How Much of Todd Phillips’ ‘War Dogs’ Really Happened?

The big picture

• Todd Phillips surprised the audience with his dark performance
  joker
  gaining significant awards attention for a comic book film.
• Before Joker, Phillips showed his dramatic skills with
  dogs of war
  a satirical black comedy inspired by the films of Scorsese.
• dogs of war
  is based on a true story, but many events in the film were largely fictional for dramatic tension.

Although previously best known for his work in R-Rated comedies, Todd Phillips wowed audiences with his dark portrayal of Batman's iconic antagonist joker. The tale of the sandy origin was inspired by the Martin Scorsese classics taxi driver i The king of comedyand won significant awards attention which was unusual for a comic book film. joker received eleven Academy Award nominations, with Joaquin Phoenix taking home the trophy for best actor. It was a surprising move for Phillips, who was previously best known for his inclusive comedic work Road trip, due date, and The Hangover trilogy

Despite this, joker It wasn't the first time Phillips tackled a dark and challenging story with a strong political message. Just before taking on the Clown Prince of Crime, Phillips had shown off his dramatic skills with another film indebted to Scorsese's cinema. The satirical black comedy dogs of war examined the world of modern gun dealers in a style similar to good colleagues i Casino. while dogs of war embellishing some elements of the story, it tells a timely story about the irreversible damage of the arms race and the selfish traffickers who were to blame.

What is 'War Dogs' about?

dogs of war follow massage therapist David Packouz (Miles Teller), who struggles to keep his girlfriend Iz (Ana de Armas) when she finds out she is pregnant. David has a chance encounter with his high school friend Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), a US military arms dealer who operates the independent company AEY Inc. Efraim offers David a role to help him in the midst of the ongoing war in Iraq. Although Iraq War films are often considered to be overly patriotic, dogs of war he recognizes that it is the ignorance of Packouz and Diverolis that makes them dangerousas they do not realize how dangerous it will be to supply weapons to a war zone.

David opposes the war itself, but nevertheless helps Efraim provide ammunition and weapons to the Iraqi police in Baghdad, and eventually lives a series of misadventures along the Triangle of Death. They share a dangerous encounter with arms dealer Henry Girard (bradley cooper), who has David kidnapped and beaten at gunpoint. While Efraim shows no signs of recognizing the human costs of his deal, David struggles to go against his core beliefs. Phillips does a good job of acknowledging David's misgivings, but doesn't absolve him of his crimes. His light sentence after the conspiracy charges is framed as a cruel irony considering the many deaths for which he was responsible. Scorsese's influence is evident as Phillips incorporates several references to Scorsese's 1990 classic. good colleagues.

dogs of war is successful because the film does not lionize the behavior of Packouz or Diveroli, and makes it clear that the consequences they face are entirely their own. Teller gives one of the strongest performances of his career, showing Packouz's gradual understanding of his own villainy, and Hill continues his string of strong dramatic roles with an eccentric performance as the foul-mouthed, unreliable character. It's also a good chance to see Ana de Armas in this previous role before her acclaimed work in Blade Runner 2049, There is no time to diei Knives out.

How many “dogs of war” happened in real life?

Like many movies based on true stories, some elements of dogs of war are exaggerated for dramatic purposes. Despite this, the film is based on the real crimes that Packouz and Diveroli committed between 2005 and 2007. Phillips and co-authors Stephen Chin i Jason Smilovic based his script on the rolling stone article “Arms and boys” by Guy Lawson, which details the origins of the duo's strange relationship. Packouz joined Diveroli's arms start-up AEY in 2005. At the time, Packouz was 25 and Diveroli 19. AEY quickly rose to prominence, winning almost 150 contracts in its first year of operation . In 2007, AEY won a contract worth $300 million to supply the Afghan army with AK-47 ammunition. Although both men eventually pleaded guilty to criminal conspiracy charges, Packouz spent less than a year under house arrest and has a cameo in dogs of war. Diveroli was sentenced to four years in federal prison and published his memoirs Once an arms runner… in 2016.

Many of the film's most incredible scenarios actually happenedincluding the marijuana-soaked misadventures of Packouz and Diveroli before a meeting with representatives of the Department of Defense. dogs of war is heralded as one of Hill's best films, and Diveroli may have been as eccentric as his performance suggests. Diveroli had developed a strong desire to rebel since childhood and learned to play the Defense Department's arms deal network by buying cheap ammunition. By outsourcing supplies to Eastern Europe and Asia, AEY was able to win contracts from larger suppliers.

Although dogs of war represents Packouz and Diveroli fulfilling their contracts through expeditions abroad, in reality, the couple did most of their work from their Miami apartment. Although the film is framed as a military espionage film, most of the danger that Diveroli and Packouz experience abroad, including their exploits in the Triangle of Death, were entirely made up by dramatic tension. While The character Henry Girard is heavily inspired by Swiss Army arms dealer Heinrich Thomet, the real Thomet never kidnapped Diveroli and Packouz. In real life, Diveroli sued the producers of dogs of war, stating that the film was inspired by his memoir without the rights.

'War Dogs' changed everything for Todd Phillips

dogs of war served as proof that Phillips could handle more ambitious projects, as he was previously best known for his work in the comedy genre. After the negative reviews of both The hangover sequels, considered some of the worst comedy sequels of all time, Phillips seemed to have lost the spark of wit he had at the start of his career. dogs of war It certainly featured some darkly funny jokes, but it also contained an important message about the danger of putting faith in the military-industrial complex. The negative note the film ends on indicates that despite their crimes, neither Diveroli nor Packouz faced any real consequences for their actions.

dogs of war it also showed that Phillips could get more mature performances from his actors. While Hill was known for playing sympathetic characters in films like money ball i super bad, Phillips gave him the opportunity to play a truly monstrous character. Diveroli isn't just rude and obnoxious; he seems to care very little about the lives his business endangers, and uses his status as an American businessman as an excuse for his war crimes. The performance earned him a nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical/Comedy at the Golden Globes. while dogs of war was snubbed by the Academy Awards, Phillips would continue to direct Joaquin Phoenix to an Oscar for the best actor for his performance in joker

dogs of war introduced anti-capitalist themes that would become critical within joker, as Phillips points out that American greed is to blame for the astonishing success of Diveroli and Packouz. In the same way, joker shows how the economically impoverished citizens of Gotham City engage in a fight against Thomas Wayne and high society after Arthur Fleck initiates a revolutionary call to arms. It's quite impressive to see how radically Phillips has evolved as an artist. While he began his career making offensive comedies with graphic jokes, he became a storyteller capable of making important points about the abuse of disenfranchised people.

dogs of war is currently available to stream on Netflix in the United States

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