Patti Perret/A24 Films
Individuality is incompatible with the Marine Corps, where rigorous adherence to routine and protocol strives to create a cohesive fighting force. Consequently, such military service affords both an opportunity for transformation and a means of escape from oneself. It’s those facets that attract a young, gay man from Trenton, New Jersey, to enlist in The Inspection, writer/director Elegance Bratton’s sensitive and poignant drama inspired by his own experiences.
Bolstered by Jeremy Pope’s coiled, interior performance as a man in search of identity in a place that doesn’t necessarily like what it sees in him, it’s a familiar tale distinguished, and elevated, by its details.
Arriving in theaters on November 18 following celebrated screenings at the Toronto and New York Film Festivals (the latter of which highlighted it as its closing night selection), The Inspection is, among other things, a testament to the enduring authenticity and insightfulness of Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket. Its portrait of boot camp hell is echoed in innumerable ways by Bratton’s feature directorial debut.