American Sniper, American Iliad

[Valin]

Real Clear Politics:

Barry Strauss

February 21, 2015

 

American Sniper is a box office hit and Oscar worthy. Hollywood experts can explain the many reasons for its appeal but to a classicist, the moviemakers simply went back to basics. They followed the fundamentals of a great war story that are as old as western literature itself: heroism, violence, love, and death.

 

Consider Homer’s Iliad, the epic poem of the Trojan War. The subject is the tragic and heroic fate of heroes. Combined with his other epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer offers an education in war and culture.

 

Like the Iliad, American Sniper focuses on a warrior of extreme lethality and mythical status. The film’s hero is Chris Kyle, the most deadly sniper in U.S. military history. In the Iliad, it’s Achilles, the greatest warrior at Troy. Kyle had 160 confirmed kills in four tours of duty. Achilles sacked 23 cities in nine years and killed over 36 enemy soldiers in an afternoon. Achilles was a character out of myth, the son of a divine mother. Kyle appeared almost supernatural to both friend and foe. To the enemy he was the “Devil of Ramadi” while to his comrades he was simply “Legend.”

 

Great warriors are not just impressive but terrifying. Neither the Iliad nor American Sniper pulls any punches about their hero’s gory deeds on the battlefield. Achilles in combat was a terrible sight. As Homer writes:

 

(Snip)