Brilliant film

Rating: 8/10 (21 January 2017)

I admit that I was skeptical at the prospect of Jonah Hill making a serious film, but boy was I in for a surprise.
The trailer made this film look like a weird drama comedy, something like Knocked Up with an inverted comedy to drama ratio (Knocked Up is maybe 80% comedy, 20% drama), playing up the funny/wacky Jonah Hill parts. The love/relationship aspect of David Packouz could've gone the wrong way and could've gone on for too long, but I think they got everything right.
Without spoiling anything (I'm saying what the trailer shows)
The business part was fun and intriguing. Smart use of montages to cut time and tell the story quickly, something similar to Breaking Bad's cooking/growing business montages.
Their adventures were just the right amount. Enough fun/action/outdoors to not make this a claustrophobic office film where deals are done on phones/faxes/internet.
The personal story between the two was good. The family drama, although not my favorite part, made the stakes higher and made everything personal.
Shady characters, shady wars, grey market, dirty business and you've got yourself a great picture.
There's enough comedy to cut through the drama and not make this a heavy piece.
Some may fault it for not saying anything about the war, but it didn't need to. Not everything needs to be an anti-war piece, just as not every film needs to be some chest- thumping flag-'n-anthem patriotic tear-jerking ode. I like that it did neither - this is not some "USA USA" film nor some lecturing film that tells us war is bad, or that the Iraq was is bad, something almost everyone agrees with ALREADY (and the rest won't change their minds because of a Jonah Hill film, so why should we all suffer?).
This film reminds me of Wolf of Wall Street more than anything, but it has shades of Casino, American Gangster, Catch Me If You Can and American Hustle.
I would rate it higher than Wolf of Wall Street, which is too choreographed and theatrical for my taste. This film doesn't overdo this "look how rich we've become" because it didn't need to.
The story is front and center. There is no time wasted on lavish parties, fireworks, champagne, women in bikinis, etc. It is not a "homes of the rich" and arms-dealer mashup. It's just the story of the arms dealers.
One of the best films of the year.