American Sniper - Bradley Cooper at his best?

I first should say that I am not American and as such, I wasn't aware of the Chris Kyle story. I didn't hear it in the news, I didn't know there was a book and I didn't know what happened to him. Coming into that movie, I didn't even know that American Sniper was based on a true story. I don't believe this hindered my appreciation and enjoyment of the movie but I might have reacted differently to some of the scenes should I have known this fellow actually lived through them.

To be perfectly honest, I am not a war movie type of a gal. I suppose it's obvious that my main interest is fantasy and sci-fi. However, I thoroughly enjoy Bradley Cooper performances in the past, and I thought I should watch it after seeing the enticing trailer, and I am very glad I did.

Again, this movie won't change my opinion about war movies and drama in general but this particular one was very well made and Bradley Cooper completely sold it for me. As a bulky 30 year old Navy Seal, Cooper progressively but always subtly shows you what war does to even the most hardened people. Chris Kyle doesn't appear very complicated. He's extremely straight forward, patriotic, principled and he always has a plan. Enrolling seems like the natural thing to do for a man like that. I like that the movie is divided by tour and shows each deployment with each return home. It shows you how his life and his story was very much regulated by the rhythm of war and that everything in between or even prior was just a short distraction, an interruption even.

Obviously, there are extremely difficult parts to watch
and Bradley Cooper plays through those like a chief, showing Chris Kyle's hard rock values and black and white world slowly decaying. I like to think of myself as a though person, I don't necessarily feel sorry for people in pain or in difficult situations. I feel like Chris Kyle saw the mission first and the people second too. I feel like he thought of himself as a strong person who knows exactly what is to be done and doesn't falter. But war seems to chip at his confidence and his strength, little by little. A person you thought was made to serve his country might not even be strong enough for war. Then who is? Maybe it is not the strong, the principled and the passionate who are made for war. Maybe only the senseless and the mad are.

I feel like a lot of people will complain that this movie glorifies war but it definitely didn't appear that way to me. It seems like an accurate account of a war I don't know much about and an accurate depiction of one soldier's experience. Bradley Cooper was excellent and I am pleased he got nominated for an Academy Award. As a nominated film as well, I think it's worth a look for any movie buff or fans of good drama.