This road trip, although mostly rewarding, is unavoidably rough.

Rating: Null/10 (7 October 2008)

The war movie has never been an easy thing to create, and over the course of history, it's hard to pinpoint any other genre of film that has managed to strike up as much controversy and debate. Stop-Loss is no different from those that reside within its close proximity, yet despite its ability to strike up conversation, to get the mind thinking and to question war itself, an obvious lack of sustainable narrative hurts the film where it matters most. Overlong, poorly focused and incoherent, the storytelling element of Kimberly Peirce's ambitious project here doesn't do as much justice to the themes of the script as she would probably have hoped to. To be fair, there is some hard-hitting material here, and characters along with their respective performers are rounded enough to avoid being mere place holders for ideas, and as such Stop-Loss does manage to retain a strong gasp upon the attention. Yet lumbered with a tedious middle act and an ending that seems ill at ease with itself, the ride, although mostly rewarding, is unavoidably rough.
In what is best compared to such war movies as the classic DeNiro and Michael Cimino film The Deer Hunter and Brian De Palma's effort from earlier this year, Redacted, Stop Loss is the kind of war movie that discusses war through its characters rather than the event itself. Negating Iraq to the opening ten minutes, Peirce and crew here adopt more of a road movie layout, detailing the concept of being Stop-Lossed, and the effects it can have on any soldier unlucky enough to be put through such a policy. On the run from his government, friends and fellow soldiers, lead character Brandon King (Ryan Phillippe) spends much of the film coming to terms with how much of his life that he left behind many years ago has disintegrated while he has been away. Isolated and trying to find a way out of his predicament, King is an intriguing character who offers insight into the broken down psyche of an ex-soldier and during certain scenes Phillippe conveys such emotions and states of mind adequately. In this regard King is relatively close to DeNiro's 'Michael', and while Phillippe doesn't necessarily touch on what made Michael such a memorable character, the bare essentials are here and he does a decent job of what is offered to him.
Not satisfied with telling just one story however, the script takes its time to flesh out backing characters that grew up and served with King. These additions are welcome yet underused; there is a severe imbalance here between the lead character and his friends, and while one can accept this as part of having a 'lead-character', I couldn't help but notice that Stop-Loss could have worked far more effectively as a character study focusing on more than its central persona. Although King's comrades do get ample screen time, their eventual climaxes and turning points fail to resonate as much as they should, and as a result, the movie's statements and themes never deliver quite as much poignancy as they aim to. Yet again however, the performers themselves do a fine job with what they are given and deliver some sturdy performances that mesh with Phillippe's to create a solid wall of realism to bounce off of.
The best war movies it would seem are those that never necessarily take it upon themselves to overtly make statements on war regarding its pros and cons, and instead simply tell the story as it is. Whilst watching Stop-Loss, one gets the sense that director Kimberly Peirce has kept this in mind during the process but then never quite managed to overcome the script's obvious slant towards criticism of the war. Yet if there is a bias here, it is remote and minute; not because the writers chose to sit on the fence but simply through the fact that they tell a character story first and foremost rather than try to create a politically enlightening piece of propaganda. Such is the film's strength and its weakness. On the one hand, the drama is welcome and the performances involved ensure that the best moments are engaging and compelling. On the other hand however, a distinct lack of focus in this area quickly causes the movie's middle act to tread along at an uneven pace which often stutters and fumbles. With a tighter reign on what it is the movie was trying to say, and a deeper, centralised focus on character and the domestic drama involved with the political ramifications that have got them here, Stop-Loss could have been a lot more effective. Yet for what it is, those interested in the subject itself should find something to enjoy here.

A review by Jamie Robert Ward (http://www.invocus.net)