At Close Range

Rating: 8/10 (20 January 2015)

This film is recommended.
War is hell. We know that to be a fact. But it's the hell that lingers within the damaged heart and mind of a soldier that is on full display in Clint Eastwood's gripping American Sniper, a biography about Navy SEAL Chris Kyle and his tours of duty in Iraq.
￼An assertive screenplay by Jason Hall shows Kyle's life, from impressionable child to family man culminating to trained assassin. Bradley Cooper is fine as the sharpshooting ace and the actor adds more award-winning work to his impressive resume. His portrayal of a man consumed with war is very nuanced and Cooper is a commanding presence on screen. Sienna Miller co-stars as Kyle's devoted wife, Taya, and the actress brings the emotional bond needed to make Kyle appear more human, unlike the laughable plastic dolls substituting for their real life infants. (Come on, the budget couldn't afford real kids! Really?)
￼Tersely directed by Clint Eastwood, the film is an old-fashion war movie with a modern day sensibility. Eastwood has more than acquitted himself with this fine character study, having left the foolishness of his disappointing Jersey Boys behind. Finally in his comfort zone once again (the war zone), he ratchets up the suspense and trauma that a soldier can experience before and after combat. The director's use of violence is effectively done.
However, Eastwood doesn't always succeed in the quieter moments stateside, where he allows the film to become pompous with unnecessary preachy messages about duty, honor, and country, all done very heavy-handedly. (A scene between Kyle and a wounded vet at the doctor's office is poorly staged and totally unbelievable.) But there are many other memorable scenes, especially toward the end of the film in its powerful final battle sequence with its raging sandstorm between the soldiers and the non-stop gunfire and a family cookout that becomes a warning signal about Kyle's inner demons).
Initially, the use of flashbacks add some background about the man, but Eastwood seems more interested in creating the myth. American Sniper never congeals into one solid film. Transitions from the war scenes abruptly change into family sequences that are less satisfying. The film's structure is episodic and choppy. The time frames are jarring and incomplete, particularly Kyle's winning bout with PTSD that seems more like a footnote.
There has been some debate about the hero worship that Eastwood ascribed to this man and his actions, under the guise of patriotism and courage. I will not debate that issue, nor the factual free-wheeling that is customary with the genre of docudramas, but I can criticize the film for its underplaying of the impact of PTSD upon our troops, which is the most interesting part of the film, and the overplaying of the machismo aspects of soldiering that resembled Eastwood's earlier film, Heartbreak Ridge, and its training scenes. Also, the intense competition between Kyle and his adversary sniper, Mustafa, seriously becomes a crucial deterrent to the film's credibility and diverts this strong film into pure melodramatic mode.
￼Kudos to the superb editing by Joel Cox and Gary Roach, the excellent sound mixing of war noise and sudden silence by John T. Reitz, Gregg Rudloff, and Walt Martin, plus the gritty photography by Tom Stern, all contributing to a powerful statement about the casualties of war. This is solid filmmaking even if the film's parts are more fascinating than its whole. American Sniper may carry its patriotism on its sleeve, but it does honor the man, and is a loving tribute to soldiers everywhere. GRADE: B
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