American Sniper (Review)

Thanks to current events in the Middle East lately, American Sniper has become one of the biggest war films in history. One major aspect for this surge of popularity is the anti-war message the cast and crew has stated in interviews. Director Clint Eastwood (here), Writer Jason Hall (here), and star Bradley Cooper (here) have gone on to defend just what this movie is about and how Chris Kyle was a hero. Now, there have been a TON of anti-war movies throughout cinema history and the creators of those films make the message clear & succinct. Coming out of American Sniper though not only is the message muddled at best but you might wonder where the anti-war statements are actually coming from.

That Fake Baby Though (American Sniper)

Wanted to put this on a separate thread as to not derail the review. But the scene that personifies how poor of a movie American Sniper is is the infamous ‘fake baby’. In the middle of the picture we see Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller get into an argument while taking care of their daughter. Instead of having an actual baby for the scene we see the the worst of doll’s used as a prop. Like, this is Dollar Store variety of dolls and nothing high end here.

It perfectly showcases how little Clint Eastwood cared about the non-military moments of American Sniper. Apparently the stunt babies (fantastic credit to have on your resume by the way) that were suppose to be in the scene could not make it to the set. So Eastwood just decided to use a doll instead because….well I’m not sure why. Does any explanation matter though? Like, would have it killed Eastwood to find another baby to use or just film another scene? Or how about this: Just don’t have this scene. It adds nothing to the overall picture considering how lazy the PTSD elements are. Plus the fact that NO ONE; from Eastwood to the Producers to even the test audiences; couldn’t care less how fake this baby looks annoys me to no end. This is a Best Picture nominee for the Oscars baby! Gotta have more class than that Eastwood & co.