Last Flag Flying (2017)

With the world full of war and cold technology, it's easy for the people to slip through.

Last Flag Flying follows Marine Veterans Larry 'Doc' Shepherd (Steve Carrell), Salvatore 'Sal' Nealon (Bryan Cranston) and Reverend Richard Mueller (Laurence Fishburne) as they journey across America to collect Larry's son, who whilst also serving as a Marine has died in combat and is being taken home for his funeral. Over the journey, we discover the damaging and yet bonding past of these three friends.

The amount of topics covered is Last Flag Flying is astonishing. Doc, Sal and Mueller spend two hours talk about hard-hitting topics like service in the military, religion, alcoholism, old-age, politics, race and even music. Each one is explored in personal relevance to the characters and in either deep, dramatic tones or with genius, comedic writing, the combination of which results in the feeling of talking around a table with immensely close friends, the respect is immeasurable.

Steve Carrell's performance as Doc carries such weight, you desperately want to reach through the screen to comfort him. It's also amazingly real as it covers the confused desperation of a father when he sees his dead son for the first time, to the cold, quiet sadness when he's burying him. Cranston and Fishburne aren't far behind, embodying what seems to be an inventive take on the little Angel and Devil on Doc's shoulders, but instead of good and evil, it's now Doc's desperation to cling to some sort of faith, embodied by Mueller literally speaking the word of God, as well as the ugly truth, real-world pessimism and depression manifested in the alcohol fuelled Sal, who is in constant denial of any negativity in his life whilst constantly bringing up how crappy the situation is. Doc has the least amount of dialogue of the three but we never feel he's not taking part as everything the Sal and Mueller are saying is being carefully intended to try and help their friend. These three are a perfectly balanced triangle of friendship and support.

With the industry taking a view of war that is either a constantly exploding action film of hardened soldiers with endless ammo or a dramatic, depressive episode of death and loss, I think Last Flag Flying with it's combination of respectful quiet moments and hilariously funny banter between friends, it represents a true grieving process, surrounded by friends who know what you're going through but aren't afraid to forget the empty apologies and just help you face it.

4.5/5 - Support your troops, support their families.