War Dogs - Review Thread

In 2007, if you had told me that a decade later Jonah Hill would be a two-time Academy Award nominee, I would have locked you up in an insane asylum. What I didn't know is that Jonah Hill the dramatic actor is very different from Jonah Hill the comedic actor. Even in the Wolf of Wall Street, in which he largely delivered a comedic performance, he played it like a drama. That leads us to War Dogs. This is the first time, to my knowledge, that we're seeing Jonah Hill the dramatic actor collide with Jonah Hill the comedic actor. He plays an international arms dealer whose biggest client is the United States military.

Based on a true story, the movie takes us back to the Bush years when making money from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq was as common as opening a new Wal-Mart. To even the playing field, the Bush administration allowed small businesses to bid on contracts. For most, that meant making money from small deals like selling helmets or body armor. But for two twenty-somethings from Miami Beach, that meant rigging the system.

Jonah Hill and Miles Teller are the two guys. Through the support of the black market, their characters go from nobodies to getting a $300 million contract to provide weapons to the military.

It's an absurd moment in our history and suitable for a light drama - or dramatic comedy. Todd Phillips, who gave us the Hangover trilogy, co-writes and directs. His talents fit the material and most people will enjoy the movie. Some may even say it rivals the Nice Guys as the summer's best film. But I wouldn't go that far. As much as I liked it, it did bother me that it wasn't more political. It's as if Phillips was too nervous to rattle the cage during an election year.

That leads us back to Jonah Hill. Like the Nice Guys, which built its success on the strength of Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling, War Dogs relies on Jonah Hill. In 6 months, if people are still talking about this movie, it'll be to discuss if he deserves a third Academy Award nomination.