Welcome back to Maddie's Movie Reviews. Last review was of the first episode of Uzumaki, an anime adaptation of the manga of the same name by Junji Ito with an 8/10. Today's movie is one that I didn't expect to enjoy as much as I did. It features Nicholas Cage, who is already grade A. Of course, his campy acting does follow, but the camp adds infinitely to his presence as an actor. Let's dive into today's review of Lord of War (2003), directed by Andrew Niccol.



Lord of War follows the story of a Ukrainian gun runner named Yuri Orlov (played by Nicholas Cage). A gun runner is exactly what you'd think it is, someone who sells guns to people in wars. He first gets a start running guns for his family who fled the Soviet Union to america and disguised themselves as slavic jews, who happened to be involved in the local mob. Him and his brother Vitaly Orlov (Jared Leto (yes, you heard me right, Jared Leto)) begin selling guns to other local mobsters before Yuri is so enamored by the idea of selling guns that he wants to start his own business as an arms dealer. The movie follows Yuri and Vitaly as they go around the planet selling weaponry to developing countries, and this is where my first piece of praise comes in.

I think the movie doesn't pull any punches when depicting wars in African countries. The movie starts out with Yuri near the chronological end of the story by saying "There are 550 million guns in circulation. That's one gun for every 12 people on the planet." and initially you're thinking "Oh okay, this is gonna be some kind of PSA" until Yuri drops the bomb of a quote "The question is: How do we get one in the hands of the other 11?" And this instantly not only establishes Yuri as a character, but also segues into the intro sequence.The intro sequence features the manufacturing of bullets all the way from the brass plating of it's infancy, into inspection, shipping, and into the magazine of an African freedom fighter until the bullet is inevitably fired at and kills a child soldier. Just explaining it seems gratuitous or only there for the sake of shock factor, but in the actual movie it's well executed. There's also more showcase of how child soldiers are used by having the president of Liberia showcase a batallion of child soldiers to Yuri. The scenes showcasing these moments are spaced out just enough to that it isn't worn out, but still leaves an impact.



Now for what I wasn't a big fan of. While the intro is good at establishing Yuri as a character, it comes off almost as some kind of PSA like those British broadcasts warning children of the dangers of farm tools or firearms or sharp objects. Something I also wasn't a big fan of was the decision to cast Nicholas Cage for this movie in specific. His presence alone can sometimes devalue certain scenes due to just the way he acts. I love him in anything else, but this seems a bit too serious for my taste. At times his line deliveries are shoddy or unnatural. Also, Jared Leto. I'm sure his heart was in the right place, but this movie doesn't seem like it was written for him which at times hurts his performance.

Overall, I'd give Lord Of War (2003) a 7/10

++ Captivating story
+ Good pacing
- Shoddy line deliveries
-- Jared Leto