Worth Seeing: Yes
The Gist:
A really good tension filled movie that kept me guessing. I did not like the ending but I will cover spoilers below.
Review with Spoilers:
So really I just want to talk about the ending, so if you haven't seen it look away. So at the end of the movie he gets out alive. And the way they set it up makes it really surprising that he does because every preview and everything made it seem like he was going to die over there. Plus during the movie my wife turns to me and says,
"So do you know what happens to him in real life?"
Ummm no and don't you dare tell me. Even her saying that made me think he died. But no he makes it out of Iraq. The movie then shows him adjusting to family life and all. But then it goes on to show his death, which as the movie makes it seem is just after he gets back he was killed by another war veteran who was crazy. Now, I understand that is what happened in real life, but why not stop the movie before that. I mean, did it have to cover his entire life? To be honest it was kind of his biography, it did have his childhood and everything. But I don't know, just seemed kind of stupid. And to be honest this is why I was a little bummed when I found out it was a true story. True stories aren't as good as made up ones for me. True stories are messy, they don't all fit together, there is no rhyme or reason why things happen, because, well, that's life. And American Sniper was a great movie up until we find out how his life ended. Maybe it soured me just because death can be so random and stupid but I don't know I felt like it could have been better if they had just ended it after he got back.
On a side note I am realizing that I like happy endings. So I think you may want to throw out this review. I just finished the Martian and before it ended I knew that if he did not make it I would not like it as much. I'll have to get over that.
On a counter side note, I love unhappy endings in my fantasy novels. I loved when Ned stark died in Lord of the Rings, or when Bran was pushed off the tower. It made every character not safe and rose the tension.