Director Andrew Niccol took a leave of absence from the kind of fantastical worlds he created in “Gattaca” and “S1m0ne” for this more realistic (though also somewhat whimsical) tale that chronicles the rise of Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage), a professional gunrunner who, when we first meet him, states that there is one firearm for every 12 people on the planet – and ponders how he might be able to put a gun in the hands of the other eleven. Through flashback, we see how Orlov got to be where he is today, from his humble beginnings in Little Odessa circa the early ’80s (where he conducted his first impromptu gun sale in a hotel room) to his teaming up with his hotheaded drug addict brother, Vitaly (Jared Leto), to being the primary supplier of illegal weapons to various conflicts in Africa – and being the main target of Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke), a dedicated INTERPOL agent eternally frustrated by Orlov’s seemingly supernatural ability to avoid being convicted of any criminal charges. The life of an arms dealer is akin to that of a rock star in “Lord of War,” complete with first-class international travel, a beautiful home, a clueless trophy wife (Bridget Moynahan) and plenty of mistresses on the side – with the extra added bonus of the ever-present and very likely possibility that every breath you take could suddenly be your last (especially in Liberia). The character of Yuri Orlov is a fictional composite of five real arms dealers, though he’s mostly based on Viktor Bout, a former Soviet officer whose own nickname, the “Merchant of Death,” could make for an even darker alternate title to “Lord of War.” – IFC Staff
Lord of War
