Nothing special, bolstered by its performances if anything.

Rating: 6/10 (4 February 2015)

American Sniper is now one of the most controversial movies of the year but still one of the most successful. It's difficult to have a passionate opinion on either side now that it's run its course and it was typically clouded by conscious or unconscious intentions. But the film is not plagued by its politics as some feel it is. The shades of grey may not be vivid but it is also not black and white. Chris Kyle may be presented as a hero in many ways in the film, but it is not clear cut, and he is wrestling with some demons, not that showing Kyle recoil at killing people is redemption enough. Granted, the film does have some nauseating jingoistic moments - you can't end the conversation of an entire war based on the notion of protecting buddies. But nevertheless, it's an average film. The typical war film you get these days don't try any more or less harder than Sniper does. It is well done in the technical department with the sound design and editing salvaging what it can when the writing gets messy. The real highlights of the film are Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller. The latter is great if underused but it's mostly refreshing to see Cooper not try to show off how much charisma he has and actually be transformative and nuanced in a way. Still, nothing special overall, only worthy of conversation because of Oscar nominations and box office.
6/10