8/10

The worlds of war and home life have never been as close as it has in the newest film from Director Clint Eastwood. Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) is the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history. U.S. Kyle is sent to Iraq with only one mission: to protect his brothers in arms. His pinpoint accuracy saves countless lives on the battlefield and, as stories of his courageous exploits spread, he earns the nickname “Legend.” However, his reputation is also growing behind enemy lines, putting a price on his head and making him a prime target of enemy elite. Despite the danger, as well as the mental toll on his family at home, Chris serves through four harrowing tours of duty in Iraq, becoming a shining example of the SEAL creed to “leave no man behind.” But upon returning home, Chris finds that it is the war he can’t leave behind. “American Sniper” is definitely Eastwood’s return to glory, but if there is one thing that this film will be remembered for, it’s the heart pounding intensity of Bradley Cooper’s performance of the toughest shoes he ever filled on camera. As an executive producer of the film, the dedication Cooper has to the film is present. It’s incredible to see his on screen transformation, from the southern accent, to the 40 pounds of muscle that Cooper put on to accurately represent the physically intimidating Kyle. Cooper has definitely done his homework on the subject, and it’s clear why he may be one of the biggest stars currently in pictures. He wears so many of his emotions on his face, that the audience never needs to be beaten over the head with what is going on inside. Instead, Eastwood lets his characters tell their own stories emotionally. One thing i found quite interesting about the film is the risks that Eastwood took that actually paid off. There is little to no musical score in the film, and my personal interpretation is that Eastwood thinks war is intense enough without adding a soundtrack to the violence. It’s a daring move that actually pays off, as many of the gunshots sound and feel more intense to the audience that spends over two hours with it. The second risk, is in the form of the strange editing style that Eastwood took with the movie. There are times when a battle scene is taking place, and without notice, we are following Kyle back at home with his trouble adapting to life. I can understand the kind of trouble people would have with this, but to me it felt like Eastwood was merging the two worlds going on in Kyle’s life by blurring them even closer than they seem to the audience. Time feels like it goes by too quick in the film, and that is because time is flying by for Kyle in his time away from home. During his second trip home, we come to realize that Kyle has a second child coming without any notice what so ever. Do you see what i mean by time going fast? My only lone complaint to the film is that it would’ve been nice to see more of the effects at home. Some of those times feel rushed compared to the 80% war film that this is. I get that during those four tours that he spent more time in war than at home, but i sometimes felt like the film was getting too repetitive with the cause and effect happening from Chris’s point of view. Once again, this could just be a way to metaphorically look at Chris’s time at home going too quick, but it does weigh down a little bit on the overall pacing of the film. The cinematography is breathtaking, and more colorfully of what we have come to know as a signature Eastwood style. I feel like Clint shoots a war film better than anyone going today, and that is reflective from his major set pieces, and impactiful POV camera angles where the violence hits the hardest. Eastwood could easily do a lot of short takes for his fight scenes, but he slows it down and lets every situation from every angle sink in. I appreciated this a lot, as there are a lot of characters other than Chris to keep track of. Overall, i felt the movie is clearly the early January front runner for film of the year. I would recommend it to everyone, but especially to veterans, and war film lovers alike. There have been several movies before this film to tackle psychological effects post war, but none have done it as practical to showcase the little twitches quite like this one. “American Sniper” is a film great enough to tell the story of one of the biggest weapons in American forces history. That weapon had a heart of gold, and a never quitting attitude when it came to the mission he put forth. Thank you Chris.