Absolutely Amazing!

Rating: 3/10 (22 March 2006)

Folks - this movie is phenomenal. It does things that shouldn't, really, be possible - and does them well.
First is the intro CGI sequence - in which we see the life cycle of a cartridge, from manufacture to the the bullet ending up in the skull of an African child. It set the tone for the movie, and gave me that warm glow - knowing that the bullet ended up ending the life of an innocent, as most bullets are destined to.
Throughout the movie, it's taken as a given - people who sell guns are EVIL - though it never really explains why. After all, no explanation should be necessary. Guns are evil, and anyone who has anything to do with them must, by definition, be evil as well - even if they're played by Nicholas Cage with his usual skill and style.
The part when the younger brother (Played by Jared Leto) redeems his wasted life by destroying half of a shipment of guns in a suicidal/homicidal rush was tremendous, because he was sacrificing himself to save a refugee camp. That it didn't work was irrelevant, really. That he'd seen their senseless slaughter before the guns were in use had nothing to do with it - if the guns hadn't been available, they'd have been safe - never mind the part where he saw an innocent child slaughtered with machetes - the evil oppressors would have had to go home unfulfilled without that gun shipment.
The part where Baptiste, the Evil African Dictator, justifies election fraud by pointing to the Bush/Gore debacle is wonderful - the scriptwriters claim moral victory there without ever lowering themselves to referencing an actual fact - because we all know that how you *feel* about an event is much more important than the facts about that event.
Great movie, if you're convinced that guns are evil, and the people who sell them are evil, and want some very emotional scenes to bulwark those opinions. Less good if you're just looking for an interesting story - because, as story, this one falls a tad flat.
A somewhat pedestrian story would be forgivable, of course - the acting is solid throughout, and there are some spectacular performances - Eamonn Walker does a stellar job representing Baptiste, the Evil Dictator and steadfast customer. But, if you're not tremendously behind this message, the movie may leave you cold - because the message is what it's all about.
As propaganda, it's excellent. As entertainment, it really helps to already believe the propaganda.