September 18, 2005, revised in 2010 -- “Lords of War” has a deep message: Gun runners are bad people. They are merchants of death who feed off the suffering of humanity. Well, duh! The same can be said of some unscrupulous gun dealers, although the NRA would cloak it in some kind of patriotic, self-defense nonsense. Note the spike in gun sales in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina when a million people were displaced: “Aaak! Black people are moving into the neighborhood! I must buy a gun!” Even more guns were sold when President Barack Obama was elected. In one of the great instances of viral gun marketing ever seen, gun buyers were persuaded Democrats would outlaw guns so they should buy immediately. Instead, gun rights have actually increased since the election.

Besides stating the obvious, “Lords of War” is annoyingly preachy and very predictable. If it wasn't for the great acting, a solid script and strong direction, this would be a tiresome movie. The obviousness of the movie is also a strength of sorts. It does have the courage to show the truth. Because of this, it will probably not be a popular movie in the United States. We don't like to be reminded that we, and the other great industrial powers of the world are the world's biggest arms merchants.

Nicholas Cage of “National Treasure” stars as Yuri Orlov, gun runner, or international arms merchant, if you prefer. We see Yuri's rise from a small-time hustler in New York to the world's largest private arms dealer. We see how he finds ways to outsmart Interpol and the ATF. We also see how the collapse of the Soviet Union created windfall profits for arms dealers and how the scrupulous old-school arms dealers were swept aside and replaced by an amoral new breed, of which Orlov is an example. In one scene Yuri says that you haven't reached the pinnacle of his profession until you have sold weapons to the enemies of your own country. Yuri is reluctantly joined in the business by his younger brother, Vitaly (Jared Leto of “Panic Room”). Yuri's wife, Ava (Bridget Moynahan of “I, Robot”) is willing to turn a blind eye to her husband's business dealings and accept the lies he tells her.

Incorruptible, relentless and moral Interpol agent Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke of “Assault on Precinct 13”), pursues Yuri around the world, but always seems to be one step behind. In a fair fight, Valentine would win this battle, but politics and the law are stacked against him. Over time, we see Yuri pulled down by the pursuit and by the corrosive nature of the arms business. Like a drug addict, the business finally burns away everything of value in Yuri's life, leaving only the appearance of a life. This march is slow and inevitable during the course of the film. There are no surprises. All of its punches are telegraphed. Still, the film does have power. It is not based on a true story, but is based on the stories of several real arms dealers.

The acting is excellent all the way through the film, including minor characters like the west African warlord, Andre Baptiste (played by Eamonn Walker of “Tears of the Sun”), the old-school arms dealer Simeon Weisz (Ian Holm of “The Aviator”), the corrupt Ukranian general Dmitri (Yevgeni Lazarev of “The Sum of All Fears”), and many others. The dialogue is smart throughout, with a lot of great one-liners. The film was written, directed and produced by Andrew Niccol (“Gattaca”). Visually, the film includes a lot of memorable images, like the journey of a bullet from manufacture to final destination from the bullet's point of view. A close-up of a street in a third-world country covered by shell casings after a bloody battle. A time-lapse shot of people in a third-world country carrying off tons of weapons, then dismantling and stripping a large aircraft in just a few hours. Although it is predictable and preachy, it is a film with real emotional impact. This film rates a B.

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Copyright © 2005 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.

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