On the bright side, most of the performances here are pretty good. Cooper brings a hearty dose of jaded worldliness to Gilcrest and leads the film well. Meanwhile, Stone plays Captain Allison Ng with a bit more gusto and quirk than her usual "chill" persona -- a good counterbalance to Gilcrest. Likewise, Baldwin and McBride have some fun with their equally zany but vastly different military men. Then there's McAdams, who basically plays the same version of herself we've seen in all of her other romantic films -- that is, a stock female lead. That's not really her fault though, as her character is sidelined in the script.
In fact, almost all of the actors' talents are wasted in this, most notably Murray's. Not only is the comedian criminally underutilized, but the material he's given isn't even that funny (contrary to, say, Baldwin's). Ultimately, the ensemble just isn't very well-drawn, despite the little nuances the actors brings to their characters. All the romance seems forced and out-of-left-field, and their motives are never really made clear.
It doesn't help that the tone is wildly inconsistent, never knowing whether to commit to a joke or not. (Even when it does, the outcome is more cringe-worthy than funny.) That's not to mention the story, which barely makes any sense. While the characters seem to know what they're talking about, it isn't until Gilcrest's redemptive act that you realize the full extent of what's going on. That's because the movie has a bad habit of telling rather than showing, which leaves the whole thing feeling vague and not particularly interesting.
