American Sniper (2014), R, ★★★★

Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle. 

Chris Kyle is recognized as the "most lethal sniper in U.S. history" with conviction and bravery and has more than 160 kills, the most in sniper history. I cannot say anything about how conflicted a soldier would get when returning home from a tour and facing civilian life again because I have never been deployed. Having witnessed this movie and another movie called Born on the Fourth of July (and I'll compare those two later on in the review), both soldiers are haunted by loud noises and suffer PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). Everybody in their personal lives will understand and be struggling having a natural conversation with the soldier in how it had been during the tour and other personal things. This movie was resonant, emotional and intense supplied with the best performance by Bradley Cooper in his career.

NAVY Seal sniper Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) is dedicated and disciplined to his job, holding a gun and scoping out on the rooftop to see what kind of suspicious activity is on the horizon and also close to the convoy. His job is intense and no-nonsense, for example, in the opening scene where he has to make the decision to shoot a boy who has a grenade and whether or not he is a threat to the convoy. If he is right, the mission continues and the soldiers will declare him a hero. If not, he goes to prison for shooting the child. I cannot reveal what happens next, of course. It is a great marketing gimmick for the advertised TV spots and trailers.

We do witness Chris as a young boy hunting deer and killing it and his father praises him as a natural, however, he gets reprimanded quickly when his father yells at him for handling the gun foolishly. Chris' father gives a speech after Chris stands up for his little brother against a bully and declares that there are three kinds of people in the world- sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs. Sheep do not believe that there is evil in the world, wolves are predators hunting evil, and sheepdogs are blessed with aggression and bravery to protect the world from evil. The speech impacts Chris.

Years later, Chris and his younger brother, Jeff, watch TV of the terrorist attacks on the US embassies and Tanzania and Kenya and he gets angry and visits the US Navy office and the recruiter. The recruiter says that it is not for most men to join and Chris retorts that he is not. He goes through tough, physical and mental training and sniper training. He also meets named Taya (Sienna Miller) at a bar and gets a bit flirtatious but also understanding. Later, they get married and on his wedding day, Chris and his fellow soldiers receive the news that they will be deployed to Iraq.

Chris, later on the movie, is on tour and speaks with his wife, Taya about the pregnancy and gender of the baby until they are being attacked and Taya cries hearing the repetitive gunfire on the phone. When he returns to the US, Taya is thrilled with tears to see Chris back home, but Chris struggles with his domestic life and suffering from PTSD, hearing loud noises and not saying much. He has to balance between his professional and military life with the domestic life with his wife and two children and he struggles constantly throughout the remainder of the film.

Chris and Taya (Sienna Miller) reuniting.

This movie does not miss a single step of wrongness. It tells the story straight-forward but with much attention, some confusion and a lot more support for the "American sniper". What we witness after Kyle is hailed a hero is his body language and how he felt about being "The Legend" and he does not regret it at first but does not feel that is how it is to protect the U.S. Everybody in his community praises him but Chris is tired of the praise, even when he suffers with PTSD. It haunts him for the remainder of his life after being done with his duty.

I wanted to compare this film to a great companion-piece which is Oliver Stone's intense film, Born on the Fourth of July with Tom Cruise as Ron Kovic. They both deal with the same psychological impasse as both Kovic and Kyle are vulnerable but happy to be reunited. They also deal with nightmares as how and why they kill innocent people especially children and families. Kovic served his country as best as he can but risked his life and legs for his country. Kyle did risk his life for his country but did not know how it felt at the early start of his career if he would become monumental. Every soldier risks for their lives and I personally thank them for their service and dedication especially during this holiday season.

I cannot praise Bradley Cooper enough. He has undergone a great transformation and an enriched and dedicated job to perform a great tribute to Chris Kyle. He performs with so much conviction that at first, I almost thought I was watching Kyle in person. I was almost watching a documentary. Sienna Miller has great chemistry with Cooper in turning this clichéd and familiar character of a whiny and desperate wife into a wife that understands what he is going through but cannot handle everything by herself and wants him in part of her life.

This is undoubtedly Clint Eastwood's best film since Gran Torino in 2008. I liked Invictus and Hereafter but it felt like it did not reach to the peak of his brilliant career. He has made bad movies such as J. Edgar and Jersey Boys where I felt that he had lost his edge. But, he is back in classical form of filmmaking that is superior and intense on every level especially the sandstorm sequence and how he handles the mission regarding an al Qaeda member. This is a remarkable story about one great patriot and soldier in history and it is unforgettable. It is one of the best films of the year.

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