It is sort of weird, being honored for the worst day in your life.
As it's set on Thanksgiving Day, it seemed appropriate to catch Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk while it's still in theaters. Director Ang Lee's follow-up to Life of Pi, it follows the title character, a 19-year-old Army specialist played by newcomer Joe Alwyn, and the rest of his squad -- dubbed Bravo Squad by the media -- as they're shuttled around in preparation for being used as props in a patriotic halftime show by Destiny's Child. The year is 2004 and Billy is hailed as hero after attempting to save the life of his commanding officer in the heat of battle in Iraq -- an act that happened to be caught on camera -- but he struggles with his painful memories of that day. Coming at the end of a two-week furlough, and two days after the burial of Sgt. Breen (Vin Diesel), the halftime show finds Billy as a personal crossroads and the rest of the squad hoping for a serious payday courtesy of the hotshot producer (Chris Tucker) negotiating a movie deal for them.
The rest of the Bravos are given their personality quirks, but the only one who makes a real impression is Staff Sgt. Dime (Garrett Hedlund), a straight shooter uncomfortable with being a public relations tool and unafraid to speak his mind when the occasion calls for it. In a lot of ways, the big drama in the film isn't on the battlefield, but rather it's the push-pull between Dime, who's counting on Billy to return to Iraq with them, and his sister Kathryn (Kristen Stewart), who does her best to convince him to stay and seek an honorable discharge. Meanwhile, they all have to contend with an array of gawkers, many of whom claim to support the troops -- like team owner Norm Oglesby (Steve Martin in dead-serious mode) -- and fail to reckon with the true sacrifices they make. Even the hot cheerleader who takes a shine to Billy, and to whom he could theoretically lose his virginity if he wanted, falls back on platitudes about praying for him while he's in the Middle East. And so does Jean-Christophe Castelli's screenplay, based on the novel by Ben Fountain. Whenever it strains to say something profound about the nature of war of those who fight them, it loses its own battle with war-movie clichés.