Lord of War

[whitenavel]

I'm not sure why Lion's Gate chose not to publicize this film. Very little promotion from Cage on the talk show circuit, not many commercials. I only saw the trailer online. I know it's a hard sell, a film about arms dealers.
But what a pleasant surprise. Cage is usually hit or miss, but he hits with this one. Excellent film with a message but it isn't preachy.
Nice direction by Andrew Niccoll. Cage does a good job of making the protag easy to like and hate at the same time.
Great opening sequence in the life of a bullet from assembly line to it's final destination.

[Hairy Lime]

What's the message if you don't mind me asking?

[whitenavel]

The message is pretty simple about the selling of arms to foreign countries. This guy sells his guns to whomever wants them and he doesn't care who they are as long as they are being used. To me, the message seemed to show there will always be someone like Yuri (Cage) selling arms and that the larger nations need someone like to him to carry out that job to help those richer nations. There is a lot of reality in what happens in this film.

I guess what I am trying to say (and say poorly) is that there will always be people like this, selling guns to poor countries, because weapons are always in need. The film has an anti-arms dealing message while showing this continuing reality that probably will never be slowed.

[santino2699]

It looks and sounds interesting.
Sort of like the futility of the War on Drugs in TRAFFIC.

S

[dclary]

Dan Aykroyd's "Sale of the Century" was SO much better than this.

[Slappynipsy]

Dan Aykroyd's "Sale of the Century" was SO much better than this.

Wasn't that Chevy Chase?

[whitenavel]

Actually, Traffic came to mind while watching LOW.
Arms and drugs, something that will always be bought and sold throughout the world.

[dclary]

Was it, slappy? The movie was eminently forgetable.


Which is a slam on this new version, of course.

[TwoBrad Bradley]

... Excellent film with a message but it isn't preachy. ...
Great opening sequence in the life of a bullet from assembly line to it's final destination.
whitenavel, you made me smile.

The message is that we, the “public” are just as guilty as Yuri. We are not doing anything illegal. We know it’s going on and we allow this to continue.

SPOILER (in the sense that the movie didn’t end this way):

If I wanted to drive home the point and still have the “villain” receive his comeuppance, I would have ended it this way (just brainstorming here):

After Yuri’s little rant in the holding room:

VALENTINE (Ethan Hawke)
I know that. There are dozens of guys like
you.
(leans in close)
You’re an embarrassment. Do you think they
are going to let you live now that you’ve been
exposed?

There’s a knock on the door.

FADE OUT.

[Hairy Lime]

A Nic Cage action movie gets slammed by Clary? I suspect the auteur virus has already begun to worm its way into his brain. I predict a recanting of Highlander by the end of the year.

[whitenavel]

I wasn't comparing this film to Traffic, but the message regarding the similarity in the sale of drugs and guns.

The message is that we, the “public” are just as guilty as Yuri. We are not doing anything illegal. We know it’s going on and we allow this to continue.

Just like we do with the drug trade.

[dclary]

Limey, I have always disliked Nicholas Cage. So this is nothing new. My love for Highlander is eternal.

[wcmartell]

I'm with Writerly on this one - it seemed scattershot. His brother's drug problem? His marriage to the model? All of these subplots that just seemed to be pasted on. It woul cd have been better if there was a direct connection between the brother's drug problem and the arms deals (and there may have been one, but it really wasn't explored well on film), and maybe Cage was trying to find love with the model... but that wasn't explored well.

This was an *internal* story - and wasn't adapted well to the screen (the VO, etc).

As for how much Lions Gate spent on promoting the film, I'll bet their decision was made on audience response to test screenings. They had Cage and Niccol and any release date they wanted... and they dumped it. Let's see how WOM affects next weekend's numbers - will people tell their friends to see it or skip it?

- Bill

[santino2699]

Limey, I have always disliked Nicholas Cage. So this is nothing new. My love for Highlander is eternal.

tell me you didn't love him in Raising Arizona, though, D?

[dclary]

Never saw it. Probably never will. Mostly because it stars him.

I saw National Treasure. It would have been a good movie if it hadn't had him.

It would have been a better movie if they'd just admitted they were stealing a Dirk Pitt adventure and done it Clive Cussler style.

[Pen Dragon]

dc. you know i can't stand cage either, except in two movies where he's actually playing characters that make you forget it's him - Raising Arizona and Peggy Sue Got Married. Peggy Sue wouldn't be up your alley probably. But Raising Arizona i can see making you laugh. it's a classic. check it out

[whitenavel]

He's done some great work:
Leaving Las Vegas
Raising Arizona
Adaptation.
Valley Girl
and my favorite,
Honeymoon in Vegas

[kaos1000]

I just saw this and left scratching my head. Where was the movie?

This was:
An arms dealer travels around the world dealing weapons.
The End.

How bout a sub plot?, or a plot even.

It all made sense at the end when we were informed that this was a political protest piece based on actual events.


kaos

[sasqits]

Cage was also great in Wild at Heart and Matchstick Men.