he lost men and accidentally killed civilians. Back home, after fumbling through a speech to the clueless civilians welcoming him, he tries to restore his civilian life while keeping his knuckleheaded buddies from going off the deep end. This part combines
The Deer Hunter
with The
Dukes of Hazzard
. Later, when he gets his marching papers,
Stop-Loss
serves as a what-not-to-do guide for those in that situation. Predictable, pointless, and sad.
112 minutes | Kendall Square
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