American Sniper - Review

Well the Oscars are only a few weeks ago now, and I've spent very little time actually discussing many of the nominees, so let's take a look at American Sniper. This film is directed by Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood and based on the true story of Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle. For those who aren't aware, Chris Kyle became the deadliest marksman in US Military history while serving in Iraq before tragically being killed by a fellow veteran suffering from PTSD in 2013 after returning home. In addition to being nominated for multiple Oscars and becoming a massive success at the box office... American Sniper became 2014's movie that people judge you based on whether you liked it or not. Interesting... I was expecting Selma take that distinction (that's too bad, because I really liked Selma). Now I really shouldn't have to do this, but I'm going to start this review with a disclaimer. I am strictly reviewing the movie American Sniper and that alone... I'm not making any statements either the military or Chris Kyle himself. I never met the guy, I don't know what he was really like. His story certainly seems interesting and his ironic death is incredibly sad and tragic, but aside from what was stated in the movie itself... I don't have much to say about him.  And despite whatever my feelings are toward war itself, I have nothing but respect for the troops that so bravely serve and defend our country. So with that said... here's my review of American Sniper.

Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) was born and raised in Texas, who while deer hunting as a young boy, discovered he was a gifted marksman. A devout patriot and raised with a sense of duty, he decided to enlist in the Navy after the 1998 US Embassy bombings. He excels through the training, and eventually becomes a Navy SEAL sniper. After 9/11, he was shipped overseas to Iraq, where due to his pinpoint accuracy racks up enemy kills and protects his fellow troops from attacks. The war, however, takes a toll on his psyche, and when returning home, suffers from PTSD and finds re-adjusting to his home-life difficult. Much to the chagrin of his long suffering wife Taya (Sienna Miller) and two children, he continues to re-enlist and return to active duty overseas.

So I'm just going to come out and say this... I didn't care much for America Sniper. In fact, especially given the talent on display and a director that has proven himself time and time again, it's a shockingly inept film that fails on multiple levels and makes a number of fairly amateur mistakes. I saw this movie a few weeks ago, and I've had to spend some time thinking about exactly why it doesn't work. Is it because of the lack of solid subject matter? No, war or military films (especially those about recent events) offer plenty of themes and stories with which to work. Is it for the lack of interest? Maybe... I get the feeling that Bradley Cooper was nothing but dedicated (he also co-produced the film), though Clint Eastwood seems like he might have fallen asleep at the wheel. Was it because Chris Kyle's story just didn't have enough material for a biopic. Hmmm... I can't really answer that one right now. I haven't read his book, and like I said, my knowledge about his story is fairly limited. That said, based on what was presented here, I think maybe this material would have been better utilized as a documentary rather than a narrative. Still, you can make a good movie out of anything, so I sure somehow the movie could have worked.

American Sniper tries to be many things... a biopic, a drama, a character study, a suspense/thriller, an action movie, and a war movie... while getting virtually none of them right. The movie has been accused of being a propaganda film, but personally I don't think that's fair. Admittedly, while Clint Eastwood's political affiliations might have caused some commotion, it really does feel like he wasn't trying to make any political statements with this and rather just present the facts... and that's commendable. And it's not like every war film needs to have some overt anti-war message (or even pro-war for that matter) to be considered good. Classics like Platoon or Patton are excellent movies but don't exactly have any agendas (at least not really). So the film doesn't have a political agenda, which is fine, and instead opts to just detail Chris Kyle's personal struggles with the psychological effects of war. That sounds great in theory... it just doesn't get it right. The scenes in Iraq are so lazily directed, that they leave very little emotional impact. With one or two exceptions, they're not particularly suspenseful, and the emotional impact of these scenes is so glossed over you could practically write them out. That said, the infamous scene you've all seen in the trailer where Chris Kyle is forced to kill a young boy and his mother, and the emotional torment that followed, is one of the few somewhat effective moments. The rest just don't work all that well. There's a subplot involving a rivalry between Kyle and an enemy Iraqi sniper, that feels tacked on and extremely underdeveloped. Also, there's a story involving Kyle's unit pursing a vicious enemy known as The Butcher, a murderer who keeps the body parts of his victims. Throwing in a character that feels like a rejected 24 villain in an otherwise straightforward movie feels kind of out of left field, but I might be a little more forgiving toward that had it not felt so tacked on. Also, like many films or shows with similar subjects, the Iraqi or Middle Eastern characters are mostly portrayed as evil savages while the Americans as more upstanding... UGH!!! THIS IS ONE EXTREMELY RACIST TROPE THAT NEEDS TO GO AWAY!!! And before you give me the "But this is a true story Chris"... well, apparently A LOT of this movie was totally fabricated, or at least greatly exaggerated.

About half of the film is set in Iraq, while the rest details Chris Kyle's struggle to adjust to home life. To my biggest surprise, this is where the movie truly fails. The film's main focus is, of course, Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle (as it should be), but his wife Taya also plays a major role in the story, but seems like she got shafted a bit. Her role is basically Chris's supportive wife struggling to care for her troubled husband. There's nothing particularly wrong with that, but she does feel like a shell of a character, and I would have liked to see a bit more from her end. Basically she shows up once in a while after Chris's time overseas, they get into an argument about him returning to active duty, he leaves for Iraq again, rinse and repeat a few more times. They're generally well-acted, Sienna Miller in particular shows some real dramatic range while Bradley Cooper gives a better than expected understated performance, even if the script doesn't give him nearly enough material to showcase any true acting ability. I really do like Bradley Cooper, but he still leaves a lot to be desired in his dramatic ability... honestly his best performances are still as Phil in The Hangover and Rocket Raccoon in Guardians of the Galaxy (I'm actually being totally serious, those two films show off his best acting chops) because he's allowed to go nuts and truly explore his characters unlike this where he isn't given much. Plus, this might seem a bit nit picky, but there's one scene in particular where Chris and Taya have what should be an important discussion while Chris consoles his crying newborn baby daughter... only any dramatic momentum is COMPLETELY undercut by the fact that Bradley Cooper is holding an obviously plastic doll instead of a real child (seriously Clint... you're an Oscar winning director, that was an Ed Wood level mistake)! Yes, the scenes of Chris Kyle struggling with with his PTSD have some emotional moments, but they're often glossed over or quickly abandoned without ever really taking the time to develop Chris Kyle as a character. Basically, it's little more than a series of tropes and war movie cliches, but with little to give them any real weight, originality, or emotional impact. Ugh... what a letdown.

I know I'm in the minority here, but American Sniper really was one of the biggest letdowns of 2014. It has all the ingredients of a well-made war film, but none come together. Maybe it's because it stands in the shadows of similar or better made war movies. If you want a better "War is Hell" movie that focuses on the exploits of a particular troop, watch Oliver Stone's Platoon. For a movie that explores the post-war effects on the soldiers that served, watch Born On The Forth of July (also by Oliver Stone) or Coming Home. Or maybe The Hurt Locker for a better "War is a Drug" movie (The Hurt Locker ain't perfect, but it's a far better made movie.) Probably the best movie to do all of these things, might still be Apocalypse Now... an insightful, thrilling, and all around brilliant war movie that will likely forever stand the test of time. American Sniper... it just comes off as empty and kind of flat... and that could not be more disappointing.

I give American Sniper 2 out of 5!