Posted on 01/16/2015 3:04:02 PM PST by Kaslin
War movies often focus on battles over personalities. In great films like Lone Survivor (2013) and Saving Private Ryan (1998), some of the battle sequences are so real and devastating that it’s easy to get lost in them and lose focus on the individual soldiers trying to survive. Those films often attempt to show viewers what it must be like to be in the midst of an intense and devastating battle.
American Sniper, which only yesterday was nominated for six Academy Awards,is different.
It’s more of a character study than a war film with the main character being a Texan who joins the Navy SEALS and grows to become “the legend:” a military icon who was reportedly the deadliest sniper in U.S. military history.
Oscar-nominated Bradley Cooper plays Chris Kyle, the beloved war veteran whose service was well-known even before his autobiography was released several years ago. When the film begins, Kyle is a tough Southerner who loves his country, his girlfriend and his beer but something seems to change in him when the United States embassies in Kenya and Tanzania are bombed. He sees something in the world and is angered enough to want to do something about it.
His journey leads him to the SEALS where, at 30, he stands as one of the oldest soldiers at camp. “I’m not like most men, sir. I don’t quit,” he tells one of his superiors when questioned about his age. During the feature’s first thirty minutes, Kyle slowly develops into a soldier as he trains and prepares for battle. Some of the training scenes may seem a bit obvious (especially if you’ve seen other films about going into battle) but they are only leading up to the important part: Kyle’s service overseas, which is handled gracefully by Clint Eastwood.
When Kyle becomes a sniper, he’s thankfully not presented as a gung-ho soldier wanting to make his mark in the military. He’s simply a patriotic man who wants to serve his country and save his fellow soldiers from the “evil” that exists out there. (If you question the existence of such evil, think about how crazed one must be to give a child a bomb and ask them to sacrifice their lives by murdering others.) Even though Kyle sees such evil as a sniper in Iraq, he always hesitates before shooting knowing that people can always change their minds about their decisions. Even when he becomes “a legend” serving his country on four tours of duty, Kyle’s humility always shines through. He’s a man with a job to do, he realizes, and he’s saddened by those whose lives he couldn’t save.
The heart of the film though lies back in the United States where Taya (Sienna Miller), Kyle’s wife, is caring for their children. When they meet, Taya is hesitant to date a military man but slowly welcomes Kyle, the rough-and-tumble patriot, into her world. But as she sees, military life is difficult and it’s hard not to understand Taya’s growing frustration when her husband seems to choose the military over her family time and again. Even though the relationship only comes alive when Kyle is at home, Eastwood makes it overshadow Kyle’s entire military career, showing the sacrifices families must make when one of their own is sent into a war zone.
When Kyle is away (and we see the two of them chat over the phone several times while he’s on a mission), Taya is alone and even when he’s home, he’s still thinking about protecting his friends overseas.
Unlike some of Eastwood’s recent projects (Jersey Boys and Hereafter come to mind), there’s a great subtlety to American Sniper. Kyle’s world is presented from his perspective but there are small hints and notes that there are larger issues at play. Soldiers talk to Kyle about their questioning the war itself while Kyle’s brother, a veteran himself, becomes overwhelmed by what he has to do overseas and because he lives in the shadow of “the legend” himself.
“You’re my hero, bro. Always have been,” the brother notes with a sadness and fear overwhelming his pained face.
There are some who argue that American Sniper is too simplistic in both its depiction of the war and of Kyle himself. During the opening scenes, I could agree but as the story grows and the world becomes more apparent, Cooper— in possibly his best performance to date— and Eastwood present a subtle but powerful depiction of an American soldier who, even as he leaves the Navy, never quits serving his nation.
I plan on seeing this tomorrow. I did not like “Jersey Boys,” and thought that the casting was a little off. I found it to be one of Eastwood’s weakest movies, ever.
Anybody seen it and like it/not like it and why?
My daughter and son-in-law are going to see it Sunday. I have read rave reviews.
“Must See” films, threads, pictures are usually to be avoided.
It’s a warning that you are going to waste some of life’s precious minutes, and I always appreciate people who include such in a warning, masked as it might be, in a title..
I liked it a great deal. I’m frankly surprised there hasn’t been more squealing from the Left about this film; it’s overtly pro-military and pro-WOT.
i believe that Clint Eastwood, Bradley Cooper and the entire cast of “American Sniper” have given Americans a film that comes once in a lifetime, at exactly the time our nation needed such a film and story to sustain our freedom, liberty and our union, our families, our loved ones, from the everyday failure of our present leaders (Obama, etc.).
Every single person in this country that calls themselves, an American, must see this outstanding movie. It is already breaking box office records before its wide release, and could take in up to $50,000,000 dollars this weekend...This is the film to see, if you love and treasure your country and, the good, brave, loyal folks that protect us, while their families keep up the home front!!! See it!!!
AMAZING movie...God bless the Kyle family - Cooper is Best Actor, hands down, and Eastwood did a fine job. I’ll be seeing this one several more times.
The Mrs and I went last night. The movie is pretty true to his book. The theatre was packed with young soldiers (we live @ 10 miles from Ft. Riley). You could have heard a pin drop as folks were leaving. We liked it very much.
MFO
I found the book to be true to the service of an American SEAL that believed in the US and what is here. The movie followed the book the best it could within a short period of time and was true. I remember the day Chris was murdered and it was a sad day as Chris was a true patriot and would have ultimately served in Congress or the Senate and would have represented his beliefs. The US suffered a great loss with his passing.
It’s OK
I did not like the phone calls from wifey during the fire fights.
Found it hugely irritating and unrealistic from an OPSEC position.
Did anyone ever make a movie about Lon Horiuchi, the hero of Ruby Ridge—and the “freedom-loving” President he gave blind obedience to?
Well, hopefully, those of us who are not familiar with OPSEC won’t be too bothered by that.
Enjoy.
Excellent. Cooper says the right things off camera that this is not a political movie and he nails the role. Like cmon, it’s Eastwood and not a tin-foil Oliver Stone movie, what else do you want?
Sniper going door to door with rangers army with a .308 clearing rooms?
I dunno.
You do not become the best sniper in history by revealing your position.
Do not get me wrong.
Kyle was a Hero.
Clearing rooms with a high power scope?
Just saw it, was terrific. Theater was packed and after credits, the place erupted in applause. On guy yelled, GO USA!
I viewed it with a academy award voter and producer. All there liked it.
Thanks. I’m getting interested. Not too many good movies out there these days.
The preview/movie ad thing is kind of funny to me. More often that not, the previews talk me out of seeing the movie - intuitively feels too hyped, trying too hard, contrived, or boring. But the reviews of American Sniper grabbed my attention and held it, like, “Looks like this might be a good one.”
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