I thought this was superb. It's easily Eastwood's best film since Million Dollar Baby, and it is actually very well directed and tense throughout. Bradley Cooper is the one who holds everything together, though. For me, it was a fabulous, nuanced performance. Sienna Miller is also surprisingly strong in her role. Was it perfect? No. It did feel like it could have explored some of the themes it brings out better (despite Cooper acting the hell out of it, the PTSD angle seems sort of perfunctory). But I found it moving and blood pumping. A-

It was fine, highlighted more by Cooper's performance, but certainly not as good as The Hurt Locker.

Does the movie show his murder or is it one of those off screen cut to a phone call of the wife receiving the news kind of things?

It's rather abrupt, Kyle leaves his home and text pops up saying he was killed that day, followed by credits with actual footage of the day of his funeral.

AMERICAN SNIPER

I missed a screening of this but caught it Saturday and it was pretty packed and that was for the 12:00 show. I enjoyed this film. I thought it was very powerful and emotional at moments. It had very well shot action sequences. I liked Bradley Cooper's performance and Sienna Miller. I enjoyed the opening shot and I always get a bit emotional seeing 9/11 imagery so when that appeared I was already holding back a bit. I don't know how many folks knew that he died beforehand but knowing that made those early scenes of his life before the tours a bit more heart tugging. I did read that the whole Butcher stuff was made up apparently. That's what I read and if that's true then that's a bit of a letdown since we're dealing with a real person here. Finally, I wasn't sure how they were going to handle the death but I thought it was well done. I think filming some sort of sequence presenting his death may have been over the top for folks who were unaware. I liked the presentation of his funeral procession at the end. It was quite a interesting post end to a film as people left. It was so quiet.

Grade - A

That entire credits sequence with the funeral footage was really effective. It took me by surprise at the end, because I wasn't expecting them to show that, but absolutely no one got up and the whole theater was dead quiet. It was eerie as hell, and it seemed like when it was finally over people couldn't decide if to clap or not. This was definitely a movie going experience I won't forget anytime soon.

Decided to see it on the big screen. Cooper is acting the hell out of not-so-great material. Very little of the home stuff works (can you name a character trait for Sienna Miller other than 'worried wife?'), and that's what this whole endeavor depends on.

I can't help but think there's a much, much better movie in here; probably one that takes place largely after Chris is home dealing with his PTSD.

who plays Jesse Ventura?

Was my showing the only showing with a decent amount of unintentional laughter? The audience absolutely died at several moments.

"We going back?"
~nervous pause~
"We goin back out"
"Hell yeah'
"FUCK YES"



Same here. TBH I think the final few minutes were by far the most powerful of the movie, with the real footage and what not.



Generally agree. Cooper does well but it's hardly Oscar worthy as the role isn't written to be overly challenging. That said, Miller's character is so one dimensional that I just don't understand the awards praise even though she acts it well. There's just nothing to do beyond "I'm so worried!". His kids grow up real fast & every scene post Wedding with Taya feels like the exact same scene playing over & over, the point where at the BBQ, when she is speaking with him normally, it feels forced.

Taking the general themes and points the film tries to make, with the talent involved....it certainly feels like there is a more powerful movie in there, somewhere.

For example, the scene in the Jiffylube where the Soldier thanks Kyle's son for "lending him to us" should have been moving, but instead was just kind of awkward. Similarly, the final scene of him at home with his wife, before he dies...it's like, oh, so he is back to normal now?

I feel like the story they had is so powerful in it's own right that it gives a very high floor, but I don't think this project really came close to hitting it's potential. Speilberg would have done a much better job with this.

The Mustafa thing is mostly fabricated which is disappointing but I understand why did it. They're just trying to have some sort of narrative.

An excellent, albeit tedious, telling of the life of Chris Kyle, American Sniper. For the first hour, the film is terrific, showing us how Kyle became the most deadly sniper in US military history. And the drama centered around his return home is nicely captured, though I found myself drawing parallels to another contemporary war flick, The Hurt Locker. You can take the soldier out of the war, but you can't take the war out of the soldier.

But I can ignore that. My real problem are the war scenes in the film's second half. There doesn't feel like any emotional resonance after a while. The deaths stop being shocking and just become monotonous. Kyle stopping short of killing a child is just a retread of another child shooting scene in the movie, though this time the kid spares himself.

It's still a solid effort from Clint Eastwood, a director immersed in a purgatory of sorts, being unbelievably prolific in his 80s, but churning out several clunkers in recent years. He finally fires out a big hit, commercially at the very least, and can stand tall as the only living director releasing a big budget war film at 84. Others will likely try to be so busy at 84 (Scorsese and Spielberg, should they still be living) but I can't help but think he's going to be the only one with a record-shattering release at his advanced age.

Notable praise should be heaped upon Bradley Cooper, an actor I had written off after Alias, yet has become a deserving three-time Oscar nominee. He unfortunately has such a notable look that you can't often forget it's Bradley Cooper, but his acting makes up for it, as he disappears into the role effectively. Sienna Miller is strong as well in a role that feels much more one-dimensional than she or possibly the real person deserves.

In a true side-by-side to The Hurt Locker, I was much more captivated by the 2010 Best Picture, but Sniper is still great.

B+

It's definitely watchable and never is really slow but the film doesn't do a good job of making Kyle not just seem full of himself and completely arrogant.

The film needed more smokeshow Sienna and fake babies.

American Sniper

It uses every propagandist tool in its armoury and it has some of the most noticeable Expendables-level CGI blood (and baby hands) in a motion picture this year, but my God, I fucking loved this film (as I thought I might do when I saw the teaser last year). Cooper pulls off that simple Texan patriot superbly well. It's becoming a January tradition now that every year Bradley Cooper makes me like him even more. God damn that man. Sienna Miller has really grown as an actress, too. It basically boils down to an awesome one-on-one sniper duel (Enemy at the Gates style), but the domestic scenes are short, sweat and touching too. This film is the perfect recruitment video for the US Army. Fuck yeah! Go USA! I feel like filling some Iraqi full of shells after watching American Sniper. Essentially it's about good vs. evil, but ultimately no good comes from war; a well-told moral in film, but one that doesn't lose its poignancy here. Shit, I wasn't aware that he died either. What a terrible way to die when you've been through four tours of Iraq. Still though, 160 confirmed kills, oorah!!!

This might be Clint's best-directed film ever. And to think, I thought he was passed it. Gone is his usual lethargy and in its place is a well-told, tightly-executed, politically-absent forced portrait of a "hero". The negatives are present, but nobody cares because the film is just top-drawer in its awesomeness. I didn't want it to end. It's also better than The Hurt Locker.

A/A-

Agree with every word of that review Algren. I just loved everything about this. Never a dull moment and the film keeps up the momentum and tension thought its two hour running time even with the domestic scenes which perfectly contrast yet complement the war scenes. Cooper is brilliant and perhaps there is not a more likeable A lister working today. Eastwood in his 80s delivers his best film in years and directs a film that largely avoids the politics and rather focuses on a soldier doing what he believes is right as well as the toll war takes on the lives of all involved. While some of the kills elicit a "fuck yeah" cheer - ultimately we are left with a nobody wins message which is poignant - especially in this current situation.

And yeah it's better than Hurt Locker.

It certainly is something special how Clint has managed to leave his best work until last (or nearly last...he can't last much longer can he?).

I don't think he has his next project setup so if he did retire now he'd certainly go out on top.

It wouldn't be a bad choice. Otherwise he runs the risk of producing a slew of crap that may tarnish his reputation.

I liked the movie, but this times a thousand. The movie is completely unbalanced when it comes to his war life and his at home life. And towards the end, I just wanted more of the home stuff, especially when he finally stays home. But that's just given about ten minutes, his wife looks worried at the sight of the guy who'll eventually kill him, and then nothing...the movie is over.

The movie could've used another 20-30 minutes of his PTSD sprinkled throughout the film and at the end.

It's a good film, but it should've been so much better. And dare I say Jersey Boys is even better?

I'm so glad he didn't beat that dog.

I only saw this now. Great film. Clint, Bradley and Sienna all deliver. The war scenes are very intense, and give you a real sense of the war. The sniper duel felt a bit fabricated, but it made for a great story arc. Bradley Cooper really excelled as Chris Kyle, nailing the cold-blooded soldier as well as the man suffering from post-trauma stress. Before the movie I was having doubts about how good Sienna Miller would be here, as I don't remember seeing her in anything really good before, but wow, she plays the wife so well too. The whole movie, from the first scene, to the then following origin story Chris Kyle, is masterfully directed by Eastwood. He made a great string of movies already, and has just added to this tally with American Sniper. I can't think of many who've been able to make the A-list in acting and directing in the way he has done.

There's been two or three instances where I've roll-eyed a bit during the movie, but those are all made up for the class the film brings to the table as a war drama. Cooper is definitely the star of the movie, I couldn't see anyone else play this role that well. I really liked how we got to see both the home life, and the war events Chris Kyle went through. Being in a war is definitely no joke. The ending is especially chilling.

A-

I'm not really that into war films. But this one made so much money I had to check it out to see what the hype was about. I also really liked Bradley Cooper in silver linings playbook and American hustle and was interested in his work here. This was definitely more interesting than most war pictures, as it gave back story on Chris Kyle as well as focusing on what happened after he came back from the war. I was also surprised that that Chris Kyle died at the end of the movie because of all the hype about his trial at the beginning of the year. I thought he had just died, but that just goes to show what I know. Sienna Miller is also really hot. This was better than boyhood and the grand Budapest hotel but I enjoyed the imitation game slightly more.

B+

Nice review zwackerm.
My order; Boyhood, American Sniper, Grand Budapest, Imitation Game.

Thanks, I still have to see Birdman, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash, and Selma.

Make Whiplash your #1 priority! Look forward to your review on that.

But Whiplash didn't "make so much money", so perhaps he will not care for it. Probably not up his alley anyway.