"American Sniper" and "Selma": The Problem No One is Talking About

It seems all anyone has been talking about for the past week is Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper". I have to admit, I did not take it seriously as a contender until the very last minute, when it nabbed critical DGA and PGA nominations over "Selma". The film's late release date, and the middling reception kept it from truly registering on my radar. But the Academy had different ideas about the film; they bestowed it with 6 nominations, including surprising ones for Bradley Cooper and the film's screenplay.

I've already talked about how sickening it was on the Academy's part to not only heap such praise onto the film, but at the expense of other (better) films such as Selma, or even "Gone Girl" and "Nightcrawler". Even more disappointing, and sickening, is that not one person of color was nominated in a major category, and to make it worse, none of the nominees outside of the actress categories are women. But all that aside, what's truly the most problematic thing about this whole thing, is American Sniper's existence in the first place.

If you've been living under a rock for the past week, then you don't know that Sniper is the film adaptation to the book of the same name, an autobiography of Chris Kyle, deemed 'The Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History'. Kyle boasts a kill streak of 255 confirmed kills, more than anyone else. He was killed last year by a fellow veteran suffering from PTSD at a shooting range.

The film is being marketed as a character study; a man at war with another country, and within himself, with much attention being placed on his relationship with Sienna Miller's character, Kyle's wife Taya. Cooper's characterization (the saving grace of the film, I had to pick one) hints at grappling with mental illness/PTSD. The film is none of these things, rather, it's an ignorant, propaganda piece that broadly draws the Iraqis (as a people) as villains, with Kyle (America) being the morally right good guy. Whereas last year's "Captain Phillips", or even Eastwood's own "Letters From Iwo Jima" offered a complex study on both sides of the fence, Sniper offers no other alternative but the overwhelming right-wing voice telling this story.

And perhaps this wouldn't be an issue, had this story been rooted in fact, but there are many holes in Kyle's autobiography. In a comprehensive, detailed piece published by Benjamin Purcell Morris, Kyle seems to have a tendency to compulsively twist the truth in an attempt to make himself look better. The piece itself makes for a fascinating read outside of what it all means. The most famous fib is Kyle's alleged altercation with Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura. Kyle had gone on national television and spun a pretty interesting story about how he apparently punched Ventura for bad mouthing former President Bush and America as a whole. Ventura denied the incident ever occurred, including the derogatory comments, leading to him suing for defamation. He won, and has since filed a second lawsuit against Harper Collins for publishing the lie in Kyle's book.

But even more problematic, there's the issue of Kyle's inherent xenophobia and racism displayed throughout the autobiography. Kyle describes the people of Iraq as "savage, despicable evil", saying "I only wish I had killed more... I loved what I did... I'm not lying or exaggerating to say it was fun." In his own words, Kyle describes "priceless cheap thrills" such as "driving a vehicle towards them [the Iraqis] so they would scream and bolt away".

So it should come then, as no surprise that Eastwood and screenwriter Jason Hall chose not to include this in the film. Why would they? A film being marketed as a touching, sensitive portrait of a slain, American hero wouldn't look so touching or sensitive if it revealed him to be a racist liar.

But on the other side of the argument, is Ava DuVernay's Selma, which has been relentlessly punished for its portrayal of Lyndon B. Johnson. In the film, Johnson is portrayed as a roadblock to Martin Luther King Jr.'s attempts at Civil Rights. Time and time again, he tells King to "wait" so he can handle other issues such as poverty, despite being plagued by reports of police brutality. It's not so much that he wants to impede the Civil Rights movement, it's just that he's not strong enough to get behind it.

Two associates of Johnson, Mark Updegrove and and Joseph A. Califano Jr., have taken issue with this characterization, claiming that there was more of a "partnership" between the two leaders, and that Johnson wasn't a roadblock. DuVernay responded back by saying, "It's not a documentary. I'm not a historian. I'm a storyteller." Of the controversy, John Lewis wrote in The Los Angeles Times that, "We do not demand completeness of other historical dramas, so why is it required of this film?"

While American Sniper went on to receive a surprising 6 major Oscar nominations, Selma only managed 2 (Best Picture and Best Original Song) despite being predicted for categories like Actor, Cinematography and even Director, which would have made DuVernay the first woman of color to receive a nomination. Speculation would tell you that voters took issue, as critics are, with the portrayal of Johnson. So then, why despite hard, factual evidence are people ignoring the inherent fabrication of Chris Kyle?

Chris Kyle and American Sniper paint America in a light that is more favorable, and more attractive to look at. Anyone arguing in favor of Kyle are not shy to label him as a "hero"; in the past week, the idea of America and Chris Kyle have become synonymous with one another. The film broke box office records over the past weekend, grossing more than $100 million against a $58 million budget.

DuVernay's film is a harder pill to swallow by comparison. Not only does it highlight the racially charged atrocities committed during that time period (most notably, "Bloody Sunday") but it shatters the notion that we as a country have made all of this progress in the Civil Rights movement. In fact, DuVernay shows us that we haven't really moved all that far at all, and we really have a lot longer till we get to where we should be.

People are willing to forgive the film, historical inaccuracies and all, that portrays them in a positive light, and if you don't believe that, a quick search on Google will change that for you. A dozen articles such as "The Demonization of Chris Kyle" come up instantly, whereas Selma is tied to articles such as "The movie Selma has a glaring flaw", or "Questioning the Historical Inaccuracy of Selma". And while many are crying out at the inherent snubbing of Selma by the Oscars, no such defense of the film has been covered at the level Sniper has.

What's interesting, is how such a broad, cartoonish rendering of a character (Chris Kyle/American Sniper) has been received and embraced the way it has, opposite of DuVernay's more grounded, complex retelling. Eastwood offers no other vantage point; this man was a hero, point blank period. In fact, the narrative suffocates the viewer with its overwhelming air of domineering masculinity; Kyle is a strong man and anyone not equipped to deal with war is not strong. There are no gray areas, rather, Kyle is a poorly constructed ideal dressed up as a character in a film, leaving Bradley Cooper with next to nothing in terms of development to mine out of this man.

In Selma, however, no one is perfect, not even the man the film focuses on. David Oyelowo's Dr. King is a man first and foremost. Forgoing the traditional, almost patron like, portrayal most biopics take on with their subjects, DuVernay and Oyelowo render King, and everyone else (including LBJ), as complex human beings who, despite wanting to do the right thing, don't always make the best or right decisions. The film is rooted in realism, which is what gives it the pivotal sucker punch it needed to stand amongst the crowd as a masterpiece in filmmaking. This is a story we have heard countless times, but never like this.

American Sniper is the film people want, based solely on the amount of awards attention and financial success its enjoyed in the past week. Selma, however, is the film we need. Brutal, accomplished filmmaking, not afraid of telling the hard truths. Had Eastwood devoted more time to showing us the real Chris Kyle, maybe the film would be stronger, and have more emotional resonance. Instead, it wears its ugly, inherent ignorance like one of the badges of honor won by its subject.

Chris Kyle is no hero of mine, and certainly not someone I would want being tied to my country/homeland in any way. Not when there are actual heroes, who despite being repressed and held down, continue to find honest ways to push for change, without having to lie to construct their legacies.

(Originally published by The Whit)