American Sniper

I spent 27 years in the US Army, was in Operation Desert Storm (the original), was vehemently opposed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and thought this movie was one of the best military/war movies I've ever seen. The realism was there, Bradley Cooper was phenomenal, the angst of a soldier during battle was portrayed brilliantly, the decisions we ask kids to make are real and they were realistically shown on screen, and as this film makes clear--war isn't a walk in the park. Anybody who thinks Bradley Cooper is a flash in the pan is sadly mistaken; this guy is the real thing. Martin Sheen in Apocalypse Now, Charlie Sheen in Platoon, and now Bradley Cooper in American Sniper. You've got to go all the way back to Gregory Peck in Pork Chop Hill or George C. Scott in Patton to get even close to an actor that gave a better performance in this genre. I saw it twice. Couldn't get through it the first time and had to walk out- -I got so damned furious at George Bush, Dick Cheney, and Donald Rumsfeld for murdering all these innocent kids I couldn't watch anymore. Once I got past that I went back to see it again and trust me--it's phenomenal.

When it comes to true story films, there are times where film-makers try to add more or less into what really happened in the event being told. In this case, Clint Eastwood's American Sniper has already contracted not only positive acclaim but a stir of negativity and controversy that surrounds the way Kyle was really like in life. Some say he had lost his mind in the war for peace while others say he was caught up in the emotional aftermath after service but Eastwood has stated that his film is "the biggest anti-war statement any film can make," and said that "the fact of what war does to the family and the people who have to go back into civilian life like Chris Kyle did"

What AS tells is the true life figure Chris Kyle who served as the American military's 'lethal sniper' who has made more kills in his duty of tours during the Iraq war period after 9/11. It chronicles how Chris became a true American to protect his homeland and the aftermath of serving his tours when he came home to his small growing family, leading up to the final hours of his life.

Pros:

+ Bradley Cooper's portrayal of Chris Kyle is indeed a new height for his career, he gives a performance that can be described as gripping, tense and at times

+ The action sequences are all done well, but at times it can be tense, violent and confronting for some.

+ The emotional connection between the main character and his family, that the final scene that will either break you or make you undecided.

Cons:

• The controversy that surrounds it, it can make the film an exaggerated lie or truth to what Kyle was like in reality but again it is showing what war can do on people on the front-line and home.

OVERALL: Despite the controversy it has gained by writers , the film is indeed a strong acting showcase for Cooper while leaving audiences both open and more aware of the effects of war on human kind. Go in with an open mind and see for yourself for what you would think that made Chris Kyle a 'lethal sniper' for this country. If you had liked The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty and Machine Gun Preacher (not a war film but somewhat similar to Kyle's story) you will enjoy this.

Let me begin by saying I love US middle-eastern war films. I recognise the complexity of the situation that led to the placement of US troops in Iraq, but regardless I thoroughly enjoy the modern war setting combined with middle-eastern cultural elements. Green Zone, The Kingdom, Black Hawk Down, Mosul - all movies that I rate exceptionally highly.

With that out of the way, it couldn't be clearer that American Sniper is painting the most simplistically pro-US message possible. There's no depth to the storytelling past 'we good guys, they bad guys' (several lines in the movie are VERY close to straight up quoting that). My complaint isn't the film's pro-US angle (Black Hawk Down was also pretty pro-US) but the utter simplicity of American sniper's implementation of the viewpoint makes it predictable and mundane. It's like a 12 year old's moral view throughout, and all the potentially great moral conundrums throughout the film are lost because of it.

I was very intrigued with the trailer, mesmerized to say the least. The movie was another thing.

When I was the USA I met this Chris, he was no hero. Just a guy with a rifle and a sense that he was right.

For most of the patriots there is no room for the idea that Kyle might have been a good soldier but a bad guy; ()or a mediocre guy doing a difficult job badly; ()or a complex guy in a bad war who convinced himself he loved killing to cope with an impossible situation; ()or a straight-up serial killer exploiting an oppressive system that, yes, also employs lots of well-meaning, often impoverished, non-serial-killer people to do oppressive things over which they have no control.

()Or that Iraqis might be fully realised human beings with complex inner lives who find joy in food and sunshine and family, and anguish in the murders of their children.

()Or that you can support your country while thinking critically about its actions and its citizenry.

I'm even surprised to see that people vote it "Best of"...

Well what do I know, I'm just an European.

it was extremely 'even'. nothing seemed overplayed. well balanced storytelling. as someone else wrote, best war movie i've seen in years...and while we're at it, best clint movie in a few outings, as well... i agree that the ending is a bit sudden. but there was no reason to drag it out, either... i don't feel it lingered on any one dynamic of what would be expected from a film like this...not TOO much violence or proselytizing/flag waving or lingering on casualty horrors... it doesn't, on the other hand, turn away from any of the ugliness, either... i thought bradley cooper did a great job in the role. the changes he gradually instilled into the character were subtle but present. it's as well done a war movie as i'll ever need.