Lord of War (2005)

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Andrew Niccol Director previously directed S1m0ne

Yuri Orlov wanted a way to make money fast, he found out that the way to do it is to sell arms. The story of his life in the arms trade and the consequences of the profession he has chosen, all while trying to remain ahead of the authorities.
Trivia:

Kono, the name which the ship is changed to, is a diamond-rich area of Sierra Leone as well as the name of a tribe in Sierra Leone.

8 More Trivia
Quote: Yuri Orlov

There are over 550 million firearms in worldwide circulation. That's one firearm for every twelve people on the planet. The only question is: How do we arm the other 11?

2 More Quotes
Writers
Cast
Nicolas Cage Yuri Orlov
Jared Leto Vitaly Orlov
Ethan Hawke Jack Valentine
Bridget Moynahan Ava Fontaine
Eamonn Walker Andre Baptiste Senior
Donald Sutherland Colonel Oliver Southern
Ian Holm Simeon Weisz
Shake Tukhmanyan Irina Orlov
Jean-Pierre Nshanian Anatoly Orlov
Jared Burke Ukrainian Mobster
See Full Credits

Plot Summary

  After Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage), sees a Russian mobster gun down
 Yuri Orlov
 Yuri Orlov
 two hitmen in a local restaurant, he decides he wants to be self-employed, and becomes a gunrunner. Yuri is nervous about his first deal, he sells an Uzi to some unknown thugs and makes a killing. Soon he convinces his younger brother, Vitaly (Jared Leto), to join him and the two form an illegal arms business. In 1982 the Lebanon war breaks out and Yuri devises a scheme to sell arms to all factions involved.

Vitaly 
Vitaly 
As Yuri's business expands, so does his problems. Enter Jack Valentine (Ethan Hawke), an Interpol agent who abides by the letter of the law and refuses any kind of bribe. While Yuri is hauling a big shipment of weapons across the sea aboard a freighter named the "Kristol,"  Valentine and his interpol team come sniffing around on a speedboat to do a search. Yuri orders his crew to paint the over the name and change it to the "Kono" while Vitaly finds a different flag to put up.  Valentine is fooled into thinking the Kono is hauling potatoes, and his team quickly leave after an Interpol intelligence agent on Yuri's payroll calls in a false sighting of the "Kristol."

In Colombia, a drug lord, negotiates a trade of six kilograms of cocaine
 Money, not drugs
 Money, not drugs
 instead of cash. The deal goes sour when Yuri tries to explain that he deals in arms, not drugs, and is shot during the argument. Yuri, knowing that he might not make it out alive, gives in and takes the cocaine as payment. Vitaly takes one kilogram to get high, and slowly but surely, becomes an addict. Yuri forces Vitaly into an up-scale drug rehabilitation center, and begins to he run their arms business alone.  During this time, Yuri woos a famous fashion model named Ava Fontaine (Bridget Moynahan) after hatching an elaborate ruse that lures Ava to a false photo shoot. They eventually marry and have a child named Nikolai (Nicky). Ava knows Yuri can't be legit in his business, but never questions him about it.

 
      Andre Baptiste Sr.
      Andre Baptiste Sr.
  In 1991, on Christmas Day, Mikhail Gorbachev's gives his resignation on live television. Yuri couldn't be more ecstatic, and rushes over to the Ukraine after the Soviet Union breaks down. Yuri proceeds to illegally buy tanks and other weapons from Ukraine's new military, with help of his Uncle who is a high ranking officer. With a new arsenal of weapons to sell, Yuri forms an alliance with
 Baptiste Jr.'s Golden AK
 Baptiste Jr.'s Golden AK
 Andre Baptiste Sr. (Eamonn Walker), the merciless dictator of Liberia who has a penchant for using child soldiers. The alliance proves to be extremely profitable, and the two bond after killing Simeon Weisz (Ian Holm), a rival of Yuri's in the arms trade.

Meanwhile, Valentine's fustration of not being able to catch Yuri, leads him to reveal the truth to Ava about Yuri's illegal arms business. Ava confronts Yuri and begs him to stop. Yuri tries to rationalize his careerto her by simply
 Interpol chat
 Interpol chat
 saying, "I'm good at it."  After some arguing, Yuri eventually complies, but finds it difficult to earn as much revenue through honest means. Yuri gets hooked back into the business when Andre Baptiste Sr. contacts him and promises a very lucrative score. 

Vitaly, out of rehab for a second time, comes along with Yuri to Liberia, because Yuri claims he can't trust anyone there.  Baptiste reveals that the weapons are being purchased for the RUF rebels of Sierra Leone. Vitaly sees a group of RUF rebels raid a small 
 Calming down Vitaly
 Calming down Vitaly
village and kill a woman and her child with machetes. Vitaly, knowing what will happen to the villagers as soon as the RUF buys the guns, tries to convince Yuri to cancel the deal. When Yuri refuses, Vitaly takes a grenade and blows up half the gun shipment. Vitaly desperately tries to destroy the half, but RUF soldiers gun him down before he can. Yuri runs to his brothers aide, but sees Vitaly is mortally wounded. Yuri takes the activated grenade out of his brother's clenched hand, and lobs it at the soldiers, killing them.

Suspicious of Yuri's recent behavior, Ava follows Yuri one morning and finds Yuri's storage container, which is full of weapons, large amounts of
 Ava
 Ava
 cash and fake passports. Ava takes their child, and along with Yuri's parents,  they disown Yuri. Yuri then gets arrested when a bullet is found in Vitaly's chest as it passes through customs. Valentine, is notified and he comes down to the airport holding cell to interrogate Yuri. Valentine is sure that he can now find solid proof to convict him with, by telling Yuri that he's found the storage container. However, Yuri explains nonchalantly to Valentine that when Valentine contacts his superiors at Interpol, he will be informed to let Yuri go. Yuri has positioned himself as a "necessary evil", a man that can distribute 
 Lord of War
 Lord of War
weapons when first-world governments do not wish to become formally involved. United States Marine Corps officer Colonel Oliver Southern (Donald Sutherland) speaks to Valentine and Yuri is in fact, subsequently released. Even though Yuri has lost almost everything he's ever cared for, he still continues to operate and expand his career running illegal arms.   
 

Featured Warzones

  • Sierra Leone Civil War
  • Lebanese Civil War
  • Somali Civil War
  • Civil war in Afghanistan
  • Second Liberian Civil War
  • Iran-Iraq War (mentioned only)
  • Cold War
  • War on Terror (mentioned only)
Lord of War 35 images
news Andrew Niccol, The Writer/Director Of In Time, Is Still Hollywood's Most Under-Appreciated Talent No_name_here
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General Information Edit
Name Lord of War
US Release Sept. 16, 2005
UK Release Oct. 14, 2005
AUS Release Feb. 2, 2006
Runtime 121
Language(s)
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English
Genre(s)
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Thriller
Crime
Drama
Theme(s)
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drugs
modern military
adult
Rating R
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  • In today's dollars
    Domestic $24,149,632
    Foreign +48,467,436
  • = total worldwide gross $72,617,068
  • - a reported budget of $50,000,000
  • = a 45.2% net profit of $22,617,068
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