‘The Last Full Measure’ Review: All-Star Cast Excels In Inspiring True Story Of Nearly Forgotten Heroism

Some might feel that it manipulates your heartstrings, but writer-director Todd Robinson’s The Last Full Measure is the real deal, an effective Vietnam War movie told in flashback, that all too sadly shows how easy it is to forget who true heroes when politics gets in the way.
In a time where the current resident of the White House has so blatantly downgraded true valor and those who sacrificed, as we saw in his treatment of the late Sen. John McCain, maybe it is not so bad to have a movie remind us what really matters and what is really worth remembering. The Last Full Measure will lift you up and make you proud. An inspiring story of sacrifice, honor, courage and doing the right and decent thing, it is a movie that will reinforce your belief in true heroes and our own duty to make sure they are never forgotten. The all-star cast is superb, and this is a movie not to be missed, a real heart-tugger.
In April 1966, Pararescueman William Pitsenbarger, caught up in a bloody jungle battle in Vietnam, heroically saved 60 lives while sacrificing his own, as a whole unit was trapped in an impossible situation that looked like no one would survive. Some did, and they never forgot what he did for them, carrying around the guilt of living for many decades and then trying for 30 years to get Pitsenbarger the posthumous Medal of Honor he deserved.
Robinson intercuts the Vietnam scenes with those set in 1999. when the issue is brought up again and Pentagon staffer Scott Huffman (Sebastian Stan) is tasked with taking on the case that Pitsenbarger’s parents (a very fine Christopher Plummer and Diane Ladd) as well as a survivor, Tully (William Hurt), refuse to let go of. With bureaucracy ruling the day in D. C. this all seems like an impossible task, but Huffman forges ahead by going on a road trip and interviewing other survivors of that battle who can offer firsthand evidence of the heroism that took place that day. Samuel L. Jackson, Ed Harris, John Savage, and the late Peter Fonda in his last role play these men, and each clearly still suffers from the effects of that war, what they saw and shame for having lived while their friend died saving them.
‘The Last Full Measure’ Trailer: Vietnam War Movie With Sebastian Stan, Samuel L. Jackson, Ed Harris & Peter Fonda In One Of His Last Roles