NAN-ELS-8
Movie
New York, Nov.11, 2016 (Reuters/NAN) Oscar-winning movie director, Ang Lee,
said he chose drama about American soldiers returning home from Iraq to showcase groundbreaking extra-fast high resolution imagery.

He said that the movie, “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk’’ was based on satirical 2012 novel by Ben Fountain, shot in 3D and 4K resolution and 120 frames per second.

“This is five times faster than an ordinary movie; the aim is to immerse the audience in the experience of the film’s conflicted 19-year-old protagonist, he said.

The movie follows young soldier Billy Lynn, portrayed by newcomer Joe Alwyn, who returns from Iraq with his squad in 2004 for a victory tour of the United States after being hailed as heroes.

The soldiers took part in the surreal spectacle of a Thanksgiving football halftime show on the eve of their return to war.

Lee said the high-definition technology was to underline the contrast between the soldiers’ sensation of being on the battlefield and the noisy patriotism of their reception back in the United States.

“I think it makes it easy to see things through his (Billy’s) eyes.

“One of the hardest things was translating from the book to the film; it’s very internal; One day the boy is experiencing bullets and the next, the halftime show and the still fresh memory of battle.’’

“The movie opens in New York and Los Angeles on Friday – Veterans’ Day in the United States – in a tribute to the military,’’ he said.

It comes a decade after a slew of films about the Iraq war that largely failed at the U.S. box-office a decade ago.

However, the Oscar-winning Director said he hoped the movie will give audiences “a little more understanding of what soldiers’ experience; they are the people who do things we don’t want to do.”

According to him, only a handful of U.S. movie theatres are equipped to handle the new technology.

“This means that most Americans will see the film in regular format or 3D when the opening expands on Nov. 18.

“The movie also has Kristen Stewart as Billy’s cynical sister, Steve Martin as a football team owner and Vin Diesel as Billy’s military mentor,’’ Lee said (Reuters/NAN)
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Edited by Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu