American Sniper

I didn't see "American Sniper" in theaters because of its high level of swearing. Certain swear words are quite distracting when I watch a movie, especially when they are spoken with such a frequency that they are no longer swear words to the characters speaking them. When I became aware of a movie streaming service that filters movies to my specifications, I was finally able to see this popular war movie. By using this website to filter out most of the swear words, the distraction is still there because of the muting but at least I don't have to hear the words themselves. I am therefore able to determine just how much the swearing in any film affects my enjoyment without having to subject myself to the actual profanities. The amount of offensiveness is a problem in watching "American Sniper" and it is also hard to watch the portrayal of the consequences of war on the psyche and the families of those serving. The movie is hard to fully enjoy. I was impressed though with the level of realism in the portrayal of this true story. The acting, cinematography and direction all do their part in creating the allusion of realism. The two stars of this show are definitely lead actor Bradley Cooper and director Clint Eastwood, both of whom were nominated for Oscars. One can make a few comparisons between this movie and "Saving Private Ryan".

The narrative structure of the plot feels somewhat devoid of rising action. It feels like we are given glimpses of the major moments in Chris Kyle's life but the scenes do not create a dramatic build up as the movie progresses. The lack of music could be the reason for this but "Cast Away" did not have this problem. There were some noteworthy scenes that were well portrayed such as boot camp and when Kyle's newborn daughter is crying in the hospital. His first kill in action is important to show because seeing as how Kyle is "the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history", we should understand how he feels about his job and its consequences. I was grateful to find that Kyle has sympathy for the kid he just shot. I'm sure that Kyle was expecting this kind of warfare when he signed up but for it to happen on his first kill is traumatizing nonetheless. Another powerful scene that relates to Kyle's first kill shot is when he is about to shoot the kid that picks up the rocket launcher but the kid drops the weapon and runs instead. The audience comes to realize in this moment just how much breathing really comes into play as a sniper. Kyle is so relived by the kid's retreat that he chokes on his own breath, which he has been regulating with perfection up until it is no longer necessary. The movie creates a rival of sorts for Chris Kyle in the form of the illusive Mustafa. He appears to be based on Juba, a supposed Iraqi sniper who most likely had nothing to do with Kyle's story. When Kyle has Mustafa in his sights, the target is small enough that the audience can barely see what Kyle is looking at. All that we see is a black shape. It is important that the first POV shot through the scope is normal and then over the course of the scene, we get a closer look and we can pick out Mustafa and the light brown canopy over him. We get a sense of how tough of a shot it is. I did not like the slow motion as Kyle takes his shot though. The realism that this movie is known for was lost. In real life, Chris Kyle actually made a kill from 2100 yards away but two separate sources disagree on the target. One claims that Kyle took out an enemy sniper while the other says Kyle shot a man with a rocket launcher. It becomes apparent throughout the movie that Kyle is after Mustafa and that is the reason he takes four tours. I don't know what is in Kyle's heart but I would hope that he is not after Mustafa just for revenge or because of his ego. He carries a Bible but doesn't appear to read it after all. My hope would be that Kyle views taking out Mustafa as his patriotic duty. By eliminating his counterpart, Kyle gives his country the advantage in the war. One casualty of many that we witness in this film is Chris Kyle's family. He may have saved fellow soldiers and lost others. He may be helping fellow veterans but we barely see his kids in this movie and his relationship with his wife during the BBQ appears more distant than ever. I am so happy for the diminuendo of "American Sniper" however because by helping the veterans, he starts to help his family as well. The relationship between Kyle and his wife is strong and there is chemistry but more screen time should have been given to make this relationship even stronger. This is the most relatable aspect of the movie and by extension; it is one of the most important components of the story. An even stronger on-screen relationship between Kyle and his wife would have made the drama equally stronger when Kyle's PTSD begins to affect his family relationships. Speaking of that, this is an issue that Eastwood has portrayed in film before in "Flags of Our Fathers". We see the risks these soldiers take when they keep the horrors they've experienced private. It is understandable that they want to spare their families the pain they feel but they need to talk to someone about it. Fortunately, Kyle is able to find a release for his anxiety by serving other veterans after his fourth tour. The end credit sequence is powerful with the use of actual footage and use of "The Funeral" by Ennio Morricone. I bought that piece of music by the way even before I saw the movie in its entirety. It reminds me of "Hymn to the Fallen" from "Saving Private Ryan". As mentioned, the whole movie has a lack of music but this adds to the realism. What is sacrificed though is rising and falling emotion. Another element that creates realism is the use of color in the cinematography. About the time I saw "Invictus", I began to notice that Eastwood-directed movies have certain trademark color tones. The color white is quite noticable as is the color brown. The other colors are toned down.

Chris Pratt was the initial choice of Bradley Cooper's to play Kyle but Warner Brothers would not make the movie unless Cooper himself played the leading role. Considering the fact that Pratt was in "Zero Dark Thirty", I think that Cooper's first choice would have worked also. Cooper portrays Chris Kyle very well as the average Joe. He does make changes to his performance towards the middle of the movie when the PTSD sets in but Cooper along with Eastwood's direction do wonders in creating realism. Steven Spielberg was supposed to direct but the budget constrains prevented him from making the kind of movie he had in mind. That is a shame. It was great to see Peter Morgan's name as a producer on "American Sniper". I will now take a moment to address the elephant in the room: the fake baby in one scene between Kyle and his wife. According to the screenwriter, two real children were supposed to be present on the day of filming but the first was sick and the second did not show up. One critic said that the fake baby cost the film the Best Picture Oscar win but I can't believe that one scene would make all the difference. I can name a lot of Best Picture-winning films with bigger elephants. In fact, the bigger the films, the bigger the elephants are made out to be. "American Sniper" was also nominated for Best Actor (Cooper), Adapted Screenplay, Film Editing and Sound Mixing. Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman won Oscars as sound editors on Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima". They won again for their work on this movie and I had predicted in advance that they would. Even though this doesn't have much to do with sound editing, my favorite sound in the movie is Kyle adjusting the scope on his rifle. It feels quite ominous.

This movie was the highest grossing film of 2014 domestically and Clint Eastwood's highest-grossing film so far. More importantly, "American Sniper" surpassed "Saving Private Ryan" as the highest-grossing war film of all time. The biggest flaws of this movie that prevented me from fully enjoying it include the swearing and the realistic portrayal of post war life. This issue plays a lot bigger part in the story for this movie than in "Flags of Our Fathers". Consequently, the film is more tragic in its tone. It is equally sad to know that during the planning stage of the film, the real Chris Kyle was murdered. While this movie will not have as big of an impact on Hollywood as "Saving Private Ryan" did, it will still have an impact (particularly with portrayals of the War on Terror).

3 Stars