This past weekend, Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper blew away every reasonable estimate on box office earnings and took home $107 million in its opening three-day weekend and made it the highest-grossing film to premiere in January.
That’s a figure of which most summer blockbusters would be envious and is uncommon for an R-rated picture opening in the midst of Hollywood’s traditional “dead zone.” In addition to audience acclaim, the picture has been recognized by both critics (74 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and the Academy of Motion Pictures, which nominated it for six Oscars, including Best Picture. By all measures, Clint Eastwood’s biopic of real-life sniper Chris Kyle is on top of the world. But beneath the headlines, another conflict is brewing over the film.
It’s natural that any picture made about the Iraq War will stir long-dormant political opinions on the conflict and will continue to do so for quite some time. But Sniper’s unprecedented success has made it of particular importance. The stakes for what this film means are greater than any other, as it may prove to be an informal poll of how America in 2015 is reflecting on the conflict. Are we embracing a picture that casts a shadow of doubt onto military action, or hailing a hero for fighting the good fight?
On first impression, it’s very easy to see American Sniper as little more than a high-profile advertisement for the U.S. Armed Forces. Kyle rises to action after seeing news of an American embassy bombing, and – flush with patriotic duty – he weathers a boot camp designed to weed out the strong from the weak. A quick flash to September 11th, and he’s off to war. He’s the prototypical U.S. soldier: Texas-born & raised with a knack for shooting guns passed down by a no-nonsense father.
But once the boots hit the dirt, Sniper’s tone starts to blur the line. The violence is rarely glorified and, while the Marines that surround him express traditional enthusiasm for his legendary kill count, Kyle shows a near-constant remorse. As we flash to his time spent at home, the weight of these actions come to test his relationships with family and self. On the battlefield, the camera doesn’t shy away from realistic depictions of soldiers being slain or the later aftermath in a veteran’s hospital. These aren’t the scenes you’ll see in a film that aims to glamorize war or misrepresent the past.
Moments do elevate Kyle’s actions to that of a stereotypical action hero. The narrative builds up a rival sniper, who is shot down with a bullet that we follow in slow-motion CGI. We also see next-to-nothing that permits the audience to sympathize with Iraqi soldiers and citizens. One of the few foreigners who does come off as something remotely human is soon revealed to be a traitor (by Kyle, no less). On the homefront, his redemption is represented in the form of returning to the traditional “cowboy” lifestyle from which he came. His death is also never shown on screen, with the information conveyed directed to the audience through an epilogue post-script. All these elements heighten the impression that Kyle is larger than life – a modern hero of a modern war.
In the end, American Sniper is a realist war film that cannot resist the temptations of idolization. While the final film walks a line between action-movie heroics and their consequences, one has to wonder how many of the film’s fans were swayed by the former over the latter.
Follow Chris Berg on Twitter @Mushroomer25