Jonah Hill and Miles Teller in "War Dogs" = A Semblance of ReliefNeeded After a Bloated Summer Movie Season

    The summer movie season is winding down and as we move into the fall we're going to see less big blockbusters and more story-driven, smaller movies. This weekend marks the opening of 3 new films that will fight for the top spot in the box office, where I would venture that only one of which could possibly make the claim that it should be considered a "blockbuster". That movie would be the WHY-THE-HECK-DID-YOU-MAKE-THIS reboot Ben-Hur.  The movie I'm reviewing here isn't that movie. Today I'm discussing the war drama/comedy War Dogs from The Hangover Trilogy's director Todd Phillips. The movie stars Miles Teller and Jonah Hill in what is probably going to end up being an underrated film of 2016. I didn't think much of this movie going in, only that I thought the pairing of Teller ad Hill seemed really intriguing. What I didn't expect was how good it actually would end up being.

   Based on a true story, War Dogs is the story of two young men, David Packouz (Miles Teller) and Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), who won a $300 million contract from the Pentagon to arm America's allies in Afghanistan. Starting out small, these two entrepreneurs took advantage of a little-known government initiative that allows small businesses to bid on U.S. Military contracts, which made them an exorbitant amount of money. Their trick was to bid on the little, unwanted contracts that big businesses seemed to avoid. This was their bread and butter and they not only made a ton of money, but they made quite the name for themselves within this business. When they decided to dip their toes into the deep end of the pool, reaching for an opportunity that would possibly make them $300 million richer, their morals, ethics, and friendship would be put to the test.

   Where this movie thrives is with the acting. Jonah Hill is one of the most versatile actors working today. He has the ability to harness a comedic presence as well as a dramatic one. The guy is a two-time Oscar Nominee for crying out loud. He's hilarious in this movie. He's also extremely dark and scary. In particular there is a scene in the third act between him and Teller in an elevator where his performance gave me the chills. I'm not exaggerating. Both he and Miles Teller--who has proved time and again that he's an actor to be taken seriously (i.e. his work in Whiplash)--are a breath of fresh air after such a bloated summer. They each have their own moments to shine in this movie, with subtle nuances and the ability to play off one another; it's a joy to watch, really.

   The story itself is interesting, but not as interesting as how director Todd Phillips was able to weave a sound narrative. Phillips' comedies are hilarious and his movies are somewhat one-note at times. The Hangover Trilogy might be his comedic opus, but War Dogs might be his best film. Maybe it's the material this time around? Not only does the story have rich, believable characters in an otherwise unbelievable scenario (real or not), but he doesn't waste a scene and his framing and visual eye in this movie lends itself to the grounded nature of the story. I was thoroughly entertained with this movie, more so than I had anticipated. Honestly, I thought I was getting Due Date but with different actors, Teller playing the Robert Downey Jr. part and Hill playing the Zack Galifianakis part. In reality, though, that's not the case. War Dogs is it's own thing and that thing was really, really good.