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Il Silenzio (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Il Silenzio” | |
|---|---|
 By Source, Fair use, Link. German single cover | |
| Instrumental by Nini Rosso | |
| English title | The Silence |
| Released | December 1964 |
| Songwriter(s) | Nini Rosso |
Il Silenzio (The Silence) is an instrumental piece, with a small spoken Italian lyric, notable for its trumpet theme. It was written in 1965 (see “Origin” below) by trumpet player Nini Rosso and Guglielmo Brezza, its thematic melody being an extension of the same Italian Cavalry bugle call used by the Russian composer Tchaikovsky to open his Capriccio Italien(often mistaken for the U.S. military bugle call “Taps“).
Success
It has become a worldwide instrumental standard that has sold around 10 million copies. It was a number one hit in Italy, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and sold over five million copies by the end of 1967. Rosso was awarded a gold disc.
On 9 January 1965 it reached the Number 2 position in Australia and stayed in the charts for 19 weeks, and in the United Kingdom it peaked at number 8 on the Record Retailersingles chart. In the United States it reached #32 in the Billboard Easy Listening Charts. In Canada, the song reached #24 in the RPM Adult Contemporary charts.
Spoken lyrics
“Il Silenzio” contains these spoken lines:
Buona notte, amore
Ti vedrò nei miei sogni
Buona notte a te che sei lontano.
Good night, love
I’ll see you in my dreams
Good night to you who are far away.
Origin
“Il Silenzio” is a memorial piece commissioned by the Dutch and first played in 1965 on the 20th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands.
Charts
| Chart (1965–67) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) | 1 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) | 1 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia) | 2 |
| Italy (Musica e dischi) | 1 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 100) | 2 |
| Norway (VG-lista) | 4 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 8 |
| West Germany (Media Control) | 1 |
Uses
The song is the official club anthem of the Slovak football club FC Spartak Trnava. It is played before every home match.
Part of the song is also used in all the Italian barracks, to signal the end of the day. It has the same use in the Hellenic Army.
The song is also very often played at funerals in Poland, Slovenia and Croatia.
The tune has also been adapted to accompany the words of “Day is Done, Gone the Sun”, which is sung by Brownies and Guides. A version can be accessed at Day is Done Vocal Arrangement of Taps
Cover versions
Famous cover versions are by Dalida (who performed this song in French,
English
and German),
and Melissa Venema.
The German trumpeter Roy Etzel‘s version of the song, without lyrics, was also popular in the US and reached place 140 in the Billboard 200 on Christmas 1965.
A Māori version, with words by George Tait, titled “The Bridge”, was released by New Zealand entertainer Deane Waretini and topped the New Zealand singles charts in 1981.
Al Hirt released a version of the song as a single in 1965 that reached #19 on the adult contemporary chart and #96 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In 2008 the soloist was a 13-year-old Dutch girl, Melissa Venema, backed by André Rieu and the Royal Orchestra of the Netherlands.
- Virginia Lee – Goodbye My Love
- Ray Anthony Il Silenzio
- Murray Campbell – Goodbye My Love
Il Silenzio – Trumpet Solo
- lL Silenzio – Nini Rosso played on guitar by Eric
- André Rieu – Il Silenzio (The Silence)
- IL Silenzio – Nini Rosso – Guitar cover by Dave Monk
It was released by the London Swing Orchestra in 2015 as the final track of their fourth album, and features the trumpet of Michael Lovatt, who is now lead trumpet with the John Watson Orchestra and the BBC Big Band, Upbeat Records URCD266.
Dutch hit trumpeter Ryan Ricks (Rik Mol) has recorded “Il Silenzio” in 2018 for his album C’est la Vie released by Universal Music Group CD20186.
- Tommy Scott – IL Silenzio
In the 2014 film “American Sniper”, about Navy Seal Chris Kyle, was played at end of film, while showing funeral procession and memorial service at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
American Sniper (film)
This article is about the 2014 film.
| American Sniper | |
|---|---|
 May be found at the following website: IMP Awards, By Fair use, Link Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Clint Eastwood |
| Screenplay by | Jason Hall |
| Based on | American Sniper by Chris Kyle Scott McEwen Jim DeFelice |
| Produced by | Clint Eastwood Robert Lorenz Andrew Lazar Bradley Cooper Peter Morgan |
| Starring | Bradley Cooper Sienna Miller |
| Cinematography | Tom Stern |
| Edited by | Joel Cox Gary D. Roach |
| Production companies | Village Roadshow Pictures RatPac-Dune Entertainment Mad Chance Productions 22nd & Indiana Pictures Malpaso Productions |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release dates | November 11, 2014 (AFI Fest) December 25, 2014 (United States) |
| Running time | 132 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $59 million |
| Box office | $547.4 million |
American Sniper is a 2014 American biographical war drama film directed by Clint Eastwood and written by Jason Hall. It is loosely based on the memoir American Sniper (2012) by Chris Kyle, with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice. The film follows the life of Kyle, who became the deadliest marksman in U.S. military history with 255 kills from four tours in the Iraq War, 160 of which were officially confirmed by the Department of Defense. Although Kyle was celebrated for his military successes, his tours of duty took a heavy toll on his personal and family life. The film was produced by Eastwood, Robert Lorenz, Andrew Lazar, Bradley Cooper, and Peter Morgan. It stars Cooper as Kyle and Sienna Miller as his wife Taya, with Luke Grimes, Jake McDorman, Cory Hardrict, Kevin Lacz, Navid Negahban, and Keir O’Donnell in supporting roles.
The world premiere was on November 11, 2014, at the American Film Institute Festival, followed by a limited theatrical release in the United States on December 25, 2014, and a wide release on January 16, 2015. The film became a major success, with a worldwide gross of over $547 million, making it the 13th most successful film at the 2014 worldwide box office, the highest-grossing war film of all time unadjusted for inflation, the highest-grossing film with a wide release during the month of January, and Eastwood’s highest-grossing film.
The film received positive reviews, with praise for Cooper’s lead performance and Eastwood’s directing. At the 87th Academy Awards, American Sniper received six nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actor for Cooper, ultimately winning one award for Best Sound Editing.
Plot
Growing up in Texas, Chris Kyle is taught by his father how to shoot a rifle and hunt deer. Years later, Kyle has become a ranch hand and rodeo cowboy, and returns home early, to find his girlfriend in bed with another man. After telling her to leave, he is mulling it over with his brother when he sees news coverage of the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings and decides to enlist in the Navy. He qualifies for special training and becomes a sniper with the U.S. Navy SEALs.
Kyle meets Taya Studebaker at a bar, and the two soon marry. He is sent to Iraq after the September 11 attacks. His first kills are a woman and boy who attacked U.S. Marines on patrol with a Russian-made RKG-3 anti-tank grenade. Kyle is visibly upset by the experience, but later earns the nickname “Legend” for his many kills. Assigned to hunt for the al-Qaeda leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Kyle interrogates a family whose father offers to lead the SEALs to “The Butcher”, al-Zarqawi’s second-in-command. The plan goes awry when The Butcher captures the father and his son, killing them while Kyle is pinned down by a sniper. This sniper goes by the name Mustafa and is an Olympic Games medalist from Syria. Meanwhile, the insurgents issue a bounty on Kyle.
Kyle returns home to his wife and the birth of his son. He is distracted by memories of his war experiences and by Taya’s concern for them as a couple – she wishes he would focus on his home and family.
Kyle leaves for a second tour and is promoted to chief petty officer. Involved in a shootout with The Butcher, he helps in killing him. When he returns home to a newborn daughter, Kyle becomes increasingly distant from his family. On Kyle’s third tour, Mustafa seriously injures a unit member, Ryan “Biggles” Job, and the unit is evacuated back to base. When they decide to return to the field and continue the mission, another SEAL, Marc Lee, is killed by gunfire.
Guilt compels Kyle to undertake a fourth tour, and Taya tells him she may not be there when he returns. Back in Iraq, Kyle is shocked to learn Biggles died in surgery to repair the wounds he sustained. Assigned to kill Mustafa, who has been sniping U.S. Army combat engineers building a barricade, Kyle’s sniper team is placed on a rooftop inside enemy territory. Kyle spots Mustafa and takes him out with a risky long distance shot at 2,100 yards (1,920 m), but this exposes his team’s position to numerous armed insurgents. In the midst of the gunfight, and low on ammunition, Kyle tearfully calls Taya and tells her he is ready to come home. A sandstorm provides cover for a chaotic escape in which Kyle is injured and almost left behind.
After Kyle gets back, on edge and unable to adjust fully to civilian life, he is asked by a Veterans Affairs psychiatrist if he is haunted by all the things he did in war. When he replies it is “all the guys [he] couldn’t save” that haunt him, the psychiatrist encourages him to help severely wounded veterans in the VA hospital. After that, Kyle gradually begins to adjust to home life.
Years later, on February 2, 2013, Kyle says goodbye to his wife and family as he leaves in good spirits to spend time with Eddie Ray Routh, a veteran suffering from PTSD at a shooting range. An on-screen subtitle reveals that Kyle was killed that day by Routh, followed by archive footage of crowds standing along the highway for his funeral procession. More are shown attending his memorial service.
Cast
- Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle
- Sienna Miller as Taya Kyle
- Luke Grimes as Marc Lee
- Jake McDorman as Ryan “Biggles” Job
- Cory Hardrict as “D” / Dandridge
- Kevin “Dauber” Lacz as himself
- Navid Negahban as Sheikh Al-Obodi
- Keir O’Donnell as Jeff Kyle
- Kyle Gallner as Goat-Winston
- Sam Jaeger as Captain Martens
- Sammy Sheik as Mustafa, a character partially based on Iraqi sniper Juba
- Mido Hamada as “The Butcher”, a character possibly based on Abu Deraa
- Eric Close as DIA Agent Snead
- Eric Ladin as Squirrel
- Ben Reed as Wayne Kyle
- Brian Hallisay as Captain Gillespie
- Tim Griffin as Colonel Gronski
- Chance Kelly as Lt. Colonel Jones
- Elise Robertson as Deby Kyle
- Marnette Patterson as Sara
- Cole Konis as Young Chris Kyle
- Leonard Roberts as Instructor Rolle
- Luke Sunshine as Young Jeff Kyle
- Max Charles as Colton Kyle
- Troy Vincent as Pastor
- Vincent Selhorst-Jones as Eddie Ray Routh
Production
Development
By Cpl. Damien Gutierrez – Public Domain, Link. Chris Kyle in 2012
On May 24, 2012, it was announced that Warner Bros. (WB) had acquired the rights to the book with Bradley Cooper set to produce and star in the screen adaptation. Cooper had thought of Chris Pratt to play Kyle, but WB agreed to buy it only if Cooper would star. In September 2012, David O. Russell said he was interested in directing the film. On February 2, 2013, Chris Kyle was murdered. On May 2, 2013, it was announced that Steven Spielberg would direct. Spielberg had read Kyle’s book, though he desired to have a more psychological conflict present in the screenplay so an “enemy sniper” character could serve as the insurgent sharpshooter who was trying to track down and kill Kyle. Spielberg’s ideas contributed to the development of a lengthy screenplay approaching 160 pages. Due to WB’s budget constraints, Spielberg felt he could not bring his vision of the story to the screen. On August 5, 2013, Spielberg dropped out of directing.
On August 21, 2013, it was reported that Clint Eastwood would instead direct the film.
- American Sniper: Clint Eastwood Exclusive Interview Part 2 | ScreenSlam
- The Guns of American Sniper
Casting
On March 14, 2014, Sienna Miller joined the cast. On March 16, 2014, Kyle Gallner was cast, as was Cory Hardrict on March 18, 2014. On March 20, 2014, Navid Negahban, Eric Close, Eric Ladin, Rey Gallegos, and Jake McDorman also joined the cast, as did Luke Grimes and Sam Jaeger on March 25, 2014. Kevin Lacz, a former Navy SEAL, was also cast and served as a technical advisor. Another former Navy SEAL, Joel Lambert, also joined the film, portraying a Delta sniper. On June 3, Max Charles was added to the cast to portray Kyle’s son, Colton Kyle.
Filming
Principal photography began on March 31, 2014 in Los Angeles; it was also shot in Morocco. On April 23, the Los Angeles Times reported that ten days of filming set in an Afghan village was set to begin at the Blue Cloud Movie Ranch in the Santa Clarita area. On May 7, shooting of the film was spotted around El Centro; a milk factory was used as the abandoned date factory which insurgents close in on from all directions at the climax of the film. The pier and bar scenes were filmed in Seal Beach, California.
Cinematographer Tom Stern shot the film with Arri Alexa XT digital cameras and Panavision C-, E- and G-Series anamorphic lenses. The film is Eastwood’s second to be shot digitally, after Jersey Boys.
Music
There is no “Music by” credit on this film. Clint Eastwood, who has composed the scores for most of his films since Mystic River (2003), is credited as the composer of “Taya’s Theme”. Joseph S. DeBeasi is credited as composer of additional music and as music editor. The film also features the song “Someone Like You” by Van Morrison, which plays during the wedding scene,
and “The Funeral” by Ennio Morricone.
Reception
Box office
American Sniper grossed $350.1 million in North America and $197 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $547.1 million, against a budget of around $58 million. Calculating in all expenses and revenues, Deadline Hollywood estimated that the film made a profit of $243 million, making it the second-most profitable film of 2014 only behind Paramount‘s Transformers: Age of Extinction. Worldwide, it is the highest-grossing war film of all time (breaking Saving Private Ryan‘s record) and Eastwood’s highest-grossing film to date. It is the seventh R-rated film to gross over $500 million.
North America
In North America, it was the highest-grossing film of 2014, the highest-grossing war film unadjusted for inflation (and, on an adjusted basis, second to Saving Private Ryan with $379 million), the fourth-highest-grossing R-rated film of all time (behind The Passion of the Christ, Deadpool, and Deadpool 2), Warner Bros.‘ fourth-highest-grossing film (behind The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2), and the eighth-highest-grossing Best Picture nominee film (behind Avatar, Titanic, Star Wars, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Toy Story 3, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers). It became the seventh Warner Bros.’ film to earn over $300 million in the U.S. and Canada and the 50th film to reach the mark. It earned as much as the combined earnings of all of the other 2014 Best Picture nominees. On March 8, 2015, it surpassed The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 to become the highest-grossing film of 2014, making it the first R-rated film since Saving Private Ryan (1998) and the first non-franchise film since Avatar (2009) to top the year-end rankings.
American Sniper premiered at the AFI Fest on November 11, 2014, just after a screening of Selma at Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles. In North America, the film opened to a limited release on December 25, 2014, playing at four theaters—two in New York, one in Los Angeles, and one in Dallas—and earned $610,000 in its opening weekend ($850,000 including Christmas Day) at an average of $152,500 per venue debuting at #22. The following week the film earned $676,909 playing at the same number of locations at an average of $169,277 per theater, which is the second-biggest weekend average ever for a live-action movie (previously held by 2001’s Moulin Rouge!). American Sniper holds the record for the most entries in the top 20 Top Weekend Theater Averages with 3 entries (at #12, #14 and #17). It earned a total of $3.4 million from limited release in three weekends.
The film began its wide debut across North American theaters on January 16, 2015 (Thursday night showings began at 7:00 pm). It set an all-time-highest Thursday night opening record for an R-rated drama with $5.3 million (previously held by Lone Survivor). The film topped the box office on its opening day grossing $30.5 million (including Thursday previews) from 3,555 theaters setting January records for both biggest debut opening (previously held by Cloverfield) and single-day gross (previously held by Avatar). In its traditional three-day opening the film earned $89.2 million which was double than expected and broke the record for the largest January opening (previously held by Ride Along) and the largest winter opening, which is also Eastwood’s top opening as a director (breaking Gran Torino‘s opening). The three-day opening is also the biggest opening weekend for a drama film (previously held by The Passion of the Christ), the second-biggest debut for a Best Picture Oscar nominee (behind Toy Story 3), the second-biggest debut for an R-rated film (behind The Matrix Reloaded), and the third-biggest for a non-comic book, non-fantasy/sci-fi film (behind Furious 7 and Fast & Furious 6). It also set an IMAX January opening and single weekend record with $10.6 million (previously held by Avatar in its fourth weekend) and an R-rated IMAX debut record (previously held by Prometheus). It earned $107.2 million during its four-day Martin Luther King weekend setting a record for the biggest R-rated four-day gross.
In its second weekend, the film expanded to 3,705 theaters making it the second-widest launch for an R-rated movie (behind the film itself). It grossed an estimated $64.6 million in its second weekend, declining only by 28%—and set the record for the second-best hold ever for a movie opening to more than $85 million and also set the record for the eighth-largest second-weekend gross. In just 10 days of release, the film surpassed Pearl Harbor ($198.5 million) to become the second-highest-grossing war film in North America. By its second weekend, Box Office Mojo had already reported that the film was on poise to become the highest-grossing film of 2014 in North America, a record that was, at the time held by The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 ($334 million), judging from its gradual decline and strong holdovers. It became the highest-grossing IMAX film of January grossing $18.8 million from 333 IMAX theaters. On Thursday, January 29, 2015–35 days after its initial release, the film surpassed Saving Private Ryan ($216.5 million) to become the highest-grossing war film in North America, unadjusted for inflation.
By its third weekend of wide release, the film expanded to 3,885 theaters (180 additional theaters added), breaking its own record of being the widest R-rated film ever released. The film topped the box office through its third weekend earning $30.66 million, which is the second-highest Super Bowl weekend gross (behind Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert). After topping the box office for three consecutive weekends, the film was overtaken by The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water in its fourth weekend.
Outside North America
The film had the biggest debut weekend for a Clint Eastwood film, and went on to become the director’s top-grossing film of all time in each of the countries in which it was released. In Italy the film opened at number two with $7.1 million, Eastwood’s best opening of all time, and Warner Bros.’ second-biggest opening for a non-franchise U.S. film there; it went on to top the box office the following weekend as well. Its other largest openings occurred in France ($6.3 million), where it topped the box office for four consecutive weekends, Australia ($4.3 million, $4.6 million including previews), the UK, Ireland and Malta ($3.8 million), Spain ($3.2 million), Japan ($2.8 million), Mexico ($2.6 million), Brazil ($1.8 million), and South Korea ($1.2 million). In total earnings, its largest market outside of the U.S. are Italy ($23 million) and France ($22.8 million).
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 72%, based on 294 reviews, with an average rating of 6.90/10. The website’s critical consensus states, “Powered by Clint Eastwood’s sure-handed direction and a gripping central performance from Bradley Cooper, American Sniper delivers a tense, vivid tribute to its real-life subject.” On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 72 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating “generally favorable reviews”. In CinemaScore polls conducted during the opening weekend, audiences gave American Sniper a rare grade of “A+” on an A+ to F scale.
Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter called the film “A taut, vivid and sad account of the brief life of the most accomplished marksman in American military annals.” Justin Chang of Variety gave the film a positive review, saying: “an excellent performance from a bulked-up Bradley Cooper, this harrowing and intimate character study offers fairly blunt insights into the physical and psychological toll exacted on the front lines”. David Denby of The New Yorker gave the film a positive review, saying “Both a devastating war movie and a devastating antiwar movie, a subdued celebration of a warrior’s skill and a sorrowful lament over his alienation and misery.” Keith Phipps of The Dissolve wrote that the film, while well made, missed a chance to explore the toll that such service exacts on soldiers. Chris Nashawaty of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a C+, saying “The film’s just a repetition of context-free combat missions and one-dimensional targets.” Elizabeth Weitzman of New York Daily News gave the film four out of five stars, saying “The best movies are ever-shifting, intelligent and open-hearted enough to expand alongside an audience. American Sniper … is built on this foundation of uncommon compassion.” Kyle Smith of the New York Post gave the film four out of four stars, saying “After 40 years of Hollywood counterpropaganda telling us war is necessarily corrupting and malign, … American Sniper nobly presents the case for the other side.”
Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying “Bradley Cooper, as Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, and director Eastwood salute Kyle’s patriotism best by not denying its toll. Their targets are clearly in sight, and their aim is true.” Ignatiy Vishnevetsky of The A.V. Club gave the film a B, saying “American Sniper is imperfect and at times a little corny, but also ambivalent and complicated in ways that are uniquely Eastwoodian.” James Berardinelli of ReelViews gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying “American Sniper lifts director Clint Eastwood out of the doldrums that have plagued his last few films.” Rafer Guzman of Newsday gave the film three out of four stars, saying “Cooper nails the role of an American killing machine in Clint Eastwood’s clear-eyed look at the Iraq War.” Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times gave the film a positive review, saying “Eastwood’s impeccably crafted action sequences so catch us up in the chaos of combat we are almost not aware that we’re watching a film at all.” Claudia Puig of USA Today gave the film three out of four stars, saying “It’s clearly Cooper’s show. Substantially bulked up and affecting a believable Texas drawl, Cooper embodies Kyle’s confidence, intensity and vulnerability.” Joshua Rothkopf of Time Out New York gave the film four out of five stars, saying “Only Clint Eastwood could make a movie about an Iraq War veteran and infuse it with doubts, mission anxiety and ruination.” Dean Obeidallah praised the film, saying “His focus was not on whom we were fighting, but the unbearably high price Americans pay for waging war regardless of its target. The film is a cautionary tale for Americans about why we must avoid war. It is not a celebration of waging it.”
The film drew some negative reviews. Matt Taibbi, in Rolling Stone, wrote that the movie turned the complicated moral questions and mass-bloodshed of the Iraq war into a black and white fairy tale, without presenting the historical context. Alex von Tunzelmann of The Guardian argued that the film presented a simplified black and white portrayal of the Iraq war, and that it features the distortion of facts into unreliable myths based upon previous legends. David Masciotra of Salon criticized the movie’s focus on physical rather than moral courage as the ultimate manly virtue. Cavalry scout sniper Garett Reppenhagen stated that he did not view Iraqi civilians as savages, but as part of a friendly culture for which the movie has furthered ignorance, fear, and bigotry. Inkoo Kang of TheWrap gave the film a negative review, saying “Director Clint Eastwood’s focus on Kyle is so tight that no other character, including wife Taya (Sienna Miller), comes through as a person, and the scope so narrow that the film engages only superficially with the many moral issues surrounding the Iraq War.” Several other articles have also been critical of the movie.
Cair‘s communications director Ibrahim Hooper wrote “I think a lot of the controversy about the movie [American Sniper] is not about its actual content, but more with the life and the views of the actual sniper, who had who had [sic?] written a number derogatory things about Islam and Arabs … so that seeps into it beyond even the content of the movie itself… This movie has elicited a wide variety of emotions from a kind of the super-patriotism reactions to the reaction that it perpetuates anti-Muslim stereotypes and even violence. So, there’s a broad range of opinions about the movie and it’s good to have those opinions aired and discussed.”
Responding to critics, Eastwood said that American Sniper shows “what [war] does to the people left behind”, and that presenting “the fact of what [war] does to the family and the people who have to go back into civilian life like Chris Kyle did” is the “biggest antiwar statement any film” can make. He stated: “One of my favorite war movies that I’ve been involved with is Letters from Iwo Jima and that was about family, about being taken away from life, being sent someplace. In World War II, everybody just sort of went home and got over it. Now there is some effort to help people through it.” He also said: “I was a child growing up during World War II. That was supposed to be the one to end all wars. And four years later, I was standing at the draft board being drafted during the Korean conflict, and then after that there was Vietnam, and it goes on and on forever … I just wonder … does this ever stop? And no, it doesn’t. So each time we get in these conflicts, it deserves a lot of thought before we go wading in or wading out. Going in or coming out. It needs a better thought process, I think.”
Bradley Cooper stated that much of the criticism ignores that the film was about widespread neglect of returning veterans, and that people who take issue with Kyle should redirect their attention to the leaders who put the troops there in the first place. He said: “We looked at hopefully igniting attention about the lack of care that goes to vets. [Any] discussion that has nothing to do with vets, or what we did or did not do [for them], every conversation in those terms is moving farther and farther from what our soldiers go through, and the fact that 22 veterans commit suicide each day.” Cooper said that an increasing number of soldiers are returning from conflict psychologically damaged, only to be more or less discarded.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama and former Republican Party vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin also spoke out in support of the movie.
Prop baby
One aspect of the film that received negative comment was its use of a fake baby doll in one scene, which was said to look obviously artificial and that it was a distraction to critics and viewers. In at least one media screening of the film, the audience laughed out loud at how artificial the doll appeared. When discussing the film’s prospects for winning an Academy Award, Fandango critic Dave Karger said, “The reason why American Sniper is not going to win is because of the plastic baby.” In The Telegraph, journalist Mark Harris said, “That plastic baby is going to be rationalised by Eastwood auteur cultists until the end of days.” In response, screenwriter Jason Hall replied, “Hate to ruin the fun but real baby #1 showed up with a fever. Real baby #2 was no show. [Clint voice] ‘Gimme the doll, kid.'”
Top ten lists
American Sniper was listed on many critics’ top ten lists.
- 1st – Kyle Smith, New York Post
- 3rd – Ty Burr, The Boston Globe
- 6th – Richard Brody, The New Yorker
- 6th – James Verniere, Boston Herald
- 7th – James Berardinelli, Reelviews
- 7th – Lou Lumenick, New York Post
- 8th – Mara Reinstein, Us Weekly
- 9th – Scott Feinberg, The Hollywood Reporter
- 9th – Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News
- 10th – Scott Foundas, Variety
- 10th – People
- Top 10 (ranked alphabetically) – David Denby, The New Yorker
- Best of 2014 (listed alphabetically, not ranked) – Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
- Best of 2014 (listed alphabetically, not ranked) – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
Home media
American Sniper was released on Blu-ray and DVD on May 19, 2015.
Upon its first week of release on home media in the U.S., the film topped both the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert chart, which tracks overall disc sales, as well as the Blu-ray Disc sales chart in the week ending May 24, 2015.
Accolades
| Organizations | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Clint Eastwood, Robert Lorenz, Andrew Lazar, Bradley Cooper and Peter Morgan | Nominated | |
| Best Actor | Bradley Cooper | Nominated | ||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Jason Hall | Nominated | ||
| Best Film Editing | Joel Cox and Gary D. Roach | Nominated | ||
| Best Sound Editing | Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman | Won | ||
| Best Sound Mixing | John T. Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Walt Martin | Nominated | ||
| Art Directors Guild Awards | Excellence in Production Design for a Contemporary Film | James J. Murakami, Charisse Cardenas | Nominated | |
| ACE Eddie Awards | Best Edited Feature Film – Dramatic | Joel Cox and Gary D. Roach | Nominated | |
| American Film Institute Awards 2014 | Top Ten Films of the Year | Won | ||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Jason Hall | Nominated | |
| Best Sound | Walt Martin, John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff, Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman | Nominated | ||
| Cinema Audio Society Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Live Action | Walt Martin, Gregg Rudloff, John Reitz, Robert Fernandez, Thomas J. O’Connell, James Ashwell | Nominated | |
| Critics’ Choice Award | Best Action Movie | American Sniper | Nominated | |
| Best Actor in an Action Movie | Bradley Cooper | Won | ||
| Denver Film Critics Society | Best Picture | American Sniper | Won | |
| Best Director | Clint Eastwood | Nominated | ||
| Best Actor | Bradley Cooper (tied with Ralph Fiennes in The Grand Budapest Hotel) | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Sienna Miller | Nominated | ||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Jason Hall | Nominated | ||
| Best Cinematography | Tom Stern | Nominated | ||
| Directors Guild of America Award | Outstanding Directing – Feature Film | Clint Eastwood | Nominated | |
| Empire Awards | Best Actor | Bradley Cooper | Nominated | |
| Iowa Film Critics | Best Movie Yet to Open in Iowa | American Sniper (tied with A Most Violent Year) | Won | |
| MPSE Golden Reel Awards | Feature English Language – Effects/Foley | Bub Asman, Alan Robert Murray | Won | |
| MTV Movie Awards | Movie of the Year | American Sniper | Nominated | |
| Best Male Performance | Bradley Cooper | Won | ||
| National Board of Review | Top Ten Film | Won | ||
| Best Director | Clint Eastwood | Won | ||
| Producers Guild of America Awards | Best Theatrical Motion Picture | Bradley Cooper, Clint Eastwood, Andrew Lazar, Robert Lorenz, Peter Morgan | Nominated | |
| Satellite Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Jason Hall | Nominated | |
| Best Editing | Gary Roach and Joel Cox | Nominated | ||
| Saturn Awards | Best Thriller Film | American Sniper | Nominated | |
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Jason Hall | Nominated |
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