Whatever the truth about Chris Kyle (and I suspect, like most, the real Chris Kyle was a complex person; and lived tall tales while fabricating others), he is an American hero.
My understanding of the film is that it’s not meant to make a political statement. But I suppose everything under the sun is political when you bring your politics with you in going to see movies.
I’ve not seen the film yet, so can’t comment on it; but I have been reading some of the reactions– and some of them are rather curious:
One of the first celebrities to show their support for the film was the uber-liberal Jane Fonda, who tweeted the following:
Just saw "American Sniper" Powerful. Another view of "Coming Home." Bradley Cooper sensational. Bravo Clint Eastwood. http://t.co/l94zY5Gh8Q
— Jane Seymour Fonda (@Janefonda) December 21, 2014
Fonda, of course, attracted the ire of many Americans when she took a trip to North Vietnam in 1972 and posed for several photos with NVA troops, earning her the nickname “Hanoi Jane.” She later starred in the Oscar-winning Vietnam War drama Coming Home, about a ménage-a-trois involving Vietnam War veterans suffering from PTSD. This past weekend, she apologized for her “Hanoi Jane” days, calling her trip a “huge mistake.”
Is Fonda being sincere? Or is she trying to heal her image?
While Fonda supported the film and its sympathy for PTSD-suffering military vets, other celebrities homed in on the film’s perceived jingoistic, pro-war message. Seth Rogen, whose recent film The Interview attracted the ire of North Korean despot Kim Jong Un, tweeted:
American Sniper kind of reminds me of the movie that's showing in the third act of Inglorious Basterds.
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) January 18, 2015
Even if this were true, and Eastwood attempted to lace a Rah-rah GO USA! message into the film, what is so wrong with being pro-American?
Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore took Rogen’s criticisms one step further. The director, who was famously booed when he denounced the Iraq War and then-President George W. Bush in his 2003 Oscar acceptance speech, claimed that snipers like Kyle were “cowards” and “aren’t heroes”:
My uncle killed by sniper in WW2. We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. And invaders r worse
— Michael Moore (@MMFlint) January 18, 2015
Are snipers cowards?
I think those who think so are the ones who have the line of reasoning that police are cowards and bullies because they swarm to take down a suspect in numbers rather than confront one-on-one; or that the U.S. is a bully because it will invade a weaker country suspected of having wmd but won’t attack a country known to have wmd. As if any sane military would ever seek a “fair” fight and not suppress the enemy with superior and sustained, overwhelming firepower that minimizes risk and harm to our own people.
Here are some other comments by the nasties on the left who have a distorted, world-view:
Chris Smith: I agree with Seth Rogan and Michael Moore on both facts. Murdering for corporate greed isn’t fighting for freedom, it murdering for corporate greed! Trying to promote and celebrate the murders as heroic is propaganda! Chris Kyle is a terrorist and nothing else!
Bram Heath: I saw the movie yesterday and was thinking the same thing Seth thought. When people started clapping I knew that was the 23% that watch Fox News. Felt like I was watching a Joseph goebbles film from 1942.
Steven M Schwartz: You can no longer be critical of the military and those who serve. Thanks to almost a decade and a half of the blindly patriotic bull shit the right and the government has shoved or attempted to shove down our throats. From the pro war NFL pregame flyovers to the plastering of American flags and yellow ribbons. Fox news and the right have co-oped the word patriot and American, and now the word “American” means war loving Christian white America. If you do not kowtow to their agenda then you are the enemy. This movie is nothing more than propaganda revisionist history about a self admitted racist who chose to kill people over being with his family.
Thomas Petsa: nothing heroic about a sniper….hiding behind a bush miles away shooting someone in the head aint heroic….a bloke charging towards an enemy under fire now that’s heroic..blokes landing in dunkirk seeing their mates getting gunned down knowing they might be next..that’s either heroic or dumb..snipers have got it cushy in comparison..
Chris Smith: Chris Kyle was a terrorist pawn for a corporate military. I spit on his service!
Chris Owens: From what I’ve read, it sounds like he was a serial killer moreso than a hero.
Shannon Love: Real ‘American Sniper’ was a hate-filled killer — why are simplistic patriots treating him as a hero?
A former fetus, the “wordsmith from nantucket” was born in Phoenix, Arizona in 1968. Adopted at birth, wordsmith grew up a military brat. He achieved his B.A. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles (graduating in the top 97% of his class), where he also competed rings for the UCLA mens gymnastics team. The events of 9/11 woke him from his political slumber and malaise. Currently a personal trainer and gymnastics coach.
The wordsmith has never been to Nantucket.
Thanks Rich, I’ve been gone a while.
Still stirring it up, I see.
Tell me, and I’ll admit if you’ve already answered this, I didn’t see it – but what did you think of the Chris Kyle movie, American Sniper?
@anticsrocks: I loved it as great entertainment. Amazing job by Bradley Cooper–kudos to Eastwood. I don’t think it was political.
Big box office because men, women (think Bradley Cooper), and young adults (action) enjoyed it. A true story. A love story. Had it all.
BTW 105 million on opening weekend damn good but it’ll need a lot of staying power to approach 481 million done by Saving Private Ryan Spielberg/Hanks collaberation
@Redteam: FOR THE RECORD RT
On 11/16 in post #159 of “What should the GOP do to try to stop Obama Executive Amnesty”
YOU SAID “Remember the old saying, those that point to someone and say racist are defining themselves.”
Saw the movie last night and liked it. Certainly not making a political statement; nor did I view it as a simplistic “rah-rah, go USA” propaganda film.
Can’t believe that reviewers are going so far as to factcheck a dramatization based on true events (as well as pointing out Kyle’s unsubstantiated tall-tales). It’s a movie, not a documentary, fer crissakes; and I’d think some of the artistic licenses taken are pretty obvious for the sake of storytelling.
This one, in particular, is rather asinine. Like this:
No, the film does not make the suggestion that the Iraq War was a response to 9/11, anymore than the belief that President Bush said Saddam was part of 9/11. Lefties keep missing the “linkage”. The movie shows the Kyles, like all of us, were affected by the events of 9/11; and his life dramatically changed afterward because not only did he step up to serve his country, but Iraq was a consequence of dealing with 9/11, for which he served 4 tours.
#3 is also asinine. Who’s to say how he privately felt, just because it wasn’t publicly written into a book? In the movie itself, he boldly states to a VA psychiatrist that he will meet his Maker with a clear conscience knowing that his actions saved American lives.
@Wordsmith: Well said.
@Rich Wheeler:
I got more right on baseball than you. we both picked LSU and both picked Oregon. So don’t try to put yourself in the ‘winners’ picker category. You’re as lousy as I and I haven’t picked Perry. Saying I think he willl be the nominee is not ‘picking’. After all you picked Obozo and he’s the biggest loser I know.
@Rich Wheeler:
where did you hear that?
@Rich Wheeler:
You took that totally out of context and totally changed the meaning. I was only asking if you remembered an old saying?
Geez, I’m sorry that you can’t ever get anything right, Rich, but that’s just the price of being a liberal leftie.
@Wordsmith: good assessment. the liberals will good to any extreme to bash the military and the people that love this country.
@Redteam:'”Out of context” It was an exact quote.
In your own words you defined yourself as a racist–which you are, when you called Obama a racist. As you know I don’t agree with you on this.I believe calling out a racist is the right thing to do.
Word said the movie was not political–Have you even bothered to see it. Right wing reactionaries like yourself are a bigger problem than any libs.You got right wing chicken hawks. The Dems got Navy Cross recipient Jim Webb.
@Redteam: You said it. We can now agree that assertion is B.S.
You lose on a regular basis although you were proud to say you picked BHO TWICE.
@Rich Wheeler:
Run back through the 2013 MLB playoff’s and world series. You got them all wrong. 2014, I only missed by one game of getting all of mine right. You missed every series in 13. Football this year, I’d say we were both about 50-50. So label me a loser, it’s the same category you’re in. We both missed by two on the Senate races. Does that make us both losers or winners? As I pointed out, you picked the biggest loser I know of, Obama. It’ll take a long time to get over his damage.
Now you’re just practicing your stand up routine. When practicing, you should ‘first’ read your material. When you start with BS, as you did, it can only go downhill from there. You can not provide any quote where I said that if you call someone a racist, etc. I only asked if you had heard that old saying.
Now I see why it took you 3 hrs to respond, you were trying to prove a lie and couldn’t so it took you that long to ‘make it up’.
@Rich Wheeler:
You sure went off on a tangent, at no time have I made a comment on that movie. No, I haven’t had the opportunity to see it yet and don’t see where it’s appropriate to comment until I’ve seen it. I certainly have no thoughts on whether it is political or not. I know that buffoons, such as one of your idols, MMoore don’t have the intelligence or integrity to comment on it.
you said:
I did? When?
Did your Mommy give you a label maker for Christmas. I’ve heard more labels, coming from the peanut gallery, since Christmas than usual.
I don’t know enough about Webb to comment on him. I could generalize that most people that ‘voluntarily’ choose to be Dimocrats don’t have good sense, but I don’t know if that applies to him or not.
@Redteam: No one makes up more than you or buys into more conspiracies.
You missed 3 in the Senate—Kansas, Virginia and NH. I missed Kansas and N.C
You picked K.C. win W.S. I picked S.F’
You picked Indy to win Super Bowl I picked Pats
Are you now saying you didn’t pick BHO twice—or you weren’t proud of It lol
@Rich Wheeler:
You are full of S**t. If I even made a SB pick, it would have been Denver or Seattle, not Indy.
The pick was number of seats, I picked 56 you picked 52, we were both off by 2. The pick wasn’t by states, it was by numbers. live with it, you were wrong by 2, I was wrong by 2. By the way, I came out ahead because 54 is better than 52.
I have not made picks for dog catcher or village idiot so I would not have been picking BHO. Where do you come up with this crap, is it in the Dimocrat talking points manual.
By the way, Seattle will win Super bowl, for the same reason they won the conference championship.
@Rich Wheeler:
how about in 13? As I said, I only came up one game short this year. You only picked SF in WS not in Conference series.
@Redteam:Are you saying you didm’t pick Indy and Manning to win Conference title? Are you saying I picked LSU over N.D?
Are you now saying you made no picks in 08 and 2012 Prez. races?
@Rich Wheeler:
even if I did make a pick, I wouldn’t have picked an ineligible person for the job.
I don’t remember LSU playing North Dakota. Was that this year?
Is there some reason you’re dodging answering questions about 13?
@Redteam: Actually you are the one that refuses to answer even the simplest questions. Why is that?
Never mind. It’s obvious.
@Rich Wheeler: I think there’s an echo in here.
@Rich Wheeler: Oh, so you did answer the questions about 2013?
@Redteam: You’re asking about 2013 while you won’t answer simple questions about the last 90 days. Does that make sense?
@Rich Wheeler:
didn’t 2013 occur before 2014? First things first.
How about 2011? The year your guy supplied arms to al qaeda to fight against American interests in Libya, resulting in the deaths of 4 Americans, including an ambassador. What do you think the country should do about a president that supplies arms to it’s enemies? I fully expect that you and Greg will think the did a great thing. After all it did help the Islamists.
I think this sums it up fairly well.
Read more at http://freedomoutpost.com/2015/01/taking-page-hitlers-nazi-germany-2015-state-union-address/#BWMFkU7bjLwglJIb.99
Rich, Sarah Palin said “Hollywood leftists aren’t fit to shine Chris Kyle’s combat boots”
would you agree?
@Redteam: Digging up Sarah Palin and using comparisons to Nazi’s..
Don’t you old reactionaries have any new material? Anything?
You’re gonna get clobbered again in 2016.
@Rich Wheeler:
That was Seth Rogen’s statement wasn’t it. Isn’t he one of your team mates?
Sarah Palin, I just asked if you agreed with her statement. Yes or no. simple (or should be) question.
I’m going with Scott Walker to get the nomination. He’s actually eligible to be president.
@Redteam: Sarah couldn’t shine Jim Webb’s boots. I consider her a poorly informed bloviator. Mac gave her 15 minutes and she never shut up.
Nazi ref was from your freedom outpost. I got no love for Seth Rogan.
LSU would have been better off playing North Dakota than taking the whipping they got from Notre Dame.
If Scott Walker runs he’s got a better shot than Perry.
Chris Kyle RIP ThankYou Semper Fi
@Rich Wheeler:
I don’t recall her ‘running down the country’ as the Hollywood elites like to do. Do you?
Mac was far too liberal to be on the Repub ticket.
Obozo and his crowd are trying to eliminate the Jews, and that is in common with someone. Do you recall who?
He will.
@Rich Wheeler:You might like this one better, It compares him with FDR. Actually sounds very realistic.
Read more at http://godfatherpolitics.com/19942/obama-might-responded-attack-pearl-harbor/#z4aE3zaTGWqC3VqH.99
bear in mind that his response would likely have been from the golf course.
@Redteam: 1/24/2015 RT absurd quote of the day. Will be awarded daily for his most absurd/reactionary comment. Today”s winner—-drum roll
” Obozo and his crowd are trying to eliminate the Jews.” Don’t tell the over 70% of American Jews who cast their vote for Obama in 2008 and 20I2.
Do you think they have a death wish? Do you think they are stupid?
Don’t miss tomorrow’s winner —awarded daily 1500 Hours EST
@Redteam: Not to change the sport’s topic, but we lost a true baseball legend- Ernie Banks. None of these steroid infested prima donnas of today can hold a candle to the man’s class. Just an all around great person and a tremendous ball player. They just don’t make ’em like that anymore.
@another+vet:
So glad you made that statement. Back in the early 50’s especially, I lived in a small town that had a Class D team for the Pirates. I followed baseball rabidly (was about 13-14 at the time) anyhow everytime I looked at baseball stats in the papers, that name, Ernie Banks was always there for great hitters. Learned to admire him and followed him til he retired. Everything I read or heard about him was good. No negatives. Wish we had more players with that class.
@Rich Wheeler:
just shows you can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time. I don’t think bibi would be voting for Zero if he were here.
@Rich Wheeler:
I see where that school in your neighborhood has endorsed Islamism. You See LA. That’s okay though it’s the liberals in Cal that are paying for it. Have they put up signs pointing toward Mecca yet?
Just love this kind of news. this is the Frenchman
Maybe he’ll go where his anti Americanism supports him.
@another+vet: “Let’s play two”
RIP Ernie
@Rich Wheeler: I led a toast to him at my watering hole tonight. You could tell from recent appearances that he was on his way out and at 83 he led a good life. Despite that, it’s still hard to believe he’s gone. A true class act. Like I said, they just don’t make people like that anymore.
@Rich Wheeler: I led a toast to him at my watering hole tonight. You could tell from recent appearances that he was on his way out and at 83 he led a good life. Despite that, it’s still hard to believe he’s gone. A true class act. Like I said, they just don’t make people like that anymore.
@another+vet: You can say that again and Again.
Mr. Cub will live forever in baseball lore.
@Rich Wheeler: It posted my comments twice. I tried to delete the second one but it didn’t work. My Dad talked more about his Ernie Banks’ bat than he did about the two BSM’s he was awarded in Korea. When he passed away last year we had pictures of him when he worked at TWA with him and all the famous people he met. Post POTUS Truman, RFK, Sophia Loren and a big name Hollywood director (face was familiar couldn’t place the name), Loren Greene, James Garner, Cascius Clay but we forgot to put his Ernie Banks’ bat out there. Along with his autographed Bret Farve football, they were his pride and joy.
Sunday 1/25/2015 At home after attending service at St.Andrews By The Sea Methodist Church here in San Clemente.
RT said in #136 ” I see where that school in your neighborhood has endorsed Islamism.”
Would you clarify that statement?
@Rich Wheeler:
You See LA is now having the Islamist call to prayers for the public, spending public tax dollars to support the Muslims. You don’t keep up with what’s going on in your back yard, spending your money?
@Redteam: Sounds like your daily B.S. RT.
What school or schools in L.A, “have endorsed Islamism?”
Ck in Monday 1500 Hours EST for absurd quote of the day from RT.
‘
@Rich Wheeler:
Sounds as if you might have gone a couple rounds too much.
So they’re trying to cover it up huh?
@Redteam: Any rounds were had by A.V.
UCLA did not “endorse Islamism” Perhaps you should reduce your beverage consumption.
@Rich Wheeler:
Didn’t have any beverage. Well, except iced tea. So tell me why you deny it. UCLA didn’t deny it, in fact they defended what they did. So at least commend them for honesty. The least you can do is support your liberal buds.
@Redteam: Do you seriously think UCLA, a state funded school, would ENDORSE Islamism, Buddhism, Hinduism or Christianity?
You got an absurd/reactionary comment readied for tomorrow?
I don’t know anything about the UCLA thing. Guess I could always Google.
But I am in agreement with Medved’s take in regards to Harvard: