Has anyone here seen "The Lord of War?"

[genius]

I saw it on the reocmmendation of the IAC. Apparently, Amnesty International was involved with the production. It's Nicholas Cage's new movie and it really shows what's going on with the gun runners and the government.

But don't take kids. It has some really inappropriate scenes.

[CBGLuthier]

1. I want to see it because of the writer

Been a fan of Andrew Nicol since Gattaca and The Truman SHow.

When I first saw ads for the film it looked like another Nick Cage action movie but then I read about Nicol's involvment and learned it is an angry satire about guns.

Sounds good to me.

[genius]

2. That's interesting. The main agent tracking the gun runner is

played by Ethan Hawke (from Gattaca). This is darker than either of those two but it does have humor.

[Julius Civitatus]

3. It's got great reviews so far

I'll definitely check it out

[SteppingRazor]

4. Nick Cage is so hit-or-miss...

Con Air and Gone in 60 Seconds are awful, but Raising Arizona is, like, the greatest comedy ever (or at least Top 20).

I'll certainly see Lord of War, but I'll leave my guns at home :evilgrin:

[genius]

6. This is a politically relevant show and really makes the point

A bunch of gung-ho Republicans were sitting in front of me in the theater and I think they really got the message. We should definitely encourage all the ignorant Republicans to see it.


Leave the kids at home though. It has some stuff they shouldn't see.

[SteppingRazor]

8. Don't have any kids...

as for the problems of gunrunners, this film's point is kinda moot. Indie gunrunners like those featured in this film are small potatoes. The real "big guns," if you will, of the international gun business are other nation-states, and no one sells more arms than our own government.

[BloodyWilliam]

13. That was the movie's final message, actually.

It pointed out in the last line/scene:

The five biggest arms dealers in the world are the U.S., U.K., France, China, and Russia. They are also the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.

[rocktivity]

10. Like Tom Cruise, Cage bounces back and forth

between "serious actor" and "male bimbo" roles. I imagine that money is the reason--it's harder to hold on to your artistic integrity when the bills are piling up. Someone like Samuel L. Jackson, on the other hand, seems to be able to take any role and give it artistic significance...wait a second, didn't Jackson do a movie with Nicholas Cage?

:headbang:
rocknation

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

14. I have too say that I've never seen Jackson as lame as he

appeared on the last Star Wars trilogy. I assume the bad writing and directing had a lotto do with it.

[SteppingRazor]

15. Two things --

First, Tom Cruise is never good :evilgrin:

Second, Samuel L. Jackson ALWAYS has artistic significance? You do realize he's currently in theaters starring in "The Man," yeah?

[BloodyWilliam]

16. Re: Sam Jackson's artistic significance. See: The Man.

I mean take note of The Man. PLEASE don't actually go see it!

[Kazak]

20. Wild At Heart?

Great film!

[quisp]

5. nope

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

7. I've read that it has a similar style to Goodfellas.

Did you find that to be the case? I'm probably going to watch it tonight.

[genius]

9. I never saw Goodfellas.

There is a lot of humor in the movie. There is one scene where one of the African leaders holds out a newspaper about the stolen 2000 election.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

12. Nice. n/t

[fujiyama]

27. Goodfellas is a great film

While it doesn't have a clear moral message or make any political statements, it's worth seeing.

I'm glad you started this thread. I had started one earlier on this film but no one seemed to have seen it and it had no comments. While it may be billed as sort of a thriller/action/fictional bio pic, this is actually a rare film which does raise some great questions.

And it's also interesting in the way it raises current conflicts and how it intersects this administration.

I do wish the film had mentioned that this admninistration refused to join a UN convention on small arms.

[fujiyama]

22. In some ways

it was reminiscent of Goodfellas.

I also liked the message at the end. It basically showed how futile it was going after a small times arms dealer, when governments (including this one) make these people look like they have lemonade stands.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

24. I just say it last night. I have to say the ending was one of, if not the

best part.

[genius]

26. Yeh. I thought that really made the point.

[maxsolomon]

11. what is the "inappropriate" content?

violence/gore or nudity/sex?

[genius]

17. The last thing you mentioned.

Kids don't need to be exposed to that when they are watching an educational picture.

[maxsolomon]

18. i pray you are being ironic

i will assume so.

[genius]

21. Films are a good way to educate.

A lot of teachers recommend and parents take their kids to movies that give kids an insight into history or current events. F9/11 was great in that regard (except that the blood there was real and not movie make-up).

Too much emphasis is placed on violent special effects. Anyone who has seen a show made knows how fakey that stuff is. However, there are certain things that parents would rather educate their kids about in a better way than having the subject matter presented in a sleazy manner in a movie, which would otherwise be well done.

[maxsolomon]

23. now i KNOW you're being ironic!

"lord of war" is NEVER going to be shown in a classroom.

[genius]

25. Some high school civics teachers would show it if not for the sex.

Or if they are afraid to show it directly, they might recommend it for extra credit. There are still some teachers who believe in giving kids a well rounded edcuation. I can't count the number of movies my teachers told my classes to see to get fuller understandings of subjects. It is a good educational picture, except for that.

Another example of this problem is "Reds." The scenes aren't quite as crudely done, but they make it hard to recommend this important picture about Jack Reed to teens. Without those subjects, it's a great overview of the early 20th century, the Palmer Act, and what went wrong in Russia.

[Kazak]

19. The UUA is promoting this film too.

I want to see it.