NEW YORK — Based on Ben Fountain’s bestselling novel, the new movie “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” takes place at the nationally televised Thanksgiving Day NFL game in Dallas, where a ceremony honors Pvt. Billy Lynn (newcomer Joe Alwyn) and his Bravo Squad heroes, just back from the Iraq War.
The squad has been on a nationwide tour, orchestrated by the Defense Department, to promote the armed services after a video of a bloody but heroic skirmish involving Lynn and his squad goes viral.
Steve Martin plays Norm, the fictionalized owner of the Dallas Cowboys, a powerful, egocentric mogul more than a little reminiscent of our new president-elect.
Asked whether he might have been inspired by Donald Trump’s famed over-sized personality, Martin smiled and said, “No way. This film was shot more than a year and a half ago, before he was so much in our national attention. … I didn’t base Norm on any one specific individual.
“I’ve run into quite a few of those kinds of guys in my life. They are powerful, and the force of their personalities make everyone around them not only listen to everything they say — but makes people kind of scared of them.”
Martin was pleased that in the film, the character of Norm from the book had been changed.
“In the book, he’s pretty tough and very unlikable,” he said, but director Ang Lee “wanted to make him more of a benevolent dictator — powerful but also warm and friendly when he knew he was in charge.”
The interview with Martin took place with co-star Chris Tucker. The two enjoyed the fact they share a comedic background — even though they are thrown together in this movie in mostly dramatic scenes. Still, both managed to infuse their performances with some humorous moments.
“I enjoyed working with Steve so much,” Tucker said. “Because of his improv background and his ability to ad lib so brilliantly, I knew he would go anywhere I’d go in a scene — and he’d do it so effortlessly. Having both of us coming from comedy backgrounds was a huge plus.”
Martin agreed: “Working with Chris really was one of the things that put me at complete ease in this movie.”
Tucker portrays Albert, a Hollywood agent who has insinuated himself with Billy Lynn and the Bravo Squad, with a plan to turn their heroic exploits into a feature film.
“I’ve seen a lot of characters like that in my day — big-talking managers and agents,” Tucker said. “I tried to switch him up and play a guy who was struggling and really kind of just getting into the business. He’s a guy who pretends he’s had a lot of experience as an agent but who really hasn’t had much to show for it.
“Plus he’s representing these guys who were over fighting in Iraq but who are struggling to get back into society. Albert understands that, even though he’s never been in the military. I wanted Albert to come across as getting these guys — as well as working his tail off, trying to exploit them.
“While he was desperate to make a deal for this film, I wanted to show he did have compassion for them as well.”
Martin said it was impossible to make a movie like “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” without reflecting on the concept of heroism — how we perceive it and often misinterpret it.
“The way I see it, all soldiers are heroes,” he said. “Some perform acts that are caught on camera and bring instant fame. But I believe deeply in that saying from World War II: They also serve who stand and wait. These are people who put their lives on the line and can’t say no. They have to do it. They have to go into battle without questioning those orders. In my book, that, by default, makes them all heroes.”
