American Sniper (2014)

Factual error: Chris Kyle did not make Chief after his first deployment. He made Chief during his fourth deployment.

Mike OToole

Marc Lee: You got some kind of saviour complex?
Chris Kyle: No. I just want to get the bad guys, but if I can't see them I can't shoot them.

Trivia: Contrary to the heroic figure he's portrayed as being in the film, the real-life Chris Kyle was quite the controversial person. By his own admission, he would ignore rules of engagement and stated that he enjoyed killing people in Iraq and that he wished he would have killed more, even referring to Iraqis as "savages." He also falsely claimed in his book and in subsequent radio/television interviews to have punched-out former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura for making disparaging remarks about Navy SEALs at a SEAL reunion in 2006. As a result, Ventura sued Chris Kyle - and later his estate after Kyle's death - and was awarded $1.8 million in damages for defamation of character and unjust enrichment. It was also revealed in May 2016 that Kyle had embellished his military record, claiming in his book to have won two Silver Stars and five Bronze stars, all for valor. In actuality, he had only been awarded one Silver Star and four Bronze Stars. Prior to publishing his book, Navy officials warned him not to include the discrepancy. The Navy concluded its investigation of the matter in July 2016, and reduced his medal count accordingly. Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/navy-finds-american-sniper-chris-kyle-exaggerated-medal-count-article-1.2705473.

Phaneron