After his son is killed in the Iraq War, the father (Steve Carell playing the quiet type) enlists the help of 2 former vet buddies (Bryan Cranston, who plays the loose cannon to the point of obnoxious and Laurence Fishburne, who’s working the mellow minister angle). Together they travel from Norfolk to New Hampshire on a trip that involves lots of reminiscences about their time together in Vietnam. LOTS of memories and plenty of chat. While there are some winning moments and interesting interactions, there’s also too much repetition. Even though the ending is mildly moving, the hoped-for revelations never create dramatic impact. Director Richard Linklater knows how to write engaging dialogue and create endearing human moments (he co-wrote with Darryl Ponicsan, the novelist that inspired the movie), but this conversational adventure could have been a lot more appealing with 30 minutes trimmed from its 125-minute length.
(2.5 / 5)