American Sniper

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is American Sniper.

Directed by Clint Eastwood. 

Written by Jason Hall.

Based on the book "American Sniper" written by Chris Kyle, Scott McEwen & James Defelice.

Review #265

MPAA Rating: Rated R for strong and disturbing war violence, and language throughout including some sexual references.

Run Time: 132 min

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Cast

Bradley Cooper...Chris Kyle

Keir O'Donnell...Jeff Kyle

Sienna Miller...Taya

Sammy Sheik...Mustafa

Lights....Camera....Popcorn's Quote/Quotes of the Film.

"I was just protecting my guys, they were trying to kill... our soldiers and I'm willing to meet my creator and answer for every shot that I took. The thing that... haunts me are all the guys that I couldn't save."

Chris Kyle played by Bradley Cooper

This year's Oscar race is chock full of films that are "based" on true stories. I'm not sure if it's any more than in previous years but this year's crop has some pretty compelling stories. American Sniper is one of them despite some missteps that Clint Eastwood and Jason Hall made along the way.

 Plot

Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle's pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and turns him into a legend. Back home to his wife and kids after four tours of duty, however, Chris finds that it is the war he can't leave behind.

The numbers coming out after this film's release are staggering. The tally will change by the time this review comes out but as of this writing it's grossed $204,580,000 domestically. The film only cost $58.8 million to make. To say this movie is a hit is being kind. Did the Oscar nominations help? I'm sure it did. I think however that word of mouth spread like wild fire about this film and there you have it. Regardless of how this movie earned all that scratch it doesn't make it any less of an experience and trust me when I say that American Sniper is an experience.

Why is it an experience? Two words....Clint Eastwood.

Ladies and Gentlemen I present to you the return of the mighty Dirty Harry director. I realize  Bradley Cooper's performance is getting most of the attention but I have to say flat out that this film is more an achievement for Eastwood than Cooper. After knocking us all out with Million Dollar Baby (pun intended) Eastwood followed with some decent films and some down right flops. For some reason he failed to recapture the magic he displayed with Million Dollar Baby or Letters from Iwo Jima.

American Sniper marked his return to the storytelling he's famous for.

Eastwood ramps up the tension and anticipation in this film. The scene where he's got a kid in his sights looking at a rocket launcher and he's imploring him "Don't pick it up." It was a nerve wracking scene. A sniper has seconds to make a decision and if they're wrong....Let's just say they better not be wrong. Eastwood doesn't shy away from the tougher moments. One in particular involve a local Iraq warlord named "The Butcher", a child and a power drill. It was a very uncomfortable scene to watch but it captured the truth of what went on over there. Combined with Cooper's performance it's a winning duo that makes for a pretty damn good film. He also mastered the pacing. The movie takes you through all four of Kyle's tours in just over two hours and change and does a nice job of not making it repetitive.

Not once does it feel like wash, rinse, repeat.

This is because of Cooper.

He brings you into his world during the war and away from the sand. You see his fall from sanity while trying to adjust being home. Every time he returns he's never satisfied with the work he accomplished. On several occasions you see Kyle use the excuse of protecting the country from the enemy so he can go back and fight. He walks around like a wandering soul needing to finish one last piece of business before he can move on to paradise.

It's here where Eastwood and Hall make their mistake.

A big portion of the film revolves around a "feud" between Kyle and an enemy sniper named Mustafa. As Kyle continues to pick off enemies he develops a reputation from both sides. He's a legend to the U.S. troops and a bounty to the Iraq soldiers. Mustafa is their best sniper with Olympic skill and there are moments where it feels like The Joker is chasing Batman. This movie didn't need Chris Kyle going up against another sniper. It may have happened when Kyle was there but there was no need to embellish the dynamic between these two soldiers. There's a moment in the film when Mustafa is warned that Kyle and his team are approaching his area, he gears up and scrambles across rooftops looking like a parkour expert trying to secure the perfect position to take out Kyle and his team.

I know it's Hollywood but this was too much overkill for what was a real situation.

This segues nicely to the elephant in the proverbial room when it comes to breaking down this film. That's the several inaccuracies American Sniper is forced to defend. I won't go into all of them but since I brought up Mustafa, the way he met his demise at the hands of Kyle's rifle was not how it really happened. There were several others, some more egregious than others but the one thing that the outraged need to remember three little words.

It's....a....movie!

Before you see a single frame you are told that this film is based on a true story. Sometimes we forget that that disclaimer is code for....

"This may have happened, chances are it did happen but we're going to tell this version of the story instead."

It's hard at times to decipher what's real and what's movie make believe but I ask you this. When you were done watching this film were you interested in finding out more about Chris Kyle and what happened to him? If the answer to that question is yes then American Sniper did it's job and did it well.

American Sniper is at it's heart a film about a man who was compelled to fight for his country and had a hard time letting that go despite having everything to live for. Getting bogged down with the not true elements or the superhero vs super villain part takes away from the strength and message that the film was trying to send. What that message is is entirely up for debate. What's not up for debate is that this film has brought Clint Eastwood back from movie mediocrity.

Let's just hope it doesn't take him another 10 years to give us another winner.

On the 5 star scale. American Sniper gets 4 stars with a "Worth Every Penny!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"