Boom! Headshot.

A couple of hours before I went to see American Sniper, I saw a Facebook post about how Seth Rogen had related the film to nazi propaganda. I didn't understand what he meant. After watching it, I understood that he felt it glorified the military, and tried to make us not feel bad for the deaths in the Iraq war. I didn't totally agree, because the post traumatic stress disorder the main character, Chris, went through after his intense experience in the military was conveyed in a very scary manner, and made me want to join the army even less than I already did. You could also tell that he really felt bad about the deaths he was responsible for. He filled his mind with the teachings of his father, who said that you could justify violence if it was to protect the lives of the "sheep" as he called the innocent people who couldn't protect themselves. The predators were the wolves, using their power to prey on the innocent, and the sheepdogs were the ones who used their power not to prey, but to protect the flock. Sometimes, Chris felt bad about having to kill to protect his flock of sheep, because the ones trying to prey on the sheep were kids who you could say had bad influences. I liked how Bradley Cooper was magically able to erase his natural charm for this role. After The Hangover, Silver Linings Playbook, and Guardians of the Galaxy (as the voice of Rocket), I wasn't sure I would be able to see him play a serious role, but I was wrong. I was also afraid I wouldn't be able to hear people say the word "sniper" without thinking of this sniper:

But I pulled through. Don't go into American Sniper thinking it'll be a generic military action movie because it's not. It takes us on a tour of the effect war has on people who have seen way too much heavy stuff, for instance, kids throwing grenades, kids getting shot, kids picking up bazookas, kids getting holes drilled in their heads, etc. There were a few issues I found in it, though. For one, the special effects were bad. I could easily tell the blood, sand storms, birds eye view cities, and helicopters were all CGI. Another problem was the fact that it took place over a few years and Chris changed a lot off screen so we couldn't exactly see his PTSD develop, which was a huge part of the story. The last issue I found in it was the lack of a plot. I couldn't exactly tell if it was about taking down the evil sniper dude, or if it was about the PTSD and how it affected his relationships. With all of those downsides, I could only give it a B. Remember, if you're looking for a more lighthearted sniper story, just watch this: