Lord of War (LOW)...Passes the Pee Test

Rating: 9/10 (22 September 2005)

The Spent Shell:
A compelling and thought provoking film, surprisingly different from what one might expect by its name, or from Nicholas Cage. LOW is Cage's best acting in years, a role well suited to him, with a superb supporting cast. More importantly, beyond fine acting, is a movie with a solid core: a strong script, commanding cinematography, and a great story of moral and social significance.
Not reading other reviews or even a storyline, I took a chance on LOW, expecting an action thriller. I was wrong. LOW is based on real life events, and is better painted a docu-drama that contains action and suspense. But its heart is the story, and this is never overshadowed by Hollywood antics.
While it may not sound like your beyond the pale, morally objectionable subject, this eye-opening exposé of the illicit gun running trade makes a personal connection at every level of human life, including yours in the theater seat. Not a moment passes where some deeper conflict is not underway, from personal moral choices to big socio-political issues concerning the greater good of humanity. That's a pretty fat range which could be easily mishandled, but is carried off masterfully in LOW.
After watching LOW I read some IMDb reviews that said, "preachy" and "didn't need to be spelled-out." I simply disagree. For me these things were delivered comfortably within the context of the movie, mostly as questions juxtaposed by opposing points of view. For me this was helpful, and nothing felt shoveled down my throat.
Woven throughout was the question, "does a gun runner have any moral obligation or connection to how the guns are ultimately used." Asked many times, and answered with various layers of rational, it is best handled in a scene between Cage's character "Uri Orlov", and his wife, "Ava Fontaine" played provocatively by Bridget Moynahan, who says, "Because it's wrong."
If anything, I would have liked to see stronger development between Uri and Ava. Not because Moynahan is a classic over-30 beauty, but because the relationship was interesting and had chemistry, and made for an engaging sub-plot. Of course the movie would have been longer. Okay by me.
Note: "A Bullet's Life", is the opening introduction to LOW, depicting journey of a bullet from gun powder to its deadly result, and this small gem of a moment could easily stands on its own as a great movie short albeit short even for a short.
In the end LOW definitely passed the Pee test, and is well worth seeing in the theater, or for sure with your undivided attention when it comes out on DVD. And you are asking, "what is that Pee test." It's the test for a movie based on a medium Diet-Coke. How long you are willing to hold out, or better said, in?