American Sniper: Legendary Performance by Bradley Cooper (Spoiler Alert- Ending is revealed.)

I have to apologize for ever discounting Bradley Cooper.  After He's Just Not that Into You and other movies he's been in, I had him deemed as a guy that probably just plays himself, but happens to be in a movie.  So for the record, I am taking back all said comments because the way he played the role of Chris Kyle in American Sniper- I was wrong, very wrong.

This movie entails the true story of Chris Kyle, "The Legend", who was the most accurate sniper in American history. This film doesn't need to be for the veteran, or family of veterans, as it can be for anyone who has empathy for what this man went through over the course of his time as a Navy Seal.

Chris joined the Seals because he simply wanted to defend his country.  There was no other motive.  In his mind, this was the path he had to choose to protect those he loved.  To serve and protect was his purpose.  This task can be quite difficult for anyone, especially those with a wife and children at home.  Chris eventually experienced what I am sure most do.  Coming home wasn't easy.  Serving in a tour where you see death daily then coming home, knowing that it is still continuing while you go to the mall with your wife, or have a home cooked meal, is almost impossible and was for him.  It consumed him to the point where he went on tour after tour to finish what he started.  What would it take to bring him home?

After several attempts, Chris would finally kill the one person he had been hunting for years.  A sniper from the other side.  It was in that moment, when death seemed near even for Chris, that he called his wife, crying, ready to come home.  Although, it wasn't the running into her arms you would think.  After killing so many, even children, seeing innocent people murdered by their own, friends dying, and so much devastation, he may have been physically home, but he was somewhere far away.

It took Chris finding a way to help those back in the states for him to go back to the man he was before the war turned him.  Eventually his smile would return, he would play with his kids, and love his wife the way a husband should.  Unfortunately, this wouldn't last long, because during one of those times where he was helping veterans back home, a veteran would be the one who killed Chris, not a terrorist, or enemy.  Someone from the same roots.

I encourage you to not only bring tissues, but see this movie with an open mind and heart.  We can all be divided in our stances on war.  But what we cannot do, is see this movie without feeling for this man who gave so much, his wife who raised these children on her own, and the heavy burden placed on men and women who come home from tours such as these, completely changed and forever impacted by their experiences.

Clint Eastwood did this perfectly and Bradley Cooper performed his best role yet.  A must see.

Immitation Game: The True Story of Alan Turing

Alan was always different than his peers.  He was a mathematical genius who had a hard time understanding social cues of others.  His on and only friend from school passed away, leaving Alan alone.  As time passed and Alan grew up, his skills would lead him to a special operation with the military during World War 2 in which he and fellow mathematician would work day after day to crack the German Enigma code.

Working with others was not one of Alan's strengths.  In fact, when beginning this mission, he locked himself in a separate room, not to be disturbed, to create his machine that would crack the Enigma codes.  With the military demanding a faster turn around rate and his teammates questioning his time on task with the mission, it seemed Alan was not going to succeed.

Fortunately, Alan did prove himself and what his machine was capable of when the Enigma code was cracked.  This accomplishment brought more burden than they imagined though.  You see, they soon realized they could not destroy Enigma, as this would cause the Germans to create something else and they would be back at stage 1.  They even had to determine which people to save and which not to in order to not seem obvious.  It was hard on all of them.

Alan was also going through some of his own personal dilemmas.  Alan's sexual orientation was masked through his marriage to a close friend and partner at the time.  Eventually she would find out and what transpired was both sad and heartfelt.  Life continued to get harder for Alan from here as the government found out about his secret and gave him hormones to "help him with his problem."  Alan would eventually end his own life as it all got to be to much for him.  He was alone and would always be so.

I didn't know if I was going to be engaged in this movie as I didn't know much about it.  I had never heard the Alan Turing story.  His life had so much triumph and hardship that tugged at my heart strings.  He was a genus and helped save thousands of lives, yet was contemned because he wasn't heterosexual.  The treatments given to him were infuriating.  I left feeling better off for hearing and seeing his story.  It was a well written and had wonderful performances from the cast.  Unsurprising as it is, Benedict Cumberbatch was astounding.