The directorial debut of Kimberly Peirce with “Boys Don’t Cry” was outstanding enough to earn her an Oscar and to bring renown as remarkably talented. It was followed by almost ten years of pause, during which she was set to make a documentary about returning soldiers. Her original plan was altered, and with the help of co-writer Mark Richard, a new movie was born, focusing on the interior drama of returning soldiers and the psychological fire engendered by being stop-lossed.

“Stop–Loss” comes as an even bigger challenge for Peirce, given the present background (the forthcoming elections, the frictions caused by the Iraq issue) and the precedent of other war movies whom the public received with a lot less enthusiasm that expected (“In The Valley Of Elah,” “Lions For Lambs” or “Rendition”). An incontestable advantage of the movie whose premiere is this week-end is the fact that the theme of war is outstripped by the subject of human feelings and the politics are overshadowed by inside dramas.

The movie focuses on three soldiers freshly returned to their homes in Texas from Iraq, Sgt. Brandon King (Ryan Phillippe), his pal with whom he shared childhood and mature adventures, Sgt. Steve Shriver (Channing Tatum) and their friends Tommy Burgess (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Isaac “Eyeball” Butler (Rob Brown). They have been so close to death that they feel the security provided by their homes almost like a burden, while haunted by the war’s terrors in their nightmares.

Before Brandon accomplished his mission there, his squad came under the attack of Iraqi insurgents, an ambush that killed three of his men and seriously wounded another soldier, the death toll being augmented by several Iraqi civilians caught in the middle. The feeling of guilt that lingers upon him can hardly be diminished by the fact that he managed to save Steve’s life. The recollection of those abominable moments of the war won’t make exceptions for any of the returned soldiers, however. Steve becomes violent with his fiancée Michelle (Abby Cornish), Burgess cannot let go of his drinking habit caught in Iraq, the shadows of war remain present in their lives, even though so far away from the war scene.

Brandon’s scarce peace is completely shattered when he finds out that he has been stop-lossed, meaning that his contract has been prolonged involuntarily. Terrified to return to the hellacious Iraqi mission, he starts to contemplate desertion as a means of escaping. Brandon renounces his strong leader status to become a fugitive, his recognized heroism will go down the drains and he becomes an outlaw.

Trying to escape from going back to Iraq, he puts his hopes in persuading his senator (Josef Sommer) to help him. His determination to go AWOL is astonishing, and so is Michelle’s helping him. His bravery takes another turn, as Brandon, a soon to become former war-hero, struggles to remain alive after he joins an outlaw network including other fugitive stop-losses.

The plot succeeds in making its point, in a remarkably emotional way. The heavy-named cast and the contribution of the talented duo, Peirce and award-winning Mark Richard, strengthen the striking psychological drama.