If you’re into movies, or politics or if you’ve simply been on the internet in the past week, it has probably become apparent to you that Clint Eastwood’s new film “American Sniper” is kind of a big deal.

The film has already brought in well over $100 million, according to Entertainment Weekly.

It’s no surprise that with its tremendous success, “American Sniper” has been met with a lot of controversy. My favorite liberal, Matt Taibbi from Rolling Stone, called the movie “almost too
dumb to criticize.” (Shocker). On the other end of the spectrum, my favorite “redneck,” country singer Craig Morgan, responded to critics, saying we enjoy our freedom “thanks to people like Chris Kyle who serve in the United States military.” (Also shocking).

Unfortunately, I don’t much enjoy mixing politics with art. All politics aside, however, this was a fantastic film.

The movie follows the life of real-life Navy Seal Chris Kyle, the deadliest sniper in American military history. Throughout his service, Kyle served four tours in Iraq and had over 160 confirmed kills.

Eastwood advances the plot in a way that seems distant at times, but also incredibly intimate. By this I mean that I was impressed by the way Eastwood was effectively able to simultaneously advance two extraordinarily different plot lines. The audience sees a horrific and violent portrayal of the war in Iraq while also gaining a window into Kyle’s personal life – a life that could be described as a war at home.

This is the aspect of the film that I was most attracted to. There’s a great war story – Kyle constantly battling insurgents and the rival enemy sniper, Mustafa, but there’s an even better “war story” playing out in Kyle’s mind. It’s a battle to somehow balance the atrocities of war against the mundane return to everyday life, a battle that Chris Kyle’s wife Taya Kyle, played by Sienna Miller, often brings to the forefront.

Aside from the plot, the characters in this film stole my heart in the first five minutes.

Kyle is your typical Texas stereotype: the quiet, reserved, hunky and handsome cowboy who treats his woman right and talks with a sexy, low southern drawl.

Bradley Cooper played the part so well; not only do I predict an Academy Award in his future, I also predict that men are going to start faking southern drawls to emulate his awesome macho manliness. Personally, I’m considering buying more flannels and denim so I can be as rugged as Cooper.

Miller did a wonderful job playing Taya Kyle. Her emotions looked so real as she cried on the phone with her distraught and wounded husband that I wished I could reach through the screen and console her.

That’s really why I liked this movie so much. As a work of art, I feel that Eastwood masterfully painted this picture of real human connection. We can point fingers and debate about undertones of nationalistic sentiments in every war movie ever made, but there’s just no way we can debate the artistic quality of this film.

5 out of 5 stars.