42. Last Flag Flying; movie review

LAST FLAG FLYING
Cert 15
125 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong language, sex references

Steve Carell is fast becoming one of the finest actors around today and when you combine his talents with those of Bryan Cranston and Laurence Fishburne you have to be on to a winner.
With another cast, Last Flag Flying might not have hit the mark - drifting down a quiet path of insignificance, not unlike its three key figures.
However, the chemistry of the three men gives it a poignancy which will prompt an occasional laugh and maybe a tear.
Carell plays the quietly devastated father of a young marine who is killed in Baghdad at the time of the Iraq war.
Having recently lost his beloved wife, he goes in search of two fellow Vietnam veterans to accompany him at his son's burial.
Cranston plays a womanising, alcoholic bar owner with a loose tongue who initially raises the hackles of Fishburne who has turned to God and is a respected pastor in his local church.
Ironically, Cranston's character immediately agrees to help his bereaved former comrade while Fishburne's is more reticent.
However, the journey to the grave becomes a voyage of self-discovery for all three men.
Richard Linklater specialises in movies of Last Flag Flying's nature, gradually peeling back the layers of his subjects with lines of comedy, pathos and tragedy punctuating each scene.
His film takes a while to bite because the introduction of the three protagonists is slow and thoughtful, very much mirroring Carell's reserved character.
But once it does, the power of the writing from Linklater and Darryl Poniscan, on whose novel the movie is based, really strikes home.
Last Flag Flying is touching, tough but also funny. In short, it is real reflection of life... and death (anyone who has been to funeral knows there are smiles as well as tears).
My only surprise is that it has such a meagre distribution in the UK - it played for just one day in multiplexes and is now being screened in just five art house cinemas.
It deserves a much more extensive run.

Reasons to watch: poignant exploration of life and death by a fine cast
Reasons to avoid: takes a while to fully get into its stride

Laughs: three
Jumps: none
Vomit: yes
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 7.5/10

Director quote - Richard Linklater: "The movie is about a lot of things but one thing it is about is the notion of truth and lies and patriotism."

The big question - Why does military service run in families despite it being so tough?

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