A Win for "Stop-Loss"

Rating: 8/10 (30 July 2009)

There is no loss of masculinity testosterone in the Iraq War theme film "Stop-Loss". It stars cinematic heartthrobs Ryan Phillippe, Channing Tatum, and Joseph Gordon Levitt. Director Kimberly Peirce's poignant "peirce of work" on the mental psyche of the American soldier post Iraq combat duty is probably the best of the platoon of Iraqi movies so far; even though I still have not unlocked and checked out the critically acclaimed "The Hurt Locker". In "Stop-Loss"- Phillippe stars as Sgt. Brandon King, a multiple-duty served soldier who returns to his Texas hometown after his last tour only to discover a short time after that he has been "stop-lossed" to serve once again. Undoubtedly, King is at a loss for words on hearing the disastrous news but nothing is going to stop him to evade another Iraqi nightmare. Therefore, he decides to win the "stop-loss" AWOL style by taking a road trip to seek assistance from a U.S. Senator to the nation's capital. King's travel companion is childhood female friend Michelle, tenderly played by the breakthrough-verging Abbie Cornish. Tatum portrays Sgt. Steve Shriver, King's best friend and soldier peer. Shriver is willing to reenlist to serve once more even though he has not completed his "tour of boyfriend duty" to his impatient girlfriend, the aforementioned "She is Michelle". The steady Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the third soldier hometown amigo Tommy Burgess who goes AWOL on his own mental state and not to mention liver by taking aim at the liquor lifestyle. I do commend Peirce for her magnificent cerebral architecture of the mental battle of the postwar American soldier. Even though I do feel that scriber Mike Richard's formulaic screenplay needed some more ingenious verbal-creative firepower. Phillippe's vastly improving acting continued to step up the thespian hierarchy with his commanding performance as Sgt. King. Tatum also followed his acting orders to the "tee" with his striking work as Shriver, and Gordon-Levitt continues to be one of Hollywood's bright young stars with another superb performance. And Dear Abbie Cornish: Simply keep doing what you are doing. I was also surprisingly flabbergasted with Victor Rasuk's sensitive performance as the war-afflicted handicapped Pvt. Rico Rodriguez. Cinematographer Chris Menges was a man at war with his gripping imminent camera-work. "Stop-Loss" was not a masterful major cinematic winner but definitely not in the war loss film category. **** Good