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112 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 1 5 direction of Clint Eastwood (making his best, tightest movie in years), he plays Chris Kyle, the real-life marksman and Navy SEAL who became known as one of the greatest shooters in the Iraq War. As Kyle sets his gun sights on the enemy in the film, so, too, does Eastwood set his camera sights on Cooper. This is an intense character study within an intense war film. It's also Cooper's best work to date. He recently spoke about it in Los Angeles. Q. Besides starring in this film, you also pro- duced it. What drew you to the project? A. Movies for me have always been healing, and I love storytelling so much. We fell into a sit- uation here where we had the opportunity to tell this man's story, who was a very charismat- ic, dynamic human being. It's not a movie about the Iraq War. It's a movie about what someone like Chris has to go through as a soldier, and the dilemma and the horror of it, and the battle internally and what he went through with his family [at home]. There's a lot to make it something that you want to watch, but the takeaway, for those who can relate to him, will be that maybe it'll be heal- ing for a vet who's gone through similar things that Chris went through. Q. You really look like you know what you're doing in this film. What kind of prep work did Bradley Cooper plays Chris Kyle—a Navy SEAL who served four tours in the Iraq War and is reputed to be the deadliest sniper in US mili- tary history—in Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper." The film is nominated for six Academy Awards. Photo: © 2014 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc., WV Films IV LLC and Ratpac-Dune Entertainment LLC