A new film, loosely based on the the exploits of arms dealers like Viktor Bout, has just gone on release in the US.
Lord of War stars Nicholas Cage and Ethan Hawke. If the trailer on the film’s website is anything to go by, it’s very much the Hollywood version, but Salon.com’s reviewer thinks it works:
Lord of War" changes in tone gradually toward the end, as the consequences of what Yuri has done, and the way he has lived his life, begin to close in on him. Niccol navigates that shift skillfully. He doesn’t punish us for the enjoyment he’s just given us, but he doesn’t let us walk away blithely, either. The end of "Lord of War" left me feeling both exhilarated and weirdly melancholic at the same time — and, of course, totally disheartened about my country, which is pretty much a permanent state of affairs for many of us these days.
"Lord of War" isn’t so much serious entertainment as entertaining seriousness. (Salon.com)
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