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The film “The Last Full Measure” tells the story of Air Force Airman William Pitsenbarger’s battle to obtain the Medal of Honor for his death in 1999. Pitsenbarger was killed in action during one of the most bloody missions of the Vietnam War, saving many lives while receiving what his family and the men he saved and served with considered a lesser commendation. Only 18 of the thousands of veterans who have received the “MOH,” as the characters in this show refer to it, came from the United States Air Force, according to what we’ve been told. Ptarmigan Pitsenbarger was not supposed to be on the ground; instead, he was supposed to be in a chopper with his fellow airmen, airlifting the wounded until the company below lost their medic. Once on the ground, after assisting those who have been wounded, Pitsenbarger defies the orders of those in command and chooses instead to seal his own fate by engaging in combat to protect the remaining company members.
Todd Robinson, the writer/director, spins this tale of heroism with a lot of purple sentiment but surprisingly little of the jingoism that one would expect from a film of this nature. Instead, “The Last Full Measure” devotes a significant portion of its running time to exploring postwar post-traumatic stress disorder and the survivor’s guilt that often accompany it. In the background, there is a subtly rendered current of rage about the way veterans are treated when they return home. All of these ideas are presented through the eyes of a cast of seasoned actors, who help the film survive its occasionally clunky dialogue. It’s actually one of the film’s more enjoyable aspects to sit back and listen to these actors ramble through their numerous monologues. The performances of these two actors are the film’s saving grace.
Sensing that his film may descend into more maudlin depths, Robinson introduces an audience stand-in who represents the level of cynicism necessary to provide a necessary counterpoint to the sentimentality of his story. Following the resignation of a higher-ranking official, Scott Huffman (Sebastian Stan) is three months away from losing his current well-paying government position. As a means of keeping him occupied until then, his boss Carlton Stanton (Bradley Whitford) assigns him the case brought up by Tulley (William Hurt), the airman who was responsible for sending Pitsenbarger into the jungle the day before he died. Stanton believes Tulley’s request will die on the vine (upgrades of medals were virtually unheard of in the military), and even if it does have staying power, the government will delay any actions until after Huffman’s term is over. Despite the fact that Huffman despises the job, Tulley is not only persistent, but he is also cunning. By presenting his case at a men’s room urinal, he is able to gain the support of Stanton’s boss. During one of the few moments of levity in the film, Tulley extends a handshake to another character who appears to be out of the picture.
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Hurt is the first of several well-known characters. “The Last Full Measure” emerges from the deck of cards like aces from a stacked deck. Pitsenbarger’s parents, Frank and Alice, are played by Christopher Plummer and Diane Ladd, respectively, and the men he saved are well-portrayed in their modern-day incarnations by Ed Harris, John Savage, Samuel L. Jackson, and Peter Fonda, who appears in one of his final roles. Each character is given a flashback sequence as well as some of the aforementioned ripe dialogue to work with. I grew tired of the flashbacks—they aren’t bad, they’re just repetitive, and they would have been more effective if they had been presented as a single major set-piece rather than interspersed throughout the film for unnecessary suspense—but my interest in the monologues remained unwavering throughout.
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Fonda is particularly impressive in the few scenes in which he appears. His In spite of his unwavering fear of the dark, Jimmy Burr has slept during the day for 32 years as a result of his traumatic childhood experiences. When Huffman comes to interview Jimmy, his protective wife Donna (Amy Madigan) sees right through his insincerity, and she warns him that this veteran will not take any nonsense from him. Despite the fact that Jimmy Burr is the type of character who is easily overplayed, Fonda manages to strike the perfect balance between stoicism and madness that is truly haunting. Each and every sentence Burr says to Huffman is punctuated with the word “sir,” and the tone with which he says it is somewhere between an affectation and a threat. One of the film’s most memorable lines comes from Burr, who yells “an unloaded gun is just a stick!” after Huffman questions if Burr’s gun is loaded and is given a demonstration in the affirmative: “an unloaded gun is just a stick!”
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Takoda is played admirably by Jackson, who is also excellent. He, like Fonda, walks a fine line between menace and overkill without going overboard. Takoda is initially hostile toward Huffman, but after realizing that this may be the last chance for Frank, who is suffering from cancer, to see his son earn the MOH before he passes away, Takoda begins to warm to him. When Takoda calls Frank and can’t bring himself to speak, they share a moment of quiet power. The former, who is suffering from guilt over a specific battle incident, calls the latter and can’t bring himself to speak. This appears to be a fairly common occurrence. “Did he say anything?” Alice wonders aloud. “That’s something he never does,” Frank responds. In the film’s examination of survivor’s guilt, Takoda and Tulley are the characters who stand out the most, and both are given scenes that reflect their anguish.
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You may have noticed that I haven’t said much about William Pitsenbarger in this article. It misses the opportunity to give us more insight into who he was by not fleshing him out enough in “The Last Full Measure.” Jeremy Irvine’s performance as him is undoubtedly heroic, and the actor’s good looks and affable demeanor serve as a kind of cinematic character shorthand for someone in whom we should take a strong emotional interest. However, he is primarily defined by the stories told about him by others, and as such, he continues to be a mystery that must be kept at arm’s length. This may have been Robinson’s intention, to keep Pitsenbarger a little mysterious as a show of respect, but I wish I had had more opportunities to speak with him directly. He feels like a ghost haunting his own story if he doesn’t have that.Also, you must try to play this The Last Full Measure quiz.
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