American Sniper

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American Sniper

R

2015

2h 12m

War

Biography

Drama

Action

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

71%

Tomatometer

302 Reviews

84%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) takes his sole mission -- protect his comrades -- to heart and becomes one of the most lethal snipers in American history. His pinpoint accuracy not only saves countless lives but also makes him a prime target of insurgents. Despite grave danger and his struggle to be a good husband and father to his family back in the States, Kyle serves four tours of duty in Iraq. However, when he finally returns home, he finds that he cannot leave the war behind.

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Critics Consensus

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.

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Kat Sachs

Chicago Reader

03/04/2025

I don’t know that it accomplishes the same covert intricacy as some other Eastwood films, but it was interesting to revisit.

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Udita Jhunjhunwala

Livemint

08/05/2019

The script and direction are unabashedly skewed towards feeding a lowest-common-denominator notion of war heroes and takes a righteous stand in favour of war, rather than exploring or portraying an authentic picture of the psychological impact...

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J. Hoberman

The New York Review of Books

03/07/2019

For many, I suspect, American Sniper may be weirdly liberating-gratifying a perhaps hitherto unsuspected desire to see their pessimism, hopeless and unchanging, projected on the screen.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

08/19/2023

Eastwood steers clear of politics—it’s not about questioning the mission, it’s about the toll the mission takes on victims and survivors alike.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

07/12/2022

2.5/4

Eastwood and Hall construct a very cinematic, romantic tale that leaves little to question; though reality, as always, is far more intricate and certainly not as black-and-white. As the saying goes, "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

06/26/2022

5/5

In many ways, "American Sniper" is new territory for Clint Eastwood while still retaining his signature hallmark of grit and heart.

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Jeff C

12/28/2021

Emotional. (Minus the obvious fake baby blunder), remarkable film.

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N

11/17/2021

I think this was better than a lot of people say.

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William I

11/12/2021

It was fast-moving and was an accurate picture of the circumstances at that time. The actors were excellent!

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Rowan C

@RowanC3 1d

American Sniper tells a true story about Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) and his journey through his military life. The family of Chris Kyle said that this movie is a very accurate depiction of his life and that Bradley Cooper acted just like him. This movie showed Chris serving 4 tours in the military, while being crowned the "Legend". He had 160 confirmed kills in the military, the Iraqis had a $180,000 bounty on his head, and they called him the "Devil of Ramadi". Bradley Cooper showcased PTSD very well because Chris had to do a lot of horrible things over in the Middle East. He finally decided to come home after a big battle and did have to get help when he got home. He found peace in helping other veterans fight their battles, and that calmed his PTSD down. Chris Kyle did so much for this country, and he was killed by a fellow veteran named Eddie Ray Routh (Vincent Hellhorst-Jones), who had a psychotic episode. Overall, I loved this movie, and I loved the representation of Chris Kyle.

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Antoni W

@Antonir 3d

Mediocre all the way

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Andrew T

@RT26197345 Aug 17

American Sniper works for me because it understands that the battlefield isn’t necessarily left behind when a soldier comes home. Based on Chris Kyle’s memoir and experiences, the movie follows someone extraordinarily capable at his job while gradually showing the psychological cost of repeatedly returning to combat. The sniper sequences are tense, but the quieter moments are just as important. Being surrounded by family yet mentally somewhere thousands of miles away says more than another firefight ever could. I also appreciate that the movie doesn’t pretend repeated exposure to death and responsibility simply disappears when the deployment ends. It’s intense and heartbreaking, but ultimately as much about the difficulty of coming home as going to war in the first place.

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Synopsis

U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle (Bradley Cooper) takes his sole mission -- protect his comrades -- to heart and becomes one of the most lethal snipers in American history. His pinpoint accuracy not only saves countless lives but also makes him a prime target of insurgents. Despite grave danger and his struggle to be a good husband and father to his family back in the States, Kyle serves four tours of duty in Iraq. However, when he finally returns home, he finds that he cannot leave the war behind.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Producer: Robert Lorenz, Andrew Lazar, Bradley Cooper, Peter Morgan
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Mad Chance, 22nd & Indiana, Malpaso Company
Rating: R (Some Sexual References|Language Throughout|Strong Disturbing War Violence)
Genre: War, Biography, Drama, Action, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 16, 2015, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 19, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $350.1M
Runtime: 2h 12m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, Datasat, Dolby Atmos
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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