Scratching the surface

Rating: 6/10 (18 June 2015)

It's always tricky to review a biographical war drama centered around a war hero, especially when that specific hero emerged as such in the middle of a modern-era conflict that still divides people's opinions. On one side, there will be the usual anti-military guys yelling that it's U.S. army propaganda on the first occasion, and on the other side, there will be the pro war people who'd be ready to shoot you in the face if you ever were to hint that there possibly is a conspiracy behind 9/11. Both groups unfortunately can't seem to have a nuanced opinion on such a sensitive subject, even if their lives were to depend on it.
First off, I'm not American, and I always try to play the devil's advocate when it comes to these sensitive subjects because, in my humble opinion, the truth usually lies right in the middle of opposed polarized opinions. Second, I want to review this as a film. I'm not here to judge the morality behind Kyle's actions, or behind the conflicts he was a part of.
American Sniper begins with a montage of the early adulthood of Chris Kyle. The film does not drag with the introduction to its protagonist, and quite frankly, it could have gone a little longer. Mr. Kyle enrolls in the army, we see a few boot camp sequences, outlining his strong character, mixed in with glimpses of Kyle's urban life, notably when he meets the woman that soon enough becomes his wife. The film pretty much keeps rolling with this exact same formula until its ending, alternating between polished combat sequences from Kyle's tours to Iraq and his family life, which ends up being greatly affected, as if Mr. Kyle's mind never leaves Iraq, even when his feet are planted on U.S. soil.
Clint Eastwood's directing is probably the film's strongest asset. The war sequences are very well shot, and the camera's calmness during Kyle's homecomings progressively fades away to match the camera's nervousness that is initially exclusive to the war sequences as Kyle's mind becomes increasingly affected by his trips to Iraq.
On the downside, American Sniper's duality becomes redundant after a while, especially when it comes to Kyle's family time, which has a considerable clichéd feel to it, and is simply not very heart warming. On one hand, you got Chris Kyle the soldier, the man that's barely shook up after putting a hole through a child's body, and, on the other hand, you feel like Eastwood is trying to portray a tough-minded, sympathetic character whose allegiance to his duty is untouchable but who also happens to be a caring husband and father, as any typical model American citizen would (or should) be. Unfortunately, with the lack of a proper introduction to the character, a lack of key moments that truly define the character, and the shallowness of the paradox between Kyle the soldier and Kyle the family man, the viewer is left with very little food for thought.
Bradley Cooper's performance is nonetheless interesting, as he does manage to make the most out of a character that's limited by average screen writing.
And here lies the real problem of American Sniper : lack of depth, both in its depiction of the character and its portrayal of a problem that strikes several war veterans : post-traumatic stress disorder. This probably should have been the key theme to exploit, and while this is what it becomes towards the end, it feels like American Sniper barely scratches the surface. This is definitely unfortunate. Personally, I thought this was a missed opportunity to elaborate on a problem that is key in this specific story.
If you think post-traumatic stress is an interesting subject, I would highly recommend you watch Harsh Times, a David Ayer film which spends nothing more than the opening credits sequence to show war images, and then spends its whole runtime portraying a character struck with post-traumatic stress disorder, his personality, his actions, his ambitions and how his whole life and the lives of his surroundings are affected. For amazing modern war sequences, Black Hawk Down's and Lone Survivor's, in my opinion, surpass than the ones offered in Clint Eastwood's film.
That being said, American Sniper is still a competent feature, and juxtaposing combat sequences with family life to bring up the post-traumatic stress theme was an excellent idea. However, the way everything is delivered prevents it from becoming a truly engaging film both emotionally and cinematically.