But if you’re to watch the trailer of her long-overdue follow-up Iraq-war film “Stop Loss” that’s due in March, you might think you’re watching the work of an entirely different filmmaker.
For one, by barely watching the trailer, we can assume this film is about young Americans at war and ostensibly, young Americans at war losing their lives (and in all cliched likelyhood their innocence), yes? While we’re not jingoist patriots or sensitive prudes, does it not occur to anyone that using metal mooks Drowning Pool’s deeply retarded, and lowest-common denominator testosterone-fest “Bodies,” – with it’s refrain, “let the bodies hit the floor, let the bodies hit the floor” – might just be a tad, inappropriate?
Sure, it’s an MTV Film for one, and sure the producers and filmmakers are trying to be provocative. But even Brian DePalma had better sense and if you’re using him as any baraometer with taste, class and good sense and you’re failing the grade, you’re in serious fucking trouble.
The trailer then moves into cheesy, slow-motion territory with flag-waving scenes set to fucking fromage torch bearers Snow Patrol (“Open Your Eyes”) and you really feel like they’re in trouble. Ok, we’re not saying, “Boys Don’t Cry” was genius and we’re not saying Peirce is Orson Welles circa “Citizen Kane,” but this trailer feels troublesome. Did they hand it overly entirely to MTV producers? Did Peirce just lose her mind in the last eight years that she wasn’t releasing films?
“Stop-Loss” stars Ryan Phillippe, Abbie Cornish, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tatum, and as Jon Stewart reminded everyone near the beginning of this year’s Oscar telecast, Iraq war films (“In The Valley Of Elah,” “Grace Is Gone,” “Redacted”) were basically completely ignored by the viewing public, critics, Academy voters and essentially even those with copious free time and money to burn.
Update: Alrighty, alrighty! We hear you. Mea culpa. Comments are closed.
Watch: “Stop Loss” trailer
