In The World of Global Conflict, There's Little Room For a Sense of Humor. Just A Lot To Think About

Chitunga, Pam and I went to opening night of Clint Eastwood's American Sniper starring Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller. I've been intrigued by the trailer of the film and was sold during an interview with Cooper and his conversation about the real Chris Kyle who had four tours in the middle east and heroically accomplished what he set out to do as a Texan standing for the democracy he believed in.

The theater was sold out and, as Pam remarked, "I've never left a theater of this many people in such silence. The quiet is eerie."

Actually, the peace was respect for Kyle's narrative and how it impacts the way we look at American privileges in our own lives. I thought, "Hollywood is great at taking 10 yeas of life and condensing it into a 2.5 hour movie, but the Seal's real journey was likely to be more intense, difficult, burdening, and stressed." Still, Cooper played the role brilliantly and it is a movie that I rate near the top I've ever seen - even if I did remark that I'm not sure I like to see such epic stories in pompous, cinematic form. I'm not even sure the book can capture the meaning behind this man's life.  Yes, Cooper should win awards for his acting, but the real accolades need to go to the hero who actually lived that life, Chris Kyle. The awards should go those who served in the military and who do not have movies made after the contributions they've made.

Kyle, two years younger than me and Casey's age, was directed to keep 'an eye' on the streets of Iraq to keep the Marines safe as they carried out their mission. The insurgents referred to him as the 'Devil of Ramadi' as he successfully had 160 confirmed kills as he took out men, women and children intent on blowing up and destroying American soldiers. It is a responsibility most of us would never be able to handle, especially when the young were used in the plots to foil Western missions.

Intense. That's what it really was. Intense. And the ending, although tragically sad, was handled with poise and ease. The montage, I felt, was the film's greatest attribute.

Of course, the film also makes you wonder whether the Iraqi efforts were worth the time and money, especially when considering PTSD and the wounds many soldiers returned with. It's a conflict without the glory of WWI and WWII and with less definitive territories and strategy.

We were up late afterwards talking about the film and thinking about Kyle's life. It's definitely a movie to see, but more importantly it is a movie to discuss with others and to inspire more inquiry about the purposes of conflict, hatred, and military actions.