Lord of War (2005)

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

Director:

Andrew Niccol

Writer:

Andrew Niccol

Stars:

Nicolas Cage, Ethan Hawke, Jared Leto

2 wins & 2 nominations.

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

Storyline

This movie charts the rise and fall of Yuri Orlov, from his early days in the early 1980s in Little Odessa, selling guns to mobsters in his local neighborhood, through to his ascension through the decade of excess and indulgence into the early 1990s, where he forms a business partnership with an African warlord and his psychotic son. This movie also charts his relationship through the years with his younger brother, his marriage to a famous model, his relentless pursuit by a determined INTERPOL Agent and his inner demons that sway between his drive for success and the immorality of what he does.

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Plot Keywords:

arms dealer | prostitution | sex standing up | ukrainian | immorality | 

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Taglines:

He Sells Guns... And He's Making A Killing.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Country:

USA Germany France

Language:

English Ukrainian German Spanish Russian French Arabic Turkish

Release Date:

16 September 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

El señor de la guerra

Filming Locations:

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,390,144, 18 September 2005

Gross USA:

$24,149,632

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$72,617,068

Company Credits

Production Co:

Entertainment Manufacturing Company, VIP 3 Medienfonds, Ascendant Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the opening scene of the bullet being manufactured and travelling along the conveyor into its box, the box in front of it has "Odessa, Ukraine" stamped on it. This is from whence Yuri's family came before settling in America.

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Goofs

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.

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Quotes

Vitaly Orlov: [in Russian] Oh God!
Yuri Orlov: [voice-over] Always resort to your native tongue in times of anger. And in times of ecstasy.

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Crazy Credits

Before the end credits roll a message appears stating that the top 5 sellers of arms in the world are China, Russia, the UK, USA, and France - all of whom make up the permanent five members of the UN security council.

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Alternate Versions

For the US DVD release the aspect ratio of the film was changed to 1,78:1. A few weeks after the initial release the DVD was reissued with the film in its original aspect ratio of 2,35:1.

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Connections

References Belly (1998)

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Soundtracks

Kill That
Performed by Sx-10 (as SX-10)
Written by Sen D.O.G., Jeremy Fleener and Andy Zambrano
Courtesy of Latin Thug Records
By Arrangement with Media Creature Music

User Reviews

Lord of war: Great film seeming to receive bad reviews by dense critics

I felt this movie & the actors/actresses did their parts at portraying the turmoils of a man unable to escape his addiction in a dog eat dog world. Nicholas Cage's role of a "gunrunner" sheds light to subjects otherwise not focused on by todays society. Too often do films dull down the truth of life. The term "speechless" comes to me when i think of what one word to describe this film. Cage does a wonderful job of keeping his guard up and showing how strong and selfless one must be to do what no one else will. Despite the graphic nature of the subject and reality behind how corrupt this world is; This movie is not the catalyst for out-lash. It's simply a great film. Blame the real world, not Hollywood.