An American Hit

In “American Sniper,” director Clint Eastwood invites you into the desert of Iraq in order to portray an in-your-face, real-life war drama of deadly U.S. sniper Chris Kyle. Eastwood laid out what style of movie he intended to make with the first scene — nothing held back. And everything in Kyle’s brutal life is presented in a manner that’s gripping and morally complex.

Eastwood clearly has sympathy for Kyle, and justifiably portrays him as a true American hero. Yet, the term “hero” in war is something that fluctuates when faced with a new enemy — which could be anyone from Iraqi mercenaries to women and children with Russian grenades. Essentially, Eastwood is exploring the nuances of the concepts of good and evil within a traditional hero.

It’s a movie that is so entirely about a man’s journey through four tours of Hell that it would be difficult for it to resonate if it didn’t have one of the most impressive performances of a man in war in cinematic history. Bradley Cooper, playing Kyle, gives his best ever performance — one that is so inexplicably easy to believe. There is no doubt that Cooper is Chris Kyle, which is so rare in a war movie.

I expected the movie would glorify Kyle for killing hundreds of “savages” in Iraq. And, admittedly, Eastwood leaves no doubt in the viewers mind that these Iraqis are savages to the highest degree. At the same time, Kyle is nearly void of glorification.

The movie succeeds as portraying him as not necessarily a traditional hero, but a real-life portrayal of a human transformed into a military killing machine. This is made clear as he is regarded by his fellow soldiers as “The Legend,” being reminded again and again of his current kill count. Yet Kyle always replies with something along the lines of, “I am quite aware, let’s move on to a new topic of conversation.” He represses any and all feelings as he pulls the trigger on countless humans. He views killing as one thing — a necessary responsibility he’s taken on so that the lives of countless Americans may be spared.

The scene that most vividly illustrates this point is one that is undoubtedly the most captivating and heart-wrenching of the movie’s entirety. A young child of possibly seven or eight is contemplating picking up an RPG to shoot an American tank after Kyle shot down the man holding it. Kyle then quietly pleads with the young child to not pick up the weapon. If the child had, Kyle undoubtedly would have killed him, as it is his job as a soldier and there would be no other choice. Not until the child has dropped the weapon does Kyle break down, grateful that he won’t have to justifiably murder another child. Scenes like this are ones that bring “American Sniper” so close to home.

Another major theme of the movie presents itself when Kyle feels the inexplicable urge to return, even though Kyle is mentally self destructing by going back to the horrors of Iraq again and again. This yearning to return to Hell in the Iraqi desert seemingly rips apart his young family. His wife, Taya, is played by Sienna Miller who seldom appears in the movie. Yet her performance is one that is so utterly believable and leaves the viewer pleading for Kyle to break from his mechanic existence and just stay home for the happiness of his family.

His home life presents a problem in that the viewer wishes Kyle would stay home in order to spare his family the torture going on another tour. Yet this would mean he’d be giving up his duty to himself in killing Iraqi soldiers in order to save American lives. Through this incredible juxtaposition, Eastwood further develops the greyness that is inherent to modern military heros.

“American Sniper” presents the modern struggle of a true American hero, and lays it out as impartially as possible on a topic that is inherently wildly controversial. I believe it is undoubtedly one of the best war movies I have seen, up with greats like “Saving Private Ryan” and “Apocalypse Now.” After leaving the theatre, I was left with a completely different outlook on war. And my opinions of the War on Terror changed drastically. I am left with nothing other to say than that “American Sniper” is one hell of a movie and one that will stick with me for a long time.