K-SCORE: 95
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Based on: Point of Impact by Stephen Hunter
“justice pornography”
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Michael Pena, Kate Mara, Danny Glover
Spoiler Level: Minor
Shooter doesn’t get the credit it’s due. For me, it’s kind of like justice pornography, only I don’t like the comparison because of the stigma associated with comparing something to porn.
Really, start to finish, Shooter is a great film. Do you want a set of distinct, well-built characters? Shooter has them. How about a plot that follows a logical path, is never nonsensical, and elevates the stakes along the way? Shooter has that. Do you want a well-researched film that cares about its chief subject matter? Done. From snipers to pipe bombs to combat triage, Shooter knows its stuff. Perhaps most importantly, Shooter is entertaining because it delivers on its promises. There’s so much incredible sniping and action highlighting the skills of this soldier.
For years I’ve been trying to figure out why it seems like I’m the only one giving Shooter the credit it deserves. I think it has to do with its conspiracy plot. The film overtly unveils the depths of corruption in government whereby the Colonel and Senator are power-obsessed and unethical from the beginning. People use the word “conspiracy” not in its true definition of “planned crime” or “planned evil” but instead to mean “a baseless theory of a crime and cover-up usually from an obsessed or deluded individual.” So in Shooter you get lines like, “Jack Ruby shoots Oswald,” and “Those men from the grassy knoll were dead within three hours, buried in unmarked graves in the damn desert outside Terlingua.” People hear that and want to write off this well-conceived plot as just another rant from someone who hates the government and thinks it’s secretly malicious.
If I’m correct and that is the source of insufficient Shooter love, then I can’t come to the story’s defense briefly. I have to get into my own views toward the corruptive nature of power, of lies and cover-ups of authority figures, and the naivete of most people who like a dose of ignorance and feel safe thinking there are huge organizations with their best interest at heart.
Shooter probably makes my top 25 favorite movies of all time. This guy just wanted to live in the mountains alone after the military screwed him over and then they went out of their way to ruin that little life, frame him, kill his dog, abuse the one human he knew, all because they wanted to kill an Ethiopian prepared to tell the truth. And you get to watch with pure joy, seeing just how badly they underestimate a “fella by the name of Bob Lee Swagger.”
The world isn’t what it seems. The moment you think you’ve got it figured out, you’re wrong. You keep that in mind.