Review: American Sniper (UK Cert 15)

SPOILER WARNING! This review discusses and/or mentions a few important plot points. If you would prefer not to have these spoiled, please stop reading now and come back once you've seen the film.  

American Sniper is a difficult film to talk about, mostly because it deals with an emotive subject (the war in Iraq and America's part in it) and also because it is based on a true story. Any criticism of the film feels like a criticism of the person and that isn't exactly fair on those left behind. 

As much as it is possible, I am going to limit myself to talking about the film as a film- as a fictionalised account of Chris Kyle's life and work- and try and stay out of the bigger picture or wider context of the war, the military and even what Kyle was like as a real person (or what the book he wrote, which the screenplay is based on, says). This might be a bit of a cop-out but it's probably safer. For an interesting look on the historical accuracy (or otherwise) of the film, this is a good article to start with.

Kyle (Bradley Cooper) was raised by a devoutly religious family, initially becoming a cowboy and then signed up to the US Navy SEALS and acted as a sniper in Iraq, completing four tours of duty. He is credited with over 160 confirmed kills although the figure may be much higher. He married and had children and, once he left the Army, he helped injured soldiers in rehabilitation. He was shot and killed in 2013 at a shooting range in Texas by a young army veteran he was trying to help, who was suffering from PTSD.

First things first: there is a lot I didn't like about American Sniper.

Mostly, the bellicose, jingoistic, America-f*ck-yeah, hoo-rah attitude espoused by Kyle. Things were black and white: America is the greatest country in the world and anyone threatening it needs to be put down with extreme prejudice. The world operates in shades of grey, sadly, so this tunnel-visioned narrowmindedness is utterly alienating- not to mention wearying in the extreme. There's no discussion, nothing wavering from that message. They're evil, they're savages, they deserve to die. That's that. Done. I understand that some people see the world thus and that's how they operate- and no doubt for soldiers, they have to see the world in such terms in order to do the things they sometimes have to do- but, as a narrative, it's not something I can get behind.

A secondary issue is the (over)use of war movie cliches that infect the plot. A colleague talking about marriage once he gets home? Dead or injured at least. A shadowy doppelganger of the lead character, doing the same thing but on the other side? Present. That said, Eastwood has an eye for detail and does create some tense moments (such as the section of the film shown in the trailer where Kyle must decide on taking down a child armed with a missile). But after that, it does go down hill and occasionally felt like watching someone play a first-person-shooter.  

Cooper's performance is decent. Kyle is a man of few words, a lot goes on behind his eyes and the subtle hints (underplayed) that he may be suffering from PTSD work well without any histrionics. Kyle appeared to be a man unrepentant about his work- claiming that he would meet his Maker with a clean conscience- and that's a difficult sell without coming across as a psychopath, but the film just about does it. The rest of Kyle's platoon are sadly unremarkable cannon-fodder and those characters are not fleshed out at all. 

The best performance of the film comes from Sienna Miller who plays Kyle's wife, Taya. Her uncertainty at getting into a relationship with a SEAL is played well and she and Cooper have a real potent chemistry together. She is the emotional anchor of the film and absolutely sells it without going over the top. At times you feel like screaming at her 'why don't you just leave him?' but Miller's performance brings across the deep love that Taya has for her husband, which makes the end of the story even more devastating.

Kyle's time away from the forces and his work with rehabilitation is perhaps more interesting than a lot of the previous stuff, but it gets glossed over with a shortish 20-minute coda, with a presentation of the fateful day that Kyle was killed. The action takes place off-screen, with a succinct one-line text to sum it up. The mid-credits then show real-life footage from Kyle's memorial service and the end credits then roll in total silence to let you absorb the tragedy. It's undeniably powerful but utterly manipulative at the same time.

As a film, American Sniper is not without its issues. You either have to get behind the black-and-white view of the world its main character has, or be able to see past it, to engage. It's probably one of the stronger films that has been made about the war in Iraq but it's still not the Iraq war equivalent to, say, Platoon or Saving Private Ryan.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Tez

Review: Foxcatcher (UK Cert 15)

Wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) and his older brother David (Mark Ruffalo) both won gold medals at the 1984 Olympics. In 1987, Mark is invited to the home of millionaire philanthropist John E. du Pont (Steve Carell), who wants Mark and David to join his private wrestling team with a view to training for the world championships and even the 1988 Olympics. Mark agrees, but David refuses as he doesn't wish to uproot his wife and young family. Mark's decision to go underneath du Pont's wing have far-reaching and ultimately tragic repercussions for the Schultz family.

Director Bennett Miller (Capote, Moneyball) has created a thoughful, absorbing, quiet character drama with a trio of strong central performances. 

Steve Carell's performance as du Pont is little short of breathtaking. It's a very unshowy, understated performance, unlike anything I've seen him give before. du Pont is a loner, an eccentric, a man in desperate desire for validation, he wants respect and wants to be liked. He has the money to do what he pleases and thinks people can just be bought. You can't help but sympathise with him initially, before the obsessional nature comes out. I don't necessarily buy into the homoerotic angle some reviewers have seen in the relationship between du Pont and Mark- I see it more as that between master and servant (or, more accurately, owner and property). Whilst Carell is undoubtedly a brilliant comic actor, Foxcatcher proves he's got some real dramatic acting chops too. 

Channing Tatum gives a decent performance as Mark. Physically imposing but also emotionally damaged, he finds a father figure in du Pont which causes some tension and estrangement with his brother (who was de facto father). You don't often get to see what's going on behind Mark's eyes, there's little development or exposition which is something of an issue. Mark Ruffalo is great as David, a caring and kind family man, always on the look-out for his little brother and there throughout it all, despite some less-than-brotherly behaviour from Mark. This is a performance without a shred of ego to it and he's rightfully garnered a lot of awards praise for it. 

Outside of the central trio, there are two other performances of note. Sienna Miller was unrecognisable in her role as David's wife Nancy, to the point where I only recognised her from her name in the end credits. She didn't have much to do but was a great foil to Ruffalo. Similarly, Vanessa Redgrave- a woman who could beguile by reading the phone book- has a great cameo as du Pont's domineering and disapproving mother Jean. She only has a handful of scenes, but the pivotal one where she calls wrestling 'low' is an absolute highlight. 

The real Mark Schultz went on a Twitter rant slamming certain aspects of the film recently. This is based on a true story. The operative word there being 'based'. It's not a documentary. Certain things have been changed to fulfil a dramatic need. What you do have is a strong, well-made film telling a gripping story and one I thoroughly enjoyed.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Tez