LORD OF WAR (U.S. / 2005)

"Buy 6, get 1 for free." Thats what a Ukrainian army general informs Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) while referring to Cold War-era Soviet tanks in Lord of War, a convoluted satire about the illegal gunrunning operations. The film's opening and ending sequences are quite effective, but for much of its over-long running time, it relies a little too heavily on tawdry one-liners -- surprising considering that it appears to have a socio-political agenda and is allegedly "based on true events" (we know to be careful when this line appears on our multiplex screens). Orlov, a Ukrainian migr, is the "lord of war": an arms-dealer without scruples, who narrates his ups-and-downs that also involve his parents, his brother (Jared Leto), and a model wife (Bridget Moynahan). He got involved in this trade on a low-level in the early-80s New York, but later discovered a gold mine in his homeland after the fall of Soviet Union. We follow Orlov from Ukraine to Columbia to Afghanistan, but the film mostly settles him in Liberia (thankfully a real African country even though thats where a few clichs rear their ugly heads). On his trail is an Interpol agent (Ethan Hawke), and he faces competition from another dealer (Ian Holm), but that usually doesnt stop Orlov from doing what he does best. Lord of War is written and directed by Andrew Niccol (Gattaca [1997], S1m0ne [2002]), a talented filmmaker who, despite concocting interesting premises for his films, has never quite been able to put the proper finishes touches. Here, the screenplay carelessly throws out dates and events that seem just as imposterous as the name of the ship on which once arms were aboard, and the constant attempts to detail Orlovs personal life end up being futile. However, the film boasts excellent cinematography (Amir M. Mokri) and production-design (Jean-Vincent Puzos). And while at times it ends up glorifying the man whose occupation it tries to condemn, Lord of War ultimately fires a bullet which isnt supposed to hurt, but somehow it does.

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*Available on DVD in the U.S. (Lions Gate).