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Stop-Loss
enlarge	Director: Kimberly Peirce Actors: Ryan Phillippe, Abbie Cornish, Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt Studio: Paramount / MTV Category: DVD List Price: ~~$12.99~~ Buy New: $12.49 as of 9/9/2010 18:31 EDT details You Save: $0.50 (4%) New (32) Used (101) Collectible (3) from $0.98 Seller: Amazon.com Rating: 50 reviews Sales Rank: 11482 Format: Widescreen, NTSC Languages: English (Unknown), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled) Rating: R (Restricted) Region: 1 Discs: 1 Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Running Time: 112 Minutes Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2 Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.6 MPN: 097363476542 UPC: 097363476542 EAN: 0097363476542 ASIN: B0013FSL1Q Theatrical Release Date: March 29, 2008 Release Date: July 8, 2008 Shipping: Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours


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Editorial Reviews: Product Description Just as he is settling back into daily life at home, a young soldier is suddenly ordered back to the front lines, prompting him to question his sense Amazon.com Kimberly Peirce's long-hatching follow-up to Boys Don't Cry is another issue-driven look at its era: Stop-Loss hinges on U.S. military policy allowing Iraq War soldiers to be returned to combat even after their official hitches are up. In this case, a band of brothers return to home turf in Brazos, Texas, only to discover that team leader Brandon King (Ryan Phillippe) has gotten a Stop-Loss order to head back to the Middle East. After some flavorful sketches of small-town Texas life and the awkwardness of re-adjustment, the movie somewhat clumsily hits the road, where there's more wheel-spinning than deep insight. Peirce and co. seem to want to hit all the Iraq War bases, which may be one reason the film lacks a strong focus. Supporting soldiers Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are rather more interesting than Phillippe's brooding hero, and Abbie Cornish is stuck in a thankless town-between-two-lovers storyline. It's sincere as all get-out, but Stop-Loss feels like a project that began with an issue and a cause, rather than compelling characters. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews: Showing reviews 1-5 of 50 1 2 3 4 5 6 ...10 Next » Kimberly Pierce's 2nd movie...and it got buried August 5, 2010 Rev. E. A. Hernandez The thoughtful delicacy of Ryan Phillippe is told best in his own words about this film: "We were there [on location, Morocco] in full [military] gear, with these assault rifles, on what's akin to their Christmas. We were barging into peoples' actual homes to shoot those scenes. I felt incredibly uncomfortable and ashamed at the time." It's easy to understand how this film got buried in some sort of weird shuffle back in the year '08. Back then, only two years ago, even I did not know what the hell was going on with the Iraqi War or our soldiers coming home. This film will answer those queries for you richly and sometimes horribly--and then you too will be demanding that George W. Bush explain himself. We promised ourselves we'd never see ANY Iraq or Afghanistan movie, EVER. I finally violated that to my chagrin with the unworthy IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH. For that reason alone I did it again here, and was not sorry for a moment (except about the truths I learned from this movie). The beautiful Ryan Phillippe plays Army Special Forces Sgt. Brandon King, an honorable example our fighting best. He's about to get discharged and he cannot wait to get back into life at home in Brazos, Texas. Somehow getting on the wrong side of his commander, he's chosen for "stop-loss". In case you did not know, "stop-loss" was then-Pres. Bush's backdoor draft to stop our soldier losses. His answer was to simply shanghai discharged soldiers right back to the front. This film is the story of one soldier's defiant attitude toward the war, its ultimate meaning and why it should never have occurred. The intimacy and beauty of the shots--especially the home-video-type close-up work--will make you feel keenly the same horror and loss felt by the soldiers. Ryan acquitted himself well here...I think he's one of our shining stars of the future and is totally underappreciated right now. Kimberly Pierce directed; she was deeply involved in both film versions of BOYS DON'T CRY (1995 and 1999). Perhaps that explains the sergeant's first name?...Here she shows an astonishing sensitivity, empathy and understanding of the entire war experience, though her taste for hyperbolic emotional scenes at times reminded me of the high school acting classes I used to mock on my way to the weight room. The ending will shock and awe you--I won't give it away in case you haven't seen this revelatory film yet. All I can say is I was deeply depressed and disgusted by the film's unforeseen ending. You will be too: guaranteed. All the great talent here must go unmentioned, because I haven't the time or space. One query I have is the wasted talent of Ciaran Hinds, who plays Sgt. King's father. He gets a few minutes of broken up screen time and a couple of speaking lines. He is a talented, major star and busy at home (he's Irish and works in Britain mostly); why does he make this cameo here? I was angry throughout the whole film that he didn't have a meatier role. And he does a darned good Texan accent too. Also, Pierce gave us an example in each character of typical soldiers: there is the career guy, the loser who cannot cope outside the theater, the maimed little cute mascot, and others. All there to make the viewer weep. Naturally this poor neglected gem had fierce competition in 2008: DOUBT, FROST/NIXON, GRAN TORINO (see my reviews for all), INDIANA JONES AND HIS LOSER FRIENDS, IRON MAN, TWILIGHT (see my reviews), and WALL-E. Tough darned competition for a film that should have been the winner of the year. Get this film and learn all about the hypocrisy, corruption and just plain low-down war tactics with regards to Iraq and Afghanistan. Then you may be at least a tad more prepared the next time you talk about this evil terror and what it will mean for generations to come. A Very Politically Charged Film June 12, 2010 Steven Fujita (Long Beach, CA) Your views on the Iraq War will have a definite impact on whether or not you like this film. If you are against the U.S. involvement, then the plight of the main characters will move you because you can blame the government for destroying young lives, and probably love the film. If you support the war, then you will want Sgt. King (Ryan Phillippe's character) captured and court-martialed. Since that doesn't happen, you will probably hate the film. Either way, this film will bring out the emotions. The film has four weaknesses. First, we don't know the motivations behind King's decision, and I don't think the viewer was supposed to guess. Was it fear, was it guilt, was it selfishness, was it because he felt duped, was it all four? Second, King visits the parents of deceased soldiers and visits one who is severly wounded, but will live. I thought this was gratuitous, and the subliminal message these scenes conveyed was that U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan is wrong. Third, King going AWOL seemed a contrived way of him visiting the families of deceased soldiers and his friend at the VA hospital. Fourth, the main theme of the film is the political message, so the context which is was presented around, such as the adjusting to life, the other soldiers who didn't get stop-lossed got ignored. That said, the strength of the film was in the performances. I think Ryan Phillippe is one of the most underrated actors around today. I dare say, he is the James Cagney or Robert De Niro of his generation. I did have issues with this character's motivation, but I connected with him nevertheless. Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt both gave strong performances, which led to a weakness of the film; I wanted to see more of their characters, and their stories. And Victor Rasuk, in a small role, also connected with me. Despite the underlying message, I thought the "sad scenes" with the family and hospital visits were touching. The dvd also has some extras which add value to the film, ie, if I saw it in the theatres, I'd have given it a three. The deleted scenes answers some questions I had about the plot, and the making of and the day in boot camp were also informative. STOP THIS LIBERAL HOLLYWOOD NONSENSE February 19, 2010 Joseph M. Forgione (Whiting, NJ) I am so sick and tired of this 'Hollywood Era' bashing this country in any angle they can find. Friends (veterans) of mine and I saw this movie and believe it or not a few guys left the room before it came close to the end. It's so anti-american. They follow right along with this current so called President's views. When is this stuff going to end? We're fighting this war because we were attacked. During World War II a person was not released until the duration or you were severely wounded. How about making some movies showing the courage and bravery of our military. "The Hurt Locker" is a step in the right direction. Never mind the "good" acting. These are professional actors and of course they're going to put in a good performance. This same nonsense happened with the boring dud movie "Lions for Lambs" with Redford, Streep and Cruise. Stop-Loss February 12, 2010 Arnita D. Brown (USA) Decorated Iraq war hero Sgt. Brandon King makes a celebrated return to his small Texas hometown following his tour of duty. He tries to resume the life he left behind. Then, against Brandon's will, the Army orders him back to duty in Iraq, which upends his world. The conflict tests everything he believes in: the bond of family, the loyalty of friendship, the limits of love and the value of honor. The acting was extraordinary from the three main soldiers, most notably Ryan Philippe who is so gritty and real in his performance that he seems like he actually is a marine. Channing Tatum gives a genuine performance, but Joseph Gordon-Levitt's is the most haunting of the trio as a soldier who fights his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with excessive amounts of booze and slowly slips into a deep hole of despair. This is such emotionally powerful, deeply moving movie. An emotionally honest, gut-punching film. December 24, 2009 DanD "Stop-Loss" is one of those films that divides its audience. Some will look at it and be appalled at its portrayal of our soldiers as people with troubles; others will applaud its attempt (not quite successful, but laudable nonetheless) to humanize our men and women of uniform. The film is emotional and honest; honesty is often disturbing, and "Stop-Loss" (especially with its opening scenes) isn't a film for everyone. Honesty isn't everything, however, and "Stop-Loss" does have its problems. The film deals with cliches; this is, obviously, a Hollywood necessity, but it does suggest that all returning Iraq veterans suffer PTSD, which of course isn't true; smart film-goers will figure this out for themselves, but it is kind of annoying to see an otherwise-solid film bordering on stereotyping. And also, the second-half of the film isn't quite as gripping as the first; Phillippe is a great actor (and no, I never thought I would say that; but it's true), but the real dynamic of the film comes from the interaction of our four protagonists: returning vets Brandon (Phillippe), Steve (Channing Tatum, surprisingly good for a change), and Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, reliable as always); and Steve's fiancee, Michelle (Abbie Cornish, a wonder). When Brandon gets stop-lossed (meaning, even though he's finished his tour, they're sending him back), he goes AWOL, taking Michelle with him. It's here that the film slowly begins to unravel; we care more about the interaction between the four than we do Brandon's individual plight, and the film grows stronger near the end, when the four are (kind of, and don't worry, no spoilers) reunited. There's a message in "Stop-Loss," of course; it is an anti-war film in the vein of great anti-war statements: it isn't in-your-face. Subtlety is the name of the game here, and director Kimberly Pierce more or less pulls that off (except towards the end). But the film, ultimately, doesn't really go anywhere; it doesn't get as deep as we want it to. The script is solid, the directing is good, and the acting is fantastic; but the movie isn't quite the sum of its parts, and comes off as something less than what it should have been. It's still recommendable viewing, however, and serves as one of the more intelligent anti-Iraq War films to come out lately. The film feels real, it feels gritty, and that's how it should be. Showing reviews 1-5 of 50 1 2 3 4 5 6 ...10 Next »

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