A satire on war that is confused what it wants to be.

Rating: 4/10 (26 May 2017)

This addition to Netflix seems much like a waste of money. The budget is 60 million and 70% of it very much looks like a TV film. The direction is as standard as the cinematography. At one point, it broke the 180 degree rule during a 60 minute interview, it just didn't work. Brad Pitt plays a general who is often serious, over the top, and funny? His performance is fine, aside from his crazy one eye mannerism. He's able to capture multiple emotions with several looks and it kinda works. The performances from the supporting cast are fine. They are just not given much screen time. Lakeith Stanfield is a stand out. His scenes were brief, but he was able to display an impressive range of emotion. The biggest problem with this film is it's just flat. There's no stake or ambition. It is a very safely crafted film. It is generic and uninteresting told with heavy narration and exposition. I guess the film is trying to display how some military folks have an obsession with war. The general here is quite irresponsible, egotistical, and seems deranged. The same with his crew as well, but just not as much. There's a large amount of tonal shifts from being serious to comedic and the film doesn't know which one to choose, so it ends up uneven altogether. There are times where the film switches hard rock to rap then to classical music creating uneven scenes with abrupt jump cuts that just makes no sense. I am guessing it was meant to be comedic, but it just didn't work. Overall, I think this film is quite a mess.
4/10.