Ive remained pretty silent on American Sniper (mostly because I didnt see the film until tonight). Im a little troubled by the fact that some audiences have turned it into a political phenomenon because, well, thats not the point of the film, and I think if you truly appreciate it you wouldnt turn it into what its not. At no point in the film does it acknowledge any specific political party, mention any specific president, or even make clear its stance on the war, because thats not the point. Apart from it being a good film, it troubles me to think that maybe more reasons its become such a phenomenon is because some see it as a tool to justify their political stance, as if liking/not liking a movie determines your patriotism. With that said, the film can be approached as just that: a film, one that can be praised and criticized just like any other film, the fact that its based on a tragic true story notwithstanding. Much of the controversy/praise (you can obviously see a divide here) stems from opinions on the man himself, Chris Kyle. I think its pretty ludicrous to say that perhaps the man was a blood-thirsty monster. The film depicts him torn between family and country, and the things hes done obviously have an effect on him. Its themes weve seen before in movies like The Hurt Locker. People get so swept up in the hero/not-hero debate, but from the films standpoint, he is an imperfect hero. Thats what makes the film good; its drama comes more from his battle with himself than those in the line of duty. The film isnt perfect, either, but Cooper does give a fantastic performance, and I think his nomination stems more from the fact that the Academy loves him (its his third acting nom in three years) than any racial reasons (i.e. Selma). Speaking of which, its fascinating to me to notice the parallel between the two films: both are sparking controversy, both ignite heated debate, and yet one is doing incredibly well at the box office while the other seems to be missing out on quite a lot more than just breaking records. Both men depicted in both films (Kyle and MLK) fought for freedom. One fought for the countrys, the other fought for racial equality, but I think the success of American Sniper over Selma has a lot to do with Americas fascination with war and military and the insistence that those are the essential qualities of the Red, White and Blue; we like watching heroes fight for freedom as long as its against our enemies overseas and not ourselves. With all of this said, Im glad a film on the Oscar hunt has sparked so many people to get out and go to the movies. Heres some other 2014 films I highly recommend if youd like to expand your film horizons: Gone Girl, Selma, Birdman, Boyhood, Snowpiercer, Nightcrawler, Interstellar, and thats just a few. Thanks for reading.
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 00:45:32 +0000
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