Kimberley Peirce returns after a nine-year absence with Stop-Loss, a war drama about a decorated veteran who is ordered to return to Iraq after completing what he believed to be his last tour. Film critic Peter Travers described the movie as "The first major movie of the year that touches greatness."

That's not exactly accurate. Stop-Loss reaches for greatness, but it never really makes contact.

The movie centers on a group of friends who all fought together in a squad in the Army. In the last days of their Iraq tour they are attacked and led into an ambush. This event weighs heavily on them, leading some of them down paths that, well, lead to nothing pleasant.

The movie is actually pretty good up until the actual stop-loss occurs. After that it descends into a trite melodrama. I'd expected much more from the woman behind the brilliant Boys Don't Cry. Instead we get nothing more than an overacted grunt fest.

In actuality, there are only two decent performances in the movie. The first is Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who to be honest is probably incapable of giving a bad performance. He plays Tommy, a soldier spiraling out of control after the events in his last days in Iraq. He gives a quiet, brooding performance that is sadly underused.

The second is Abbie Cornish. She plays the girlfriend of Channing Tatum's character. She portrays Michelle with a boiling undercurrent of emotion at the thought of losing her boyfriend to the war.

Unfortunately, no one really has much to work with, as the script isn't anything to write home about - not surprising if the rumor of there being no less than 65 drafts is to be believed. Like I said, it starts off well, but seems to crumble under its own sense of self-importance.

With subject matter like this, and with a director like Kimberley Peirce, Stop-Loss should have been a home run. Instead, like the war itself, it's a giant mess.

This next bit might be a bit spoilery, so if you do intend to see the movie you might beware the next few lines. I'll try to keep it clean, though.

Ryan Phillippe's character goes to great lengths to prevent him from going back to Iraq; this includes a road trip to Washington D.C. In the end, everything he does and everything that happens while he is away is a waste. He never really seems to take responsibility for that. There is a major ramification to his action and it just seems to be glossed over and shrugged away.

Overall, Stop-Loss just doesn't work the way it should have. It is pointless and lacks any kind of emotional core. It is a missed opportunity to deliver a real message. Instead, it gives us another shoddily edited MTV music video movie thrown together under the guise of importance. It is an unfortunate failure, which is sad because it should have been brilliant. I can only hope that Kimberley Peirce bounces back with something better. Hopefully, it won't take another nine years.

Stop-Loss just hit stores last week. It is written by Mark Richard and Kimberly Pierce, and Peirce directed, as well. It stars Ryan Phillippe, Abbie Cornish, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rob Brown, Channing Tatum, and Timothy Olyphant.

The DVD has your standard special features: commentary, deleted scenes, a making of, and a featurette showing the cast in boot camp. The picture and audio are crisp and pristine.

Unfortunately, I can't recommend you check it out.