Lord of War (2005)

Director:

Andrew Niccol

Writer (WGA):

Andrew Niccol (written by)

Release Date:

16 September 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The first and most important rule of gun-running is: never get shot with your own merchandise.

Plot:

An arms dealer confronts the morality of his work as he is being chased by an Interpol agent.

Plot Keywords:

Arms Dealer | 1980s | Gunrunner | Interpol | Cold War

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Nicolas Cage	...	Yuri Orlov
Bridget Moynahan	...	Ava Fontaine
Jared Leto	...	Vitaly Orlov
Shake Tukhmanyan	...	Irina Orlov (as Shake Toukhmanian)
Jean-Pierre Nshanian	...	Anatoly Orlov
Jared Burke	...	Ukrainian Mobster
Eric Uys	...	Ukrainian Mobster
David Shumbris	...	Ukrainian Mobster
Stewart Morgan	...	Ukrainian Mobster
Jasper Lenz	...	Gregor
Stephen Gregor	...	Eli Kurtzman
Kobus Marx	...	Boris
Stephan De Abreu	...	Liev
Jeremy Crutchley	...	Arms Fair Salesman
Ian Holm	...	Simeon Weisz

Also Known As:

Lord of War (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, drug use, language and sexuality.

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

France | USA

Language:

English | Ukrainian | German | Spanish | Russian | French | Arabic | Turkish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #41968) | Ireland:16 | Canada:18A (Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia) | Finland:K-15 | Netherlands:16 | Philippines:R-13 (cut) | Brazil:16 | Taiwan:R-18 | Australia:MA | Norway:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:15 | Czech Republic:12 | France:-12 | Canada:18A (Ontario/British Columbia/Saskatchewan) | Singapore:M18 | Germany:16 | Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 | Hungary:16 | Portugal:M/16 | New Zealand:R16 | South Korea:15 (theatrical rating) (cut) | South Korea:18 (DVD rating) (uncut) | Malaysia:18PL | Japan:R-15 | Spain:18

Filming Locations:

Bozi Dar aerodrome, Bozi Dar, Czech Republic

Company:

Entertainment Manufacturing Company

Trivia:

Yuri Orlov is a composite of five real arms dealers.

Goofs:

Factual errors: At the end of the film it is said that "The world's biggest arms suppliers are the U.S., U.K., Russia, France and China." This is incorrect. According to information from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the five biggest arms exporters in 2005 were, in descending order: USA, Russia, Germany, France and U.K., while China is the 11th.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Yuri Orlov: [voiceover] You don't have to worry. I'm not gonna tell you a pack of lies to make me look good. I'm just gonna tell you what happened.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Making a Killing: Inside the International Arms Trade (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

La Vie en Rose

Great Movie -- Similar to "The Godfather"

This was a great movie. Cage delivered on the "anti-hero" - a 21st century "Corleone".

The locations were cool and "spectacular". From a visual standpoint this movie really does take you around the world. New York, Russia, Libya, Libera, etc. This movie is shot very, very well.

The pacing of the movie is brisk, the scenes aren't morose. Like Platoon, this movie doesn't glamorize or demonize situations. A guy who sells weapons for a living meets some violent people in some violent places. The visual style is breathtaking . . .

What I like best is, no characters in the movie are "romanticized". There are no "good guys". One could make the case that there are no "bad guys" as well I suppose. There are people who do bad things for reasons you don't understand. There are people who do nothing when they should do something for reasons you don't understand. Its a pretty accurate depiction of real life :)

I think I might have rated the movie 8.5, if there were any other movies at all about this topic that were anywhere in its league. If you make a great "Legally Blond", that's nice. If you make a great movie about arms trading with a sold antihero and supporting characters, I figure you get "extra credit".

I think you're a fool if you miss this movie. Its not about Iraq. Its not particularly political. This movie could have been made under any president in the last 100 years and been just as accurate. Its not particularly anti-gun. Its just about this guy who sells guns.

On the other hand, don't take people to this movie if they can't handle violence or movies that aren't designed to make them "feel good" when they walk out. This is a good movie, its interesting, its intelligent, its important -- but its not Ferris Buellers Day Off or Spinal Tap.