American Nightmare

Rating: 8/10 (15 May 2020)

I'm a big fan of Nick Cage and I admit he was the main reason for me to watch this as true stories of these type are not my cup of tea in movies. Having said that, LORD OF WAR is a fascinating take on the American Dream that may (at best) make some people that actively try to make big money at any cost to the planet or their fellow human beings think twice. At worst, shortsighted people will no doubt idolise the character of Yuri Orlov, a poor immigrant hitting big bucks when he starts trading guns, mainly in fascist, poor and war stricken countries, at the expense of the local populations.
The obvious effects of such a practice are well documented in the film that has great pace and high interest throughout, but for me the most important lesson is that the way the Western civilization views success is dead wrong. The constant hunt for the big life that the American dream dictates will always and surely lead to disaster for everyone concerned. And if the Yuri Orlovs (or Pablo Escobars or any money hungry entrepreneurs that profit from destroying the environment) of this world may very well go to hell for all I care, the problem is that during their trip there they take with them huge populations, countries and even the whole planet if that meant a few more dollars for them. And this tendency has more than doubled in our days of global warming, pandemias and other man- made disasters due to the constant hunt for the elusive "big life"