War isn’t a small burden on one’s mental state. I don’t think even the hardest, most diligent soldier will dispute that. Killing another human being, no matter how just the cause, is consistently rated by psychiatrists as one of the most traumatizing events you can experience. Now look at Chris Kyle, the deadliest man in U.S Marine history credited with over 160 kills. One hundred sixty times he looked down his scope, held his breath, pulled the trigger, and ended a life. One hundred sixty different people, who will never again play with their kids, eat their favorite dinner, or watch their most cherished movie one more time. Many of these victims are grown men. Others are women, some of them children, all cut down by Kyle’s bullets. But it’s not this that haunts him. It’s all the times his bullet missed, allowing another of his friends, his brothers, his fellow Marines, to be killed.

 

American Sniper is a truly great movie, not just because of the light its shines on the still controversial war in Iraq but by the way it shows one soldiers journey into hell and back again. The sights Kyle sees over his four tours are terrible, but despite a loving wife, two beautiful children, and the safety of home he keeps going back. Every bullet his rifle fires, whether it takes down a man, woman, or child, is another American who is going home safely, but the consequences of a job paid in blood money, even when it saves lives, is no easy burden for him or his family.

 

Wisely, director Clint Eastwood doesn’t shy away from the harsh subject matter.  The results of a 50-caliber round entering a body aren’t pretty, with the force of impact sending corpses sprawling and blood spraying. These scenes are troubling even when it’s Iraqi terrorists receiving death. Sometimes it’s easy to forget, despite their violent actions, these are men, many with families, some of who are being forced to fight against threat of torture and death towards themselves and their loved ones. It’s worse still to see the murder of civilians, both from United States and Iraqi forces, many of whom are elderly, invalid, or children. It’s one of the most unflinching glimpses of modern war put to film, a war that isn’t a grand battle between two great armies, but one of throwing innocents out of their homes and murdering of many blameless in the name of taking down a guilty few.

 

American Sniper spends its time almost suffocatingly close to Chris Kyle, never leaving his side for a minute. This is very much one man’s tale about his experiences in the war and the ways these shaped him. It’s a good thing then that man is played by Bradley Cooper in the best role of his career. Once known mainly for lighthearted comedies like The Hangover, Cooper shows off dramatic capabilities despite his two previous Oscar nominations, I wasn’t sure he had in him. Bulking up considerably, and growing his beard to mountaineer levels, Cooper is the embodiment of Chris Kyle, showing a strong, confident man whose both built up and broken down as the increasing savageries of violence engulf him. On the last mission of his final tour, surrounded on all sides by enemies, gun fire and artillery blotting out his voice, Chris calls his wife. “I’m ready to come home!” he yells as tears begin to run down his cheeks. “I’m ready to come home!”

 

In much the way Saving Private Ryan became THE World War II movie, and Full Metal Jacket and Apocalypse Now became the iconic representations of Vietnam, American Sniper will go down as the best representation of Iraq, both its successes and its follies, put to film. It’s unsettlingly, grim, doesn’t make a grand statement against or for the costly war. Rather, it’s just one man’s story about the hardships he and his family suffer both during and after one of the most costly conflicts in United States history. But what a story it is.

 

4 .5 stars out of 5