By Emilio Frenk.
Director: Richard Linklater
Cast: Steve Carrell, Bryan Cranston, Laurence Fishburne, J. Quinton Johnson, Deanna Reed-Foster, Yul Vazquez, Grahame Wolfe and Jeff Monahan.
Rating: Excellent.
Academy Award Director Nominee Richard Linklater, brings “Last Flag Flying” a both drama and comedy that brings outstanding results.
The movie tells the story of Larry “Doc” Shepherd (Steve Carrell) a former Vietnam marine who re-unites with his friends Sal Nealon (Bryan Cranston) and The Reverend Richard Mueller (Laurence Fishburne) also former marines.
Doc shares them the news that his son got killed in action in Iraq and asks them to bury the body in his hometown in New Hampshire.
The one who is all the way with Doc is Sal but the one who is resilient with the idea is the Reverend but at the end he agrees on going with the three of them.
Together will form an unique bond that will show the true meaning of friendship and to cherish every single moment in life as long as you have it.
Richard Linklater has been known for all his career to take on the most vulnerable side of human beings in every single one of his movies. Here with “Last Flag Flying” was not the exception.
Even though you might think is a drama but the movie has a lot of touches in comedy and reminds me of the humor that were from the days of Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau in movies like “The Odd Couple”, “The Fortune Cookie” and “Grumpy Old Men”.
The screenplay also written by Richard Linklater is very well written with characters that are unforgettable and also you identify with them from the minute the movie starts to the end which I think is really important in a movie like this one.
I must say that this is by far Linklater´s most ambitious movie of his career because of the cast that he had at his disposal, which all three actors are Academy Award Nominees.
Steve Carrell`s performance is one of the most complete I have seen in his career. You really feel and care about his character as well as for Bryan Cranston`s and Laurence Fishburne. The three form a magnificent combination and the results do payoff.
This is by far the movie I have enjoyed the most of Richard Linklater`s career since “Dazed and Confused” which I consider his masterpiece.
Hopefully “Last Flag Flying” is a contender for next year´s awards season. Not only because of Linklater`s writing and directing, but as well as the performances from the cast.
“Last Flag Flying” is one of the year´s best film and I highly recommend it.