Matthew Chmiel

My favorite part of Rambo III is how Rambo is pretty much responsible for creating Al-Qaeda.

dugan

Iraq In Fragments had a story from the POV of a Shiite militiaman.

hanshotfirst1138

When Spielberg was attached to direct before Eastwood came on, wasn't his idea to expand the role of the Middle-Eastern sniper who became Kyle's rival and give the narrative a dual structure which followed both perspectives? Don't know how true that is, it's just what I remember hearing somewhere.

Throwing Copper

That would have been a really interesting film.

Mondo Kane

^Cool to see, but it might've been too similar to Enemy at the Gates.

Josh-da-man

Didn't Kyle enlist in the Navy well before 9/11? I think he joined up in 1998 or 1999.

Which, if true, makes the film using 9/11 questionable. Maybe it's just a convenient shortcut for story purposes; or maybe it perpetuates the narrative that was used to justify the invasion and occupation of Iraq.

Sgtsnake

I thought using 9/11 was a way to introduce him to Iraq. No 9/11 he may never see combat and have a chance at the kill rate as he did with Iraq.

creekdipper

I thought this review presents a very balanced analysis of the film (apologies if it's already been posted):

http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/movi...eDM/story.html

Highlights include pointing out the idiocy of "fans" who say they want to go kill "(expletive) rugheads" after seeing the film & "professional" critics (named & quoted) who savage the film & then admit they've only seen the trailer (as the author of the analysis above calls it, "grounds for dismissal for a responsible journalist."

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Since M. Taibbi came up on a preceding, page, just a comment. I always read (past tense) Taibbi's pieces in RS because they were comic gold for the unrestrained bias shown toward subjects. His favorites were the epitome of perfection; his dislikes were the incarnation of evil (including adding "objective" descriptions of sagging jowls, balding pates, hunched shoulders, etc. as if physical imperfections were obvious outward demonstration of moral decay). Likewise, as others have pointed out, Taibbi's main criticism of Sniper is that it didn't show the viewpoint he wanted (basically, a history of our most recent involvement in the Iraq & Afghanistan). That's just silly; as has been pointed out, he's not about to criticize Selma, which he loved (and whose director dismissed critics of her accuracy in playing fast & loose with some facts by noting that every filmmaker puts his/her own interpretive 'stamp' on a movie & wants the audience to see it through the director's lens). I can't take Taibbi seriously; when a regular in RS, he just seemed to crank out whatever propaganda Wenner (another opportunist) paid him to write...or just perversely exaggerates the views he expresses just to get a rise out of conservatives. It's what makes his stuff funny but easily dismissed.

JimRochester

While watching Band Of Brothers, I've often wondered how it would be different if taken from the German point of view. They certainly didn't make the Germans seem ineffective, but there was plenty of the anti-German "kraut" sentiment running through the vocabulary.

When Unbroken was released I know the Japanese complained about their portrayal as sadistic torturers. But many were. They felt soldiers shouldn't surrender they should suicide instead and treated prisoners with high disdain.

As I said earlier in the thread; people who are complaining about the pro-American stance, the politics, the jingoistic tone, needs to watch war movies and find me a Hollywood war movie that doesn't do that

DaveyJoe

The Thin Red Line

JimRochester

There are certainly exceptions but I had to feed the dogs. Longest Day and TORA, TORA, TORA are docudramas that encompass both stories. My point is that the tone and content of AS is no different than 80 or 90% of the war films made.

inri222

Another "balanced" article:

American Sniper: Was Chris Kyle really a hero?

http://m.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-30923038

creekdipper

If you're talking about the remake, that just seemed to be an exercise testing whether Nick Nolte could out-crazy Gary Busey.

Recently saw The Hook (1963) w/ Kirk Douglas, Nick Adams, & Robert Walker, Jr. on TCM. That certainly had an interesting slant on the effects of war & was sympathetic toward an enemy prisoner.

inri222

Gary Busey was not in Terrence Malick's The Thin Red Line, which also happens to be one of the best war films ever made.

Paul_SD

Solid Snake

That's Full Metal Jacket... for those that don't know.

Apocalypse Now seems to fit the bill. That one actually shows off all kinds of things for soldiers and war.

DaveyJoe

Platoon, Jarhead.

stvn1974

Apocalypse Now
Platoon
Full Metal Jacket
Born On the 4th Of July
The Thin Red Line

Would be my top 5 war movies and none are RA RA RA GET YOUR GUNS, GOD BLESS AMERICA, LET'S GO KILL.

Most war movies are actually just action flicks. John Wayne riding a horse up the beach kind of shit.

OldBoy

amazing fucking movie. intense throughout. powerful performances by Cooper and Miller. just a great and heartbreaking story!

inri222

Casualties of War
Johnny Got His Gun
Dr. Strangelove
MASH
Three Kings
Coming Home
A Midnight Clear

creekdipper

No, no. I wasn't very clear (which led to the misunderstanding of my jest). I wasn't trying to disparage the movie, which I really like. Or suggest that Busey was in the cast.

I was comparing Nolte's performance to some of Busey's roles (both on film & real life). Of course, Nick has had his own real-life brushes with reality, too.

I own the Malick Criterion BD & am familiar with the cast, but I'll take the blame for a poorly-written post. Now, if I had mentioned Kier Dullea or Jack Warden....

Although I find it interesting (like all Malick's movies) my opinion wouldn't place it among "best war films ever made" (especially with such a broad number of films throughout film history from early silents until today). Both versions of Thin Red Line (radially different) have weak stretches in them although both have powerful moments. I still wouldn't place Malick's movie anywhere near something as gripping as Das Boot, for instance. There are numerous war films that contain powerful messages/lasting images made in every country that has film-making. The WWII category alone continues to produce outstanding films that revisit/re-examine various angles (effect upon citizens; little-known incidents, individuals, or battles; home fronts; social struggles in military; enemy viewpoints; resistance movements, etc.). TRL is really good but there is lots of competition for the top tier.

Solid Snake

Saw this yesterday.

The action bits were very solid. Those sections presented something I didn't feel were even from Eastwood. Totally didn't seem like it was from an old man. It amazes how some older directors are able to do that. Scorsese did a whole fucking film w/ that kind of youthful force. In saying that... I think this film is very disjointed. EVERYTHING not in the US, to me, is solid. I was VERY fucking interested in Mustafa. That bit with, I'm assuming, w/ his wife and kid said a lot to me about the two men weren't that different in a way. I would have liked to have seen a film w/ Kyle and Mustafa playing their own halves in one film. I now want to learn about that guy cuz he was fucking cool. My one issue w/ the action is... the crappy digital squibs. UGH.

Most of the US bits seemed rather boring at times in the way he constructed them. I'm not saying they needed to be at the same veracity the Iraq bits were but something about them where off to me. Just something about....the scripting or....pacing in them felt so off. Though when it was focusing on Kyle's mentality...it did it well. Sienna Miller was bad in this. Her character or she herself just...felt mediocre.

It seemed like when it wasn't Kyle by himself for the most part in the US...it just felt...boring. I dunno. Something just felt off about the character w/ other people.

Cooper was pretty good in this. I don't feel like it was amazing or great maybe cuz the character wasn't great out of his work from what they showed as a personality. His mentality though was interesting though.

The ending could have been better if he didn't leave it on Miller. That just came off weak. Would have been better if he sustained on the shot previously till the door closed.

And holy shit... did that doll look horrible. They could have gotten a better one.

For those that have read the book and have got a handle of the facts that Kyle did.... how accurate is this thing?

I ask that cuz some shit seemed too sensational to have happened in Iraq. Specifically Kyle's decisions to leave his position to go help out those guys on the ground go through the buildings and some other stuff. Granted... I don't know how flexible the military is or how the whats are allowed in some things.

I will get the BD though.

Paul_SD

more here

Solid Snake

WTF?!

Ughhhhhhh. I'm sure people will believe the film though. *sigh* Americans. Or people... in general. Bunch of sheep headed twats.

In the other thread about the film... I was a goddamn turd in the pack of white snow that was old white people and some 35-45 gringos. I do wonder on the racial demographics for this film. But...it's a film that gets 'Murica crowd more I bet. While I didn't think it really set him up as a hero when we got into his mentality. I need to read what others have said about it. It goddamn near tears him down in some parts.

Coral

You actually thought the whole Mustafa thing was true?

Going into this, I knew nothing about the real story except that he was a sniper and was murdered back home.
As soon as they introduced Mustafa it was obvious that I had to endure another Hollywood cheese-fest where additional drama was created to entertain Joe Sixpack. This was one of the worst types of concoctions too... it was like a comic book movie or typical action film where the main "good guy" goes up against the main "bad guy" at the end of the movie. Hoorah, the good guys win!

I found only parts of the film interesting. What really didn't work (outside of the bullshit Hollywood manipulation of real life events) were the scenes back home and how it was injected into the film. Those scenes were so small and basically went right to the point every single time and it got repetitive. He comes home, we immediately see him not being present mentally and is suffering from PTSD.... and then he's quickly back to Iraq... lather, rinse, repeat.