'American Sniper': Bull's-Eye

By Michael S. GoldbergeriBerkshires Film Critic
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Popcorn Column
by Michael S. Goldberger  

Warner Bros. 
Bradley Cooper inhabits the life of 'American Sniper' Chris Kyle, epitomizing the professionalism, patriotism and horror of war.

If you've been around for the last few wars, you'll recognize the eerie clip-clip-drone of helicopters that declares U.S. military ubiquity in "American Sniper," an absorbing foray into the tragic dilemma that comes of trying to make the world safe for democracy. Based on the memoir, "American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History," by Chris Kyle, and adapted for the screen by Jason Hall, Bradley Cooper compellingly personalizes the iconic warrior. Confident in his destiny, he will save his country, single-handedly if necessary.

We cheer him and bemoan, remembering from our childhood that old veteran holding court from his seat on a soda crate outside the candy store who resolutely declared: "There always was war; there will always be war." We have them in all varieties: Good wars, bad wars, world wars and forgotten wars. We win some, we lose some ... some we're not quite so sure about and wonder why we sent Johnny marching in the first place. The philosophers among us see the perennial conflicts as sad proof that we've evolved very little from our primeval ancestors.

out of 4

But not Chris. No time for wishy-washy, hifalutin' ponderings here. When the U.S. embassies in Southeast Africa are bombed in 1998, the former rodeo cowboy, already 30 years old, joins the Navy SEALs. He is a man of action, taught early on by his dad that there are three types of people: wolves, the sheep they prey on, and the sheepdogs who protect the flock. Be a sheepdog, ingrains dad. Although recently married to Taya Renae, emotively played by Siena Miller, it is clear as day to the sharpshooter. Into the breach, and that's all there is to it.

The depiction of the Iraqi War is attended by neither hawks nor doves, but rather with a large splash of reality. We are long past the flag waving that marked our Iliad years, from the American Revolution (1775-1783) until the conclusion of World War II (1945). Our domain is now established and as such, because it is the business of empires to do both wonderful and terrible things, we protect its interests, both real and perceived.

This requires sending endless waves of young soldiers to war zones throughout the world, many of them not quite as certain of their purpose as Chris Kyle is. He will deploy to Iraq four times, and soon, due to his phenomenal marksmanship, be dubbed The Legend. He outwardly shuns any glorification. To his wife's chagrin, Chris takes the overall mission personally. It's as if the war cannot be waged without him, which is perhaps the mix of messianic and egocentric elements it takes to make someone so undoubtedly brave.


Director Clint Eastwood, proving that he hasn't lost a step in the evocation of tension, action and good old esprit de corps, builds a scenario fraught with gosh knows what dangers hiding amidst the crumbled devastation. We are inevitably at seat's edge. But where the filmmaker ultimately adds a notch to his legacy is in the duality of this stunning anti-war/war movie. It is a thesis on the innate, unintentional hypocrisy of a species that calls itself human yet continues to settle its disputes by killing each other. Think about it. Composers wrote marches for it.

Indeed, we lament the entrenched hatred it takes for a 5-year-old to pick up a grenade and go charging headlong into a group of GIs. What more proof do we need that there's something rotten in Denmark? Yet, when Chris assassinates a high-muck-a-muck, a symbol of those responsible for perpetuating such aberrant enmity, it is difficult to deny the visceral thrill of revenge and justification.

Although "American Sniper" has its own tone and temper, we channel memories of "Coming Home" (1978), "The Deer Hunter" (1978), "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) and any other movie that details the scars of war and the anguish of adjusting to peace. Cooper does a splendid job of epitomizing this mournful conundrum. Chris doesn't want to talk about it, and that's OK with most folks, who'd just as well sidestep the terrible truth. Fact is, only skilled professionals and those who have experienced such Hell on Earth can really commiserate.

The icky thing is, there are those who will relish this simply as a rootin' tootin' war flick. There's no denying that the little kid in me who shot Nazis and Indians on Dewey Street in Newark, N.J., on a daily basis enjoyed the bravado. But there is an inherent, vicarious catharsis here, a heartfelt reminder that we can be better than we are. Adding to our pie in the sky wish list for humankind's ideal future, which of course includes stomping out cancer, ignorance and poverty, "American Sniper" unsubtly enjoins us to keep our sights set on a world without war.

"American Sniper," rated R, is a Warner Bros. release directed by Clint Eastwood and stars Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller and Kyle Gallner. Running time: 132 minutes

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Crosby/Conte Statement of Interest Gets OK From Council

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

Architect Carl Franceschi and Superintendent Joseph Curtis address the City Council on Tuesday.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — With the approval of all necessary bodies, the school district will submit a statement of interest for a combined build on the site of Crosby Elementary School.

The City Council on Tuesday unanimously gave Superintendent Joseph Curtis the green light for the SOI to the Massachusetts School Building Authority by April 12.

"The statement I would make is we should have learned by our mistakes in the past," Mayor Peter Marchetti said.

"Twenty years ago, we could have built a wastewater treatment plant a lot cheaper than we could a couple of years ago and we can wait 10 years and get in line to build a new school or we can start now and, hopefully, when we get into that process and be able to do it cheaper then we can do a decade from now."

The proposal rebuilds Conte Community School and Crosby on the West Street site with shared facilities, as both have outdated campuses, insufficient layouts, and need significant repair. A rough timeline shows a feasibility study in 2026 with design and construction ranging from 2027 to 2028.

Following the SOI, the next step would be a feasibility study to determine the specific needs and parameters of the project, costing about $1.5 million and partially covered by the state. There is a potential for 80 percent reimbursement through the MSBA, who will decide on the project by the end of the year.

Earlier this month, city officials took a tour of both schools — some were shocked at the conditions students are learning in.

Silvio O. Conte Community School, built in 1974, is a 69,500 square foot open-concept facility that was popular in the 1960s and 1970s but the quad classroom layout poses educational and security risks.  John C. Crosby Elementary School, built in 1962, is about 69,800 square feet and was built as a junior high school so several aspects had to be adapted for elementary use.

Ward 6 Councilor Dina Lampiasi said the walkthrough was "striking" at points, particularly at Conte, and had her thinking there was no way she would want her child educated there. She recognized that not everyone has the ability to choose where their child goes to school and "we need to do better."

"The two facilities that we are looking at I think are a great place to start," she said.

"As the Ward 6 councilor, this is where my residents and my students are going to school so selfishly yes, I want to see this project happen but looking at how we are educating Pittsfield students, this is going to give us a big bang for our buck and it's going to help improve the educational experience of a vast group of students in our city."

During the tour, Ward 5 Councilor Patrick Kavey, saw where it could be difficult to pay attention in an open classroom with so much going on and imagined the struggle for students.

Councilor at Large Alisa Costa said, "we cannot afford not to do this" because the city needs schools that people want their children to attend.

"I know that every financial decision we make is tough but we have to figure this out. If the roof on your house were crumbling in, you'd have to figure it out and that's where we're at and we can't afford to wait any longer," she said.

"We can't afford for the sake of the children going to our schools, for the sake of our city that we want to see grow so we have to build a city where people want to go."

Councilor at Large Kathy Amuso, who served on the School Building Needs Commission for about 18 years, pointed out that the panel identified a need to address Conte in 2008.

Curtis addressed questions about the fate of Conte if the build were to happen, explaining that it could be kept as an active space for community use, house the Eagle Academy or the Adult Learning Center, or house the central offices.

School attendance zones are a point of discussion for the entire school district and for this project.

"At one time I think we had 36 school buildings and now we have essentially 12 and then it would go down again but in a thoughtful way," Curtis said.

Currently, eight attendance zones designate where a student will go to elementary school. Part of the vision is to collapse those zones into three with hopes of building a plan that incorporates partner schools in each attendance zone.

"I think that going from eight schools to three would be easier to maintain and I think it would make more sense but in order to get there we will have to build these buildings and we will have to spend money," Kavey said, hoping that the city would receive the 80 percent reimbursement it is vying for.

This plan for West Street, which is subject to change, has the potential to house grades pre-kindergarten to first grade in one school and Grades 2 to 4 in another with both having their own identities and administrations. 

The districtwide vision for middle school students is to divide all students into a grade five and six school and a grade seven and eight school to ensure equity.

"The vagueness of what that looks like is worrisome to some folks that I have talked to," Lampiasi said.

Curtis emphasized that these changes would have to be voted on by the School Committee and include public input.

"We've talked about it conceptually just to illustrate a possible grade span allocation," he said. "No decisions have been made at all by the School Committee, even the grade-span proposals."

School Committee Chair William Cameron said it is civic duty of the committee and council to move forward with the SOI.
 
He explained that when seven of the city's schools were renovated in the late 1990s, the community schools were only 25 years old and Crosby was 35 years old.  The commonwealth did not deem them to be sorely in need of renovation or replacement.
 
"Now 25 years later, Crosby is physically decrepit and an eyesore. It houses students ages three to 11 in a facility meant for use by teenagers,"
 
"Conte and Morningside opened in the mid-1970s. They were built as then state-of-the-art schools featuring large elongated rectangles of open instructional space. Over almost half a century, these physical arrangements have proven to be inadequate for teaching core academic skills effectively to students, many of whom need extra services and a distraction-free environment if they are to realize their full academic potential."
 
He said  the proposal addresses a serious problem in the "economically poorest, most ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse area" of the city.
 
Cameron added that these facilities have been deemed unsatisfactory and need to be replaced as part of the project to reimagine how the city can best meet the educational needs of its students.  He said it is the local government's job to move this project forward to ensure that children learn in an environment that is conducive to their thriving academically.
 
"The process of meeting this responsibility needs to begin here tonight," he said.
 
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