Ex-pat Kiwi writer/director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca) directs Nicolas Cage in this new action drama about the global weapons trade.
Yuri Orlov (Cage) is a fictional American arms dealer apparently based on several real life figures. Orlov's unique career begins in the early 80s with him selling one-off pieces to criminals in his neighbourhood.
Steadily working his way up to become an international trader, he gets his biggest boost with the end of the cold war and is eventually selling massive stockpiles of weapons to warlords and other dangerous types.
All throughout he is relentlessly pursued by earnest Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke). Orlov himself pursues model Ava Fontaine (Bridget Moynahan - I, Robot) and must continually contend with his troubled younger brother Vitaly (Jared Leto) who was initially his business partner but soon succumbed to a recurring drug problem.
Lord of War presents a visually and dramatically arresting experience that never quite spills over into greatness. Or even really goodness for that matter.
Even though it may not be wholly successful in its specific goals, it should ultimately be applauded for simply addressing the subject matter. But there's a sense that the allegories that become clear at the end would be better served if more directly addressed in the story.
Effective use of voice-over helps to keep the story moving, and the international locations keep what's on screen interesting.
If the film doesn't succeed completely as a whole, it definitely features several cool set-pieces. The title sequence is almost worth seeing the film for alone; and the stripping of a massive plane on a deserted African road is great.
But while it's clear he's trying for something original, Niccol's style proves inconsistent - some action scenes are executed with verve and originality, while others seem like Bond-film cast-offs.
Nicolas Cage has been a problematic actor for some time now,
often veering dangerously close to the self-caricatured stylings of
Sean Penn and Robert De Niro.
He is generally fine in this film however, placing the performance
somewhere between crappy, modern Cage and classic captivating
Cage.
For the most part, he smartly underplays Orlov, making him seem like an emotionless (if admittedly immoral) participant in the horrific events that surround him. This works for the film.
Hawke and Moynahan are both good, but Leto fails to truly get a grasp on where his character is coming from, and portrays Vitaly in broad strokes. Ian Holm is effectively menacing as a fellow arms dealer.
Three separate actors play a shadowy military character whom we never get a decent look at credited as Colonel Oliver Southern, Gee, I wonder who could they possibly be referring to with that name?
Lord of War isn't as blatantly high concept as Niccol's earlier films (he also made the digital actress satire SimOne; and wrote the original screenplay for The Truman Show), but it still has an effective through line.
I liked where the story arc went and where it ended up, it just perhaps took a little too long to get there. But Lord of War is not a waste of your time by any stretch.
It's been described as Blow with guns instead of cocaine, which is pretty much correct, so if that sounds like your bag, you shouldn't be disappointed.
Recommended.
Dominic Corry
Lord of War is released on March 23.
