I am truly bewildered by a couple of the extremely negative user comments here. I can only think that Susan M., who says this is the worst movie she has ever seen, is an ardent gun enthusiast and was offended by the movie's overall anti gun message. But to say that this movie "doesn't have a single redeeming quality"? It's an absurd, puerile statement that has nothing to do with this movie. Same goes for Dusty L., who says this is "a slide show" and to look elsewhere for action. Again, I have to wonder if he saw a different movie. Actually, if you like action, you'll be glad to know Lord of War has some terrific (admittedly usually brief) action, including an extraordinary sequence involving a plane making an emergency landing on a highway crowded with people, a truly jawdropping and thrilling scene. Other "redeeming qualities" this movie has: biting wit -- it's very funny; terrific editing; wonderful widescreen lensing with fantastic color and production design; strong performances from Cage, Leto, Holm, and many others; and great music. I saw it last night, and only wish I had seen it earlier so I could have told more people earlier to go and see it.… Expand

Stylish and fascinating. It deserved better during its theatrical run.

The fact that this film is entertaining purely to watch the protagonist's wife marginally saves it from the decrepit and unsubtle dialogue, uninspiring plot and the infuriating arrogance of Nicholas Cage's disastrous performance. It is also worth your time to laugh at his ridiculous chat up lines and his attempt to portray an eighteen year old near the beginning which is bad beyond belief due to his middle aged looks.… Expand

Left the movie after 20 minutes. Cage must like stretching the envelope but here he folded it in on himself. Terrible movie. But a great expose of the Americans love of weapons.

If you don't like weapons - guns, for those who don't know - I wouldn't recommend this. All that took was watching a preview or generally knowing what it is you are watching. If you do like weapons, war, and Nick Cage - basically if you are a guy - then this movie will do it for you. Great stuff, I loved it.

You have to be kidding me. this barely makes it through the green light. The movie is so fantastic, Cage is so cool that i bet some arms dealer is gonna shut this website down for good. And critics wake up, this movie is a slap in the face of pansy-journalistic morality which, as the movie tells, is a force without power.

This is the #1 worst movie I have ever seen. Pathetic waste of time. Terrible story from beginning to end. This movie should never have been made. It doesn't have a single redeeming quality.

Niccol dares to deal with how the international traffic in weapons affects us without most people even being aware of it. And he does it with savvy. I have not yet read a review that mentions the key distinction Lord of War makes between Yuri Orlov and Simeon Weisz, the two primary arms dealers shown here. Weisz (Ian Holm), who works with the CIA, says his aim is to change governments; he deals for a political purpose. Orlov (Nicolas Cage) does it because "I'm good at it" and he goes where the money is, not caring who gets the weapons. He also sells for the U.S. Government but, in addition, he makes his own deals, willy-nilly. Weisz believes his motivation is superior to Orlov's. Orlov challenges Weisz, reminding him that he (for the CIA) sold weapons to both Iran and Iraq (to use against each other). Weisz fires back that he wanted both of them to lose. There is no moral difference between these two men but their remarks about their own motivations provoke thoughts that ricochet against what we see happening in the world today. It's a thrilling insight and there are many like it in this shockingly (because it's in the multiplexes) profound view. Unfortunately many people will probably not understand exactly what they are seeing, and Lord of War may not get the recognition that it deserves. Jane Franklin.… Expand

Timely and much needed portrayal of the world today. Cage and Leto's characters are well-drawn and captivatingly acted.

Script was lazy and slip-shot, and this was not one of Cage's better performances. Maybe because he was too busy doing voice- over narration, (which this movie relies way too much on). Lastly, I got no sense that this movie really knows what it's talking about, or that film-makers made much of an effort researching this project. You won't actually learn anything about how the gun-traffic industry works.… Expand

No conclusion. To preachy. Got boring half way through.

This is possibly Nicolas Cage's best performance. The movie is disturbing but ironically funny and very informative. I liked it and hope you will too.

Laziness is splattered over this boring production. Like the script writer in Adaptation says: good scripts do not have narration. This film has plenty of them, bogging the ending down much like how War of the Worlds did. Not worth your time or your intelligence.

An entertaining, witty, and disturbing take one of the most morally reprehensible professions a person can have. In many ways, it's better to tackle issues like gambling, drugs, gun running, and cigarettes from the perspective of the people who make the sale of these vices their chosen career. I would've much preferred a version of "The Constant Gardener" told from the POV of the drug company scientist who arranges to do trials in impoverished regions of Africa.… Expand

Absolutely terrific. For light entertainment, this one is actually incredibly powerful. It gets under your skin and makes you think. All the acting is really impressive, and the whole thing is just so bloody entertaining that it's impossible to dislike, unless you're looking for a bad movie.

I enjoyed the movie from the beginning. I would say it's the best movie I've seen in a long time!

Finally I've seen LORD OF WAR. I wanted to see it since it was released in France back in May. What a piece of trash! It lacks any dramatic credibility, its plot is incoherent (if there is one), its characters are one-dimensional, and its dialogs are tacky and stale. Syriana next to it is a major masterpiece! I don't know if I should do a review, since the film is so bad, it is beyond any serious attempt at reviewing. Just to say that the devil, as we know, is in details, and the details are not at all Niccol's strong point. [***SPOILERS***] There is no such a thing as Interpol agents (contrary to the popular myth perpetuated by Hollywood and Ethan Hawke) - Interpol is an information clearing house located in Lyon, France, staffed with international bureaucrats and directed by a former NYU law professor. Its employees have no legal powers to arrest anyone! Soviet (Ukrainian) Jews on Brighton Beach couldn't care less about Ukraine - the cradle of East European anti-Semitism (as Yuri Orlov's younger drug addict brother who nostalgically makes the map of Ukraine with the cocaine lines - tackier than that would only be the map of the US made with the lines of heroin by the film maker Niccol himself). Finally Orlov is not a Jewish name, contrary to what the main protagonist states in the beginning of the film. It is as Russian as Stoly vodka and Gorbachev's perestroika! In fact, Yuri Orlov is the name of a Soviet dissident, founder of the Moscow Helsinki group in the 1970s. Gun running may be a mortal sin, but spreading ignorance by making big-budget pretentious B-movies with Nikolas Cage is almost as bad. If anything, Cage deserves better than that! Post A Comment!… Expand

Like 'Blow' with guns instead of drugs, and less interesting content. I think Nicolas Cage is a great actor, but I don't think he quite fit this character. Ethan Hawke was wasted in his role.

This film made me laugh only once and that was still too much for a film based on such a serious subject. it seemed at times to be trying to make cage into a likeable character even though his actions are as morally wrong as is possible, this is an even worse flaw in the film when you consider its based on real events. on top of this the action is poor and i can't see how any one could find it enjoyable.… Expand

This a film very well written, the dialogues are very smart.It's a clever action film.Cage is wonderfull.

Terrific.

Like all of this director's films, all the parts are there, all the key scenes, all the cleverness and the drama, the emotion, the poignancy, etc -- but somehow it doesn't add up to being great. Something's always missing from his movies. I have no idea what. At the same time, they're smarter than most movies, and they're still pretty good. And Lord of War is not an exception.… Expand

The best movie I've seen in years....see it now!

Excellent!! Movie makes the viewer physically react. Also makes them think.

Brilliant.

The screenplay is weak and full of "newbie" cliches: it's extremely expository and hampered by wall-to-wall voiceover in a desperate attempt to make sense. The characters show no dimension -- they simply walk through plot. The writer didn't even do basic research, e.g. Interpol cannot wiretap in the US nor does it report to the US president. Great cinematography saves this from a zero rating.… Expand

Puts a human face on some of the worst acts against humanity in recent memory. Cage is fine in his dry deliverance. How else would an international arms dealer act. They know what they are contributing to.

Superb film with a lot to say. Cage is brilliant. Direction and music are fabulous. RENT IT!

The introduction was pretty good - following the bullet - cool graphics.... Then, it sucked. I lost interest in the movie half way through it. It didn't have the WOW factor.

Super lame and boring.

i was expecting a movie that wasnt gonna be very good based on the boxoffice, but actually it was alright, Cage pulled off his role great and it had some good one liners, ill probably see it again.

I though this movie was great. Where everyone is getting boring from, I don't know. This movie is intriguing and interesting. Nicholas Cage does a great acting job in this film. This movie goes to show that there will never be peace in this world we live in. I'd recommend this movie to everyone.

Alas Ed completely missed the point. No twist in this film, because it is all about inevitabilities. The ending is predictable, but what is really the point is that the characters can not avoid their fate, or are unwilling to do so. Entertaining, yet thought-provoking without being too full of itself.

This is probably the best movie I will see this year. Too bad there arnt more movies like this that avoid normal movie mistakes.

Terribly lame and boring. No twists... you know exactly how this movie is going to end from the start. To quote Homer Simpson, "Booorrrring."

After watching this movie, my wife and I felt like crap! We felt betrayed by our government, both present and past for this kind of under the radar covert activity by using 3rd party gun dealers to incite battles through out the world. It was very thought provoking and made us realize why so many people around the world hate America. I felt ashamed and never realized how true this story is and feel sorry that more people have not seen this movie which exposes what goes on behind the smiling political faces we see daily on the news.… Expand

Yes, I'm giving it a 10, simply because I found it different from the other so-called 'black comedy' in the box office these days. It actually has a moral, a theme. It's not just trying to make you 'not wanna laugh' with pointless sex and violence. I can understand why some people wouldn't like the movie, seeing that it's more like a documentary-gone-movie, but I guess that's just my thing.… Expand

This is an excellent movie that deals with diverse aspects of an arms dealer life. Don't listen to the more commercial movie critics as they usually fail to relate an thus accept a main character that's amoral and is not your standard issue action hero or villain. Here Cage is just a human being with human ambitions and problems. You'll really enjoy this movie if you're open minded, but if you watch it expecting a Rambo or Die Hard type of movie you'll sure be disappointed.… Expand

The subject matter was something I have a great interest in, pity it was badly let down by some one dimensional acting and third rate directing. Firstly the acting: Cage is a decent actor in the right role, Family Man, The Rock or Snake Eyes. But that is his limit, as the main character in the film needed an actor who could accurately display the inner ambition/turmoil which was Yuri. But Cage wasn't the only guilty one, all the actors bar Yuri brother and Ethan Hawke were so badly portrayed it rubbished the moral issues entirely, leaving me the viewer totally disconnected with any feeling towards them. Which leads to the directing: A good director should first engage the mind, then challenge it along with the heart. After half an hour my mind was fed up of cursing how scenes were recklessly stitched together, I switched off completely. You can not have such a good idea throw onto screen with no consideration towards the overall point, coupled with the silliest ending I ever seen the film fails on every front. My last point is a poster who remarked about anti-Semitic something, well that's rich considering the film portrayed every ethnic race in a dark light expect Jews! Paranoia and just pure blindness L.Mayr, maybe if you talked about the dis-proportionate black and black on screen violence I would of had a bit more respect and sympathy!… Expand

Gives you information, insight with entertainment.

A two-hour anti-gun commercial.

Believable characters (if occasionally woodenly acted)...touching overall. For once a movie where you care about what happens to the main character (even if he's reprehensible and vile). Got a sort of "Traffic" vibe but the plot was different enough to hold me interested. A million times better than your average "Anti-hero" flick.

I was suprised. I thought I was in for a more action driven film. It's not. Not in the least. This movie is a character study set inside a dark, dark, dark comedy with some dramatic elements. Go see it.

This movie was good, yet very dull. The movie is just the same thing over and over. I wouldn't watch it again.

This was like watching a slide show with Nicolas Cage narrating. If you're looking for an action movie, don't pick this one. If you're looking for a convoluted statement about worldwide arms suppliers, then this movie is for you. Did I mention that Nicolas Cage narrates?

There is no reason you should not love this movie. I saw somebody put a 3 for a rating and then justified it by saying he left after 20 minutes. You cannot give a good rating or review if you see the first 20 minutes of this wonderful movie. You know nothing about it.

The opening was so compelling and masterful then the movie just fell on its face. It did not hold my interest as I was waiting for the opening scene to continue. should have stuck to the point (gun running.)

Good, deep movie. Definitely worth a rental at least. Great acting, wasn't bored throughout the entire movie. Don't know what's with the low reviews. Awesome in my book.

Most critic reviews seem be saying the same thing, but I disagree. Unlike they say there really isnt that much riveting information in this film. However, unlike they say there is a plot to this movie. The problem is we've seen this story a million times along with all of its themes. What is suprisingly good about the movie is the directing and a script that evokes laughs and social awarness quite well.… Expand

nicholas cage's acting is marvelous.He gets the very unpleasant message through with a very terse and dry style unique of his own.The message of his character don't go to war specially with yourself which is the bitter but the true rule of survival in our time.

Superbly directed and brilliantly portrayed by Nic Cage (this is another reason he’s one of my all-time fav actors), this anti-war film will thoroughly entertain you for its entire duration… if you can somewhat excuse the pace of the movie exposing some plot holes. The dialogue is crisps and bold, with memorable exchanges between Orlov and his numerous ‘customers’ and even the Opening Sequence of a bullet being manufactured, delivered and used is excellently done. Below are some of the many quotes (IMHO) from the movie itself.… Expand

This movie was tight. It had tits in it and the action scenes were very well done with a compelling storyline filled with many interesting twists as well, but there were also nice titties.

Arguably one of Cage's best roles, and Hawke does pretty darn good to! This film begins with one of the most entertaining openings I've ever seen. The characters mean something to you backed by an ironclad story and top rate performances. We are given another perspective of war.....the business side, and the result is shockingly entertaining!