Leofwine_draca
SNIPER is a surprisingly low budget thriller starring two Hollywood big names, or at least they were once big names back in the day. It's about a US-led mission to take down some rebel generals in Panama, and sees a pair of snipers sent into the jungle to complete the mission. Said actors are Tom Berenger, who would go on to reprise his role in subsequent straight to video sequels, and Billy Zane.Berenger does his straight action man routine well enough and comes across as incredibly macho. Zane has the more interesting role of the inexperienced guy pushed to the edge and does pretty well with it, I think. The main problem the film has is that the staging just isn't all that convincing and the action scenes are routine rather than extraordinary. Australia stands in for Central America well enough, but the chases and shooting scenes never feel all that gripping or suspenseful. For a big budget attempt at a similar subject matter, check out Clint Eastwood's much better American SNIPER.
edwagreen
The film would have been better had it further concentrated on the inner workings of the rebels in Panama and the drug cartel of Colombia desperately trying to influence the upcoming election in the former.Instead, we have jungle warfare where the government sends in Billy Zane to monitor the actions of expert sniper Tom Berenger. Naturally, the two are at odds almost immediately with Berenger questioning Zane's ability and inexperience and Zane questioning Berenger's ability to take orders.The bullets whiz by slowly as they take their aim on the bad guys, but naturally we shall reach a point where the two shall coalesce for each other's very survival.
sonetti-1
Best acting rendered by Tom Berenger.Billy Zane,otherwise commendable for dramatic adventure performances in Memphis Belle (1993) and The Phantom (1996),fails to make believable his character's see-sawing,erratic personality (how has he been chosen as a National Security Council operative for a top-ranking killing mission in the Panamanian outback, with only an office background?).The build-up is interesting enough,though the junior marksman played by Zane is deeply fear-stricken to begin with and later on at best irresponsibly indecisive while unbelievably careless,grouchy and childishly arrogant in his goings-on in the jungle,with the murderous streak suddenly developed against his senior partner toward the end of the story seeming very far-fetched,in view of the fact that the baddies are a mere stone's throw away and closing in,so you would not think anyone in that situation would care to consider erasing the only person on his side,not at least until after they had succeeded in escaping and certainly not in the middle of the bullet-ridden mêlée.Berenger looks and acts the part he plays,as a professional military man with all the trappings of a skilled specialist,bare of conceit,plus a moral streak(in jumping to the occasion of wiping out two evildoers rather than just one).The film's unsurprising ending -the junior marksman growing up to become a man- can be discounted by the audience: nothing to remain in the viewer's memory -certainly nothing as Sgt. Croft's unexpected demise towards the end of Raoul Walsh's 1958 film "The Naked and the Dead"-.
disdressed12
Sniper is a much better movie than i thought it would be.i did think it would be entertaining,but more from a time wasting perspective than anything else.but it turns out it's a pretty tense,at times suspenseful film.it's well paced.there are no spots that drag.i wasn't bored for a minute.and the two lead actors,Tom Berenger and Billy Zane work well off each other.both are very well suited for this particular role and were very convincing.as for the degree of realism in the film,i can't speak to that,but i do know i enjoyed myself for 90 odd minutes,and sometimes it's enough to just enjoy a movie for the entertainment value.for me,Sniper is an 8/10
AD
