23/02/15
An open letter to Mr. Clint Eastwood –
Dear Mr. Eastwood,
I am the son of a career Air Force Pilot, Vietnam veteran Lt. Col. Browning H. Gorrell, Jr. (USAAF,
ret., deceased). After viewing American
Sniper, I wanted to express my feelings about your film which my experience as
a military brat enlightened me.
Before going further, let me say you are one of my upper
echelon cinema icons. I was born in 1966
so I have been aware of your entire career, from spaghetti westerns to “get off
my lawn” and then some. I am new to your
projects as a director, having not seen them many, many times.
So, I am blessed / cursed with an acute sense of
detail. Due to this trait, several
incongruities occurred to me while watching American Sniper. These may seem inconsequential to most, but
as such an esteemed and renowned director (sincerely, no slight intended), I
felt compelled to communicate these to you:
-
At the fair, ace marksman Kyle cocks the BB Gun
and then points it at the Carny while handing it back to him. As I recall, Daisy Red Ryders did not have a
safety.
-
When he is wed, Kyle is not wearing his Mess
Dress. For a crew as respected as the S.E.A.L.S.,
I would imagine all that could would were their best. Only one attendant is.
-
After Tour One, upon returning home, Kyle throws
his hat on the bed. Everybody with any
sense knows this is bad luck equivalent to breaking a mirror.
-
Satellite phone calls to the wife while in
position, charging into combat and during combat? Really?
-
During the funeral scene after Tour Two, the
honor guard charges their rifles after each shot. They are firing M1A1 Garands, a
semi-automatic, which would therefore reload after each shot. I may be off on this as they might have a
select fire switch which allows for one round.
Anyway, you’re great.
I’m just a guy who would love to be a continuity editor.
Sincerely,
Buck Gorrell
1 comment:
At no point does the film consider the fact that the war was based on false justifications. At no point does it imagine that those in Iraq might have seen the U.S. soldiers as invaders in their homeland. At no point does it imagine that the violence suffered by our own soldiers could have been avoided if we simply hadn’t started the war to begin with. The logic of war is completely unquestioned, making this the most simplistic war film we have seen nominated for an Oscar in decades.
But the fact that the film has no nuance, no context and no subtlety should not surprise us. If anything it is a terrifying glimpse into a GOP mind-set that couples delusion with violence. We watch Kyle zero in on a pinpointed target and we are reminded of the ways that such a narrow, aggressive vision is itself a metaphor for GOP beliefs. This is a movie that’s not just about a sniper, but also about an attitude that threatens to destroy any chance in our nation for political compromise and productive debate. And that’s what makes this movie really disturbing. -- SOPHIA A. MCCLENNEN
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