Reviews

When I first saw the trailer for this movie, I was intrigued. The screenplay was extremely promising. A true story of two 20 something stoners turned gun runners during the Iraq War, and it was directed by Todd Phillips? Will this go the way of Spotlight, or even The Wolf of Wall Street?

It does not reach the acclaim of either of those two films, but I will say that it makes for an entertaining watch. War Dogs borders on the seriousness of Spotlight, but also includes the debauchery of Wolf. And that's not a bad thing, but it cheaply cashes out instead of digging deeper.

Phillips took many creative liberties with the story. Take a look at the original Rolling Stone piece, or any other article and you'll see exactly what I am talking about.

Jonah Hill and Miles Teller portray the two real life runners, Efraim Diveroli and David Packouz, despite looking nothing like them. They are here for the laughs. Both offer plenty, but Teller's character provides a seriousness to counter Hill's Scarface persona. They create a dynamic buddy pairing that neither is bad, nor great.

Phillips picked a screenplay that is so interesting, it would be very difficult to screw up. He avoids doing so by instead taking the safe route. For more substance, check out the movie's inspiration, the book "Arms and the Dudes."

With Taylor Sheridan as the writer and David MacKenzie at the helm, I had high hopes for this movie. Both of their last respective projects (Sheridan - Sicario, MacKenzie - Starred Up) were gritty, violent, and engaging. All of those hold true for Hell or High Water.

The main characters, Chris Pine and Ben Foster turn in great performances. Ben Foster plays the ex-con brother. And as usual, he turns in what I think was the best performance of the movie. He has a knack for playing a top notch supporting role, and often times gets overlooked. Chris Pine also nails it as the more straight laced brother. For a pretty boy of Hollywood, his portrayal is authentic. Jeff Bridges also compliments these two well as the older, sort of jaded officer. Both him and Foster even provide a good amount of laughs, but neither overdo it.

The setting of the movie really sets it above others in the genre. I would say this movie is more crime/drama or heist film than Western, but it definitely has a Western vibe due to its northwest Texas setting. The area has been hit hard by the recession, a failing farm industry, and big oil. It all makes the recklessness and danger Foster and Pine engage in that much more enjoyable, and even sort of relatable. The audience can at least sympathize with them as they do what they think is right.

Overall, this film is well worth a watch. It can be put in a league with more recent films like The Town, Drive, and The Place Beyond the Pines.