Clint Eastwood's "Transformers"

Rating: 7/10 (22 January 2015)

"American Sniper" is a tale of vengeance.
Sparking lots of controversy over the morals of the film, there really wasn't a lot of content to criticize. Honestly, it is an enjoyable action film. It's a shoot-em-up hate-the-bad guys flick the same we've seen over and over, even from Clint Eastwood. The setting, of course, is different, and the story is supposedly true. The story is based on true events, and that is unfortunate. But this is a very intimate look into the perspective of one man.
This needs to be understood.
The performance of Bradley Cooper is really great, and he got into shape to look like Chris Kyle for the role. This is to honor one man and what he did for our troops in battle, even if the film makes him out to be almost a superhero stronger than any other soldier.
To dissect the morals of the film, we can look specifically at one scene. The "sheep, sheepdog, and wolves" speech that the father of our hero (the Chris Kyle character) gives to his sons after one defends the other in a typical fight at school. The father says that his family is to be full of sheepdogs, leaders who take care of the sheep and protect them from the wolves. He then threatens a beating with a belt if either of them become wolves. Part of me was kinda wishing Jules Winnfield would bust in with a silver pistol and give his famous speech from "Pulp Fiction" about the path of the righteous man, which is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyrannies of evil men. But "American Sniper" is just not that kind of a film. It's a guy in a white hat vs. a guy in a black one. It's American vs. Foreign. It's not one to be talked about and philosophized over. Kids will not look at Kyle and want to be him like he is their hero. This early scene merely establishes the need to be a protector. So Chris Kyle becomes, literally, a Punisher, as if he is the character from the comic book (excuse me, "graphic novel"). The terrorists (from 9/11) are established as wolves, creatures that feed upon sheep without mercy. The sheep are the American people. And the sheepdogs are our troops. These analogies were not in the book written by Kyle (with other writers).
The following features minor spoilers from the film (Although you may already know the true story):
What we don't see in the movie...are the politics. But here's what is shameful...this could have been a love letter to our troops. This could have been a "thank you." As the end credits roll, there is no music, as if to honor our fallen hero (Chris Kyle was murdered by an unfortunate soul suffering from post-traumatic stress because of the war) with silence.
I tried to imagine what women in the audience would be thinking during the scenes where Chris Kyle's wife begs him to stay home. He is suffering from the stress caused by war. At the sound of a lawn mower, he is on high alert. At the sight of a child playing with an aggressive dog, he is prepared to kill the dog (no harm comes to the dog because his wife interferes).
There is hardly any attention paid to PTSD (post-trauma-stress-disorder) which is caused by exposure to war (among other things, I'm sure). Chris Kyle doesn't suffer from it. The man who killed him doesn't appear in the movie (which I'm thankful for, as he deserves no recognition). But the questions about how we're taking care of our troops remain.
And as much as Clint Eastwood has been a great filmmaker, he's lost his touch long ago. ("Mystic River" was masterful, and obviously "Unforgiven" was a masterpiece, but at least with that film, the vengeful hero was known as a really bad guy who was meant for hell). This film's best scene was the climactic finale firefight in which we are introduced to the bad guy we've spent the film hunting before the good guys know he is there. This adds suspense as Hitchcock might have added suspense. However, Clint Eastwood is no Hitchcock. He is especially no Sergio Leone. Clint Eastwood has just made his "Transformers."
Stop reading now to avoid political comments:
His now the face of the GOP: An old, angry, rich white man who, at one point, argued with his imaginary version of Obama in the form of an empty chair (also a true story). He supports the Republicans (the Grand Ol' Party, or, GOP). He is seen as the face and voice of Republicans.
I'll respect Clint Eastwood as an artist (art can transcend viewpoints). He is in plenty of my favorite films, and I'll watch them over and over. He's spoken out in favor of gay rights on the political spectrum. But let me leave you with a list of things the GOP does NOT support:
H.R. 466 – Wounded Veteran Job Security Act became H. R. 2875.
H.R. 1168 -- Veterans Retraining Act
H.R. 1171 – Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program Reauthorization
H.R. 1172 -- Requiring List on VA Website of Organizations Providing Scholarships for Veterans
H.R. 1293 -- Disabled Veterans Home Improvement and Structural Alteration Grant Increase Act of 2009
H.R. 1803 -- Veterans Business Center Act
H.R. 2352 – Job Creation Through Entrepreneurship Act