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BILLY LYNN'S LONG HALFTIME WALK' which I caught on its opening day in Australia is based on the 2012 book of the same name by Ben Fountain, and Directed and Co-Produced by multi-award wining Ang Lee. This Iraq War drama was made for US$40M, was released in the US in early November and in the UK not until mid-February, and has so far recovered US$24M at the Box Office. For this film Lee used an unprecedented shooting and projection rate of 120 frames per second in 3D at 4K High Definition resolution, which is the first feature film in history to use such a high frame rate (24 fps is most commonly used). Lee stated that he wanted the film to be an 'immersive' and 'realistic' experience for the viewer into the emotion and realities of the soldiers journey.
Starring in his feature film debut, English Actor Joe Alwyn is US Army Specialist Billy Lynn, a 19 year old, who is part of an eight man team known as Bravo Squad under the leadership of Sgt. David Dime (Garrett Hedlund). A few brief moments of an intense firefight known as 'the Battle of Al-Ansakar Canal' are captured by a embedded Fox News crew that sees Lynn go to the rescue of a wounded Sergeant, Shroom (Vin Diesel) who ultimately dies in his arms, but not before Lynn kills three insurgents - two with pistol shots and the other in close quarter hand to hand combat using a knife to dispense with his assailant. This footage is quickly beamed around the world and Lynn and his fellow soldiers are hailed as heroes back home and Lynn is awarded the Silver Star. The Squad are invited back home by President George W. Bush for a two week Victory Tour to rally support for the war effort.
On the Tour, the Squad are accompanied by Albert Ratner (Chris Tucker) a fast talking but relatively low level Hollywood Producer who has designs on having their story made into a big Hollywood movie, with a promise of a pay day for each of the Squad of US$100K. After some back story centering on Lynn's arrival back home in rural Texas and over dinner with his family including older sister Kathryn (Kristen Stewart) the crew are collected from their hotel on their final day in a stretched Hummer accompanied by Ratner, and they make there way to the Dallas Cowboys Stadium. Here the tour will culminate at the half-time show of the Dallas Cowboys during the 2004 Thanksgiving Day home game, on stage with 'Destiny's Child' and amidst a fanfare of fireworks, cheerleaders, thumping music, giant screen projection and an audience of millions. At this point the Squad don't know that yet, and we see Lynn recounting memories of his time in Iraq with his fellow buddies, with Sergeants Dime and Shroom, and conversations with sister Kathryn in the last few days about why he should seek medical discharge from the Army to avoid going back to Iraq - a notion that doesn't sit well with Lynn, but he's prepared to consider it to appease his sister.
Upon arrival at the Stadium the Squad are ushered to their seats wearing full dress uniform. They get up, sit down, lark around and occasionally have the cameras trained on them. They go to a Members area for lunch and fill their boots with the lavish spread of foods the like of which they have rarely seen before, whilst strangers sidle up to them wanting to speak with real war heroes, thank them, shake their hands and acknowledge their efforts, although they really have no concept at all of the war zone or the battlefield.
It is here that the Squad are introduced to Norman Oglesby (Steve Martin) the owner of the Dallas Cowboys who can't pour enough respect on the boys and is happy to have them paraded in front of the nation at his Stadium and with his Team. Ratner is also seeking to secure funding for the film from Oglesby as a major investor, and whilst he is interested he reduces Ratner's promised fee of US$100K a head down to a paltry US$5,500 each. Needless to say, both Dime and Lynn tell Oglesby later on exactly where he can stick his US$5,500 despite his best intentions telling him that their story is not for sale at that price.
Before kick-off during a photocall and Q&A session with the gathered press, Lynn spies the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader girls standing along the perimeter of the room, and in particular one pretty young thing named Faison Zorn (Makenzie Leigh), whom he falls instantly for, and she reciprocates. They share an intimate moment or two behind a curtain, before the boys are ushered back to their seats - they exchange phone numbers and keep in contact via text messaging.
Come half-time and the boys are to assemble on the goal line wearing their combat ready gear to be paraded down the length of the field walking behind the Cheerleaders, Destiny's Child and various others. Once at the far end they are to mount a stage and stand on an elevated platform while the all girl band sing their hearts out directly in front of them. Lynn is ordered only to walk down onto the stage and stand dead still directly behind the girls as they belt out
'Soldier'. With a crescendo of fireworks, thumping music, cameras flashing, a live television audience, the heat of the spotlights Lynn zones out and reminisces further about his life so far, conversations about his promising Army future with Dime and Shroom, his Squad colleagues, about friendships, family and decisions made and yet to be made.
Through flashbacks recounting the realities of that intense battle and fierce firefight in which Shroom died we learn that those realities were far different from what the US public were led to believe in the media, and how those perceptions are in stark contrast to the tragic consequences suffered by so many young men in the Iraq War. Those realities are tearing away at Lynn, and whilst over a few hours he has formed an attachment to Faison, and his sister Kathryn pleads with him to stay at home and not return to Iraq, ultimately the US Government has not relieved the Squad from their duties and they are under orders to return to Iraq imminently.
As the Hummer awaits post celebration at the designated collection point within the bowels of the Stadium, both Faison and Kathryn emerge. Both are disappointed when Lynn bids his farewells and returns to his fellow waiting comrades with whom he has more in common and with whom he shares a greater sense of belonging and brotherhood and what it really means to support the war effort on the frontline with bullets flying. This is in stark contrast to the manufactured media circus that they have just been party to. The average Joe Blow in the street back home on safe secure American soil has no idea of what that war effort means to those serving soldiers, the sacrifices made and the lasting impact on their lives. No idea at all! He steps foot inside the waiting Hummer, but for a moment he sees himself in his armoured patrol vehicle with Shroom beside him providing some comforting words of wisdom and encouragement, that just reinforces what he knew already.
I was a little underwhelmed by this film. For all the technological wizardry and cutting edge camera work deployed in making this film, the subject matter labours. This is more a character study of a young nineteen year old lad and the loss of his innocence at war as he grows up very quickly trying to keep the peace in Iraq a long way from his rural Texas home, whilst at the same time killing insurgents and maintaining the comradeship of his Squad. We see very little of Lynn's family other than sister Kathryn, but then I guess his family now is his Bravo Squad, and he feels more of a connection with the heat, dust and emotion of Iraq than he does on his home soil. The scenes that give reason to the Victory Tour are delivered quickly and efficiently and take you to the centre of the action in flashback, but don't expect any extended battle scenes, or slow-mo action, or torn bodies and flailing limbs here. Instead, it's all about the long halftime walk that occurs at the Stadium and the impact this has on the men of Bravo Squad. Lee delivers this with all the pomp & ceremony, sound and light, and overwhelming spectacle that you would expect at such an occasion, and Lee makes it feel as though you are there amongst it. Joe Alwyn as the newcomer to watch, and Garrett Hedlund give the standout performances in this film, whereas Steve Martin as the Team owner is just an OTT archetype, and Vin Diesel channelling his inner wannabe Zen Master fails to convince. The film has garnered mixed Reviews so far, and I can understand why.
-Steve, at Odeon Online-
