Movie Review The Lord Of the War Essay

Lord of War almost didn’t make it to the big screen. In fact, it barely even reached the production stage due to its bristly, accusatory subject matter of illegal international arms dealing. Yet despite its Hollywood feel, â€Å"Lord of War† is an excellent introduction to the opaque and oft-ignored activities of the merchants of death, or lords of war. Writer/director Andrew Niccol (The Terminal, Simone, and The Truman Show) insisted upon strictly adhering to true life events that shed an unflattering light on many of the world’s wealthiest nations. Although telling the truth in Lord of War makes for a riveting tale of international intrigue and finger pointing, it wasn’t really a great way to secure funding for a major motion picture. It took the gumption of several foreign investors who were willing to take a chance that the film’s powerful message would resonate with audiences. Count me as one of those moved by the film’s cruel honesty. Still living with his immigrant family in Brighton Beach, Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) has had enough–the family restaurant has no customers, his cook brother Vitaly (Jared Leto) can’t cook and his mother nags his devout Jewish father who is anything but Jewish. So instead of getting sucked into a go-nowhere life, Yuri naturally gets into arms dealing. After selling a local hood an Uzi, Yuri discovers that he might actually have the knack. He recruits his younger brother–more for moral support than business acumen–and begins to soar up the arms dealing food chain, attaining wealth, luxury and an exciting lifestyle along the way. The only thing he lacks is his dream girl–Ava Fontaine (Bridget Moynahan), a Brighton Beach beauty queen-turned-supermodel. But Yuri finally wins her heart, too, by posing as a legitimate businessman with more money than he actually has. Ava senses he’s not legit, but just as long as they have their penthouse overlooking Central Park and a chauffeured limo, she’d rather not know what he does. Meanwhile, Yuri’s interests clash with his chief rival, Simeon Weisz (Ian Holm), an old-school gunrunner, coming to terms with the end of the Cold War. Backed into a corner, Yuri is given a choice between continued competition or none at all, and his decision sends Yuri into a spiral of rapid moral decay despite ever-increasing profits. His greatest struggle through it all has been with himself. In the end, he learns to accept the Golden Rule of arms dealing: Never wage war with anybody, especially yourself. Lord of War shines its cinematic spotlight on the shadowy world of illicit arms trafficking – a global scourge that has claimed millions of lives since the end of the Cold War. According to Yuri in this film, owning guns or bullets is the second most basic human need behind eating. The skeleton is here for a truly revolutionary film that simply ties with the real world of today which ways reveal bold strokes about the amorality of world politics, and how every single one of us has rationalized the wholesale export of violence because it keeps us in comfort. The world is a business – it’s about money, of course, and as long as someone is paying, actions toward fellow man are burdensome, if not irrelevant. There is only the bottom line, and every man, woman, or child who has died on the field of battle has done so in the name of profit, usually of the corporate variety. As we compare to this existing world of today, a lot of business intelligent men chose to profit from human frailty. Lord of War narrates the proceedings by breaking the third wall with a cynical, matter-of-fact voice-over that lays out a gritty, dirty snapshot of a world – the devastating consequences of the worldwide trade in weapons that we don’t want to know exists. Though we’re uncomfortable knowing the truth, seeing how it actually works is absolutely captivating. Nations throughout the world are implicated in wrongdoing, as Niccol’s pointed story pulls no punches. His brutal honesty often hurts. It is, for instance, fascinating and horrifying to learn that the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council are the world’s biggest arms suppliers, which technically, is correct; and also dares to suggest that death is the biggest business of all.   Most viewers won’t find comfort in accepting the film’s political accusations, and its moral dilemmas will undoubtedly offend many, especially in today’s increasingly volatile world. But good, thought-provoking filmmaking is good for us all. REFERENCE Niccol, A. (Director/Writer/Producer). (2005). Lord of War [Motion picture]. United States: 20th Century Fox -Arclight Films.