Not quite the 'Lord' of movies

This tale of moral bankruptcy gives us a window into the world of a private, international and illegal arms dealer, Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage). The Ukrainian born, American Yuri is good at his chosen profession, and it has allowed him to rise above the poverty of his youth. He sells indiscriminately to anyone with the ability to pay and Yuri's only concern is for himself and his family. He attempts to keep his trophy wife relatively in the dark as to the true source of the income that allows her and their young son to live more than comfortably. \nIn the film Orlov's brother, Vitaly (Jared Leto) briefly joins his business, but unlike Yuri, the "evil" results of their dealings weigh heavy on his conscience. Yuri is craftily maneuvering to keep his business strong, while being perused by Interpol agent Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke). \nDespite being a tour de force in style, this film is not all that exciting. It starts off fairly promisingly, showing the Machiavellian aspect of Yuri's life, however, this part of the film resembles a typical, but entertaining, crime story in which it is easy to root for the "bad guys," as they just barely outwit law enforcement. \nThe film's tone shifts, however, and Yuri becomes rather difficult to sympathize with as the film succeeds in showing us (in case we were unaware) what bad arms dealers are. This, of course, is the point of the film and it is hammered home hard. While there is nothing wrong with a film with a message, "Lord of War" feels more like a statement about an aspect of world affairs than a story.\nAlso quite disappointing is that each of the three major actors in the film seems to be reprising previous roles. That is to say, it is clear why each was cast, and none of them do anything terribly groundbreaking. \nWe have seen Cage as a bad man in a cool suit before ("Face Off"). We have seen Ethan Hawke trying to uphold the law ("Training Day") and we have certainly already learned that Jared Leto + drugs = bad times ("Requiem for a Dream"). So it is not surprising that Cage and Leto each do really well in their roles. \nAs a narrator (voice-over is prevalent through out the film), Cage carries off the dialogue that is often trying just a little too hard to be cool and just barely manages not to be over the top. As for Hawke, his role is minimal and while he clearly brought his a game to the set, a lesser actor would have sufficed.\nOn the up side, if you like looking at guns, the film delivers. It is packed with piles upon piles of firearms. If you are purchasing "Lord of War" I recommend that you splurge on the two disk special edition, which you will find amply endowed with special features. Included on the second disc is information about different types of assault weapons, as well as an ample supply of the usual featurettes, trailers, deleted scenes and director's commentary. There is also a segment on the real international arms trade, which carries on the depressing and informative message that this film throws at us.