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“A horror film’s job is to scare you, is to get your pulse going, is to make you scream and yell. It’s to make you be afraid. That’s its main purpose, and creeping you out. And that can be an enjoyable experience.” --- John Carpenter ::::::::::::: MY CRITERIA FOR DISCUSSION ENCOMPASSES THE HORROR GENRE AND BEYOND, SO I USE THE TERM "NIGHTMARE MOVIES". SPOILERS CAN OCCUR WITH OR WITHOUT WARNING. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

The Hurt Locker

March 3rd 2010 02:55
The Hurt Locker movie poster
Fear as a fix, fear as a friend, fear as a foe, fear as a formidable film: The Hurt Locker (2009) is one of the best war movies of the past twenty years, boldly and apologetically portraying the soldier as adrenalin junkie, embracing war’s terror with open arms, sweating profusely in the heat of the moment, making the decision between red, blue or yellow, and snipping those wires with a simple pair of pliers in order to defuse a bomb capable of destroying anything and everything within a 300 metre radius; this is the job of the bomb technician, those precious few that dice with death within the hurt locker.
The Hurt Locker Jeremy Renner
Jeremy Renner as Sgt. James
Director Kathryn Bigelow is a Hollywood rarity, a female director who has been nominated for a Best Director at this year’s upcoming Academy Awards. Only three other women have been given that honour, although none actually won the award: Lina Wertmuller, Jane Campion, and Sofia Coppola. Kathryn Bigelow deserves the acknowledgement; The Hurt Locker is sensational filmmaking, not to forget Bigelow made the superb vampire movie Near Dark (1987), and the guilty pleasure thriller Point Break (1990). Whether she manages to keep ex-hubbie James Cameron from repeating his 1997 success will be known in a week’s time.
The Hurt Locker Anthony Mackie
Anthony Mackie as Sgt. Sanborn
“Fear is clarifying. It forces you to put important things first and discount the trvial,” explains Bigelow in her director’s statement, “When I learned that these men [bomb technicians] volunteer for this dangerous work, and often grow so fond of it they can imagine doing nothing else, I knew I had found my next film.” Indeed this is an area of the army rarely, if ever, focused on in Hollywood war movies. But more significantly, the screenplay by Mark Boal, who experienced first hand the combat – and the bomb disposal units - in Iraq during a reporting trip, takes the opportunity to present the true colours of these unusually fearless men. Of course, there are many who loathe having to do the work, but then there are a “chosen few” who relish the intensity, the perversely precarious situation they put themselves in, suited up in the specialized bomb protection outfit (um, how much damage can it actually sustain per chance?), and getting down to the nitty-gritty.
The Hurt Locker Brian Geraghty
Brian Geraghty as Spc. Eldrich
Bomb disposal unit soldiers Specialist Eldrich (Brian Geraghty) and Sergeant Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) have been given a new unit leader, SSG William James (Jeremy Renner), a cocky, reckless, but very skilled soldier. They have around 40 days left of their rotation in the sweltering Iraq heat. But it looks like James may well get them all killed with his gungho approach to disarming the proliferation of bombs scattered around the derelict cityscape.
The Hurt Locker bombs aplenty
Biting off more than you can chew?
The Hurt Locker fiddles with bravado and machismo, debunking with hardened irony the way soldiers interact and deal with the horror of close-combat. Director Bigelow is interested in the way an action movie can utilize potent emotional elements – in particular fear – and create a hybrid suspense movie that doesn’t deliver in ways conditioned audiences expect. This is one of the most palpably suspenseful movies I’ve seen in a long time, that isn’t tagged as a traditional thriller. The cinema verite narrative adds considerable visual verve, as does the restrained use of music, and a stunning sound design and mix.
The Hurt Locker Anthony Mackie and Jeremy Renner
Inbetween bombs the boys find time for a little sniper dispatch action
There is a quiet tragedy that seeps through the fabric of this powerful movie; the dissipation of love. Sergeant James during a brief spell at home with his wife and baby boy talks to his infant as he plays with him, explaining that as you grow older less and less things become important, until you discover you love only two or three elements in your life, or as James admits, just one thing. Having seen the disengaged conversation he had with his wife (Evangeline Lilly) just prior, and knowing the death wish passion in his eyes when he walks toward an unexploded bomb, the audience’s heart sinks, knowing too well, his wife and kid play second fiddle to his adrenalin addiction.
The Hurt Locker badda-boom
Too close for comfort?
The acting is uniformly excellent. There are three key appearances by Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes and David Morse, on-screen for less than ten minutes each, and these “cameos” all shine, but hats off to Mark Renner, Brian Geraghty and Anthony Mackie, all of whom deliver top notch work. The Hurt Locker instantly joins the classic ranks of dysfunctional and embattled war dramas such as Apocalypse Now, Gallipoli, Come and See, Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, and The Thin Red Line, with its own unconventional structure, based around individual moments rather than clinging to a traditional narrative arc.

Here's the trailer:

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews
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12 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by Cinema is Truth

March 3rd 2010 03:31


Cinema is Truth
Cinema is Truth
So happy you saw this!! Glad you loved it. Best film of the year.

Comment by Matt Shea

March 3rd 2010 05:00


20/20 Filmsight
Nice review, Bryn, and about time you caught this . We've discussed it enough already, really, but it is indeed great stuff. For me, only District 9 bettered HL in 2009.

Comment by Bryn

March 3rd 2010 05:26


Horrorphile
Thanks Sarah and Matt, and cheers for the nod.
Matt, yeah, I'd probably agree with you there. Neill Blomkamp should be up for Best Director at least, but an oversight, just as the Academy glaringly snubbed Moon.

Comment by Janet Collins

March 3rd 2010 12:01


Acceptable Etiquette
The Social Critic
Janet Collins Blog
I am really looking forward to seeing this one. Good review.

Comment by Mountain Fog

March 3rd 2010 12:55
me too!

great review, but, had to stop after a few paragraphs as yet to see it...looking forward to it!!

cheers

fog

Comment by Luke

March 3rd 2010 13:17


Old Movies
Cane Toad Warrior

Yep. Great movie... my pick for Best Picture and Director.

Comment by Tracy

March 3rd 2010 23:30


Movies and Life
Another fine review, Bryn. We're off to see it this weekend.

Tracy

Comment by Bryn

March 4th 2010 00:25


Horrorphile
Cheers for the nice comments everyone ... I'm very curious to see what pans out at the Awards, especially with all the bad press Hurt Locker has been getting of late (not indicative of the movie though)

Comment by RubySoho

March 4th 2010 11:30


Music Zone
Thought Zone
This ties with (500) Days of Summer as my favourite for the year.

Just a suggestion, you may want to put a spoiler alert. that "just one thing" scene is pretty much the climax of the movie.

Comment by JohnDoe

March 5th 2010 03:21


Film & TV on DVD
Hi Bryn,

I really enjoyed the Hurt Locker too...though i think the claims of best picture may be a bit excessive. You know I love Kathryn Bigelow and would not be crushed if she beat the big QT for best Director.

Particularly loved the apostrophe mark final scene that gave the finger to the macho, gung ho heroic image of most was propoganda films.

Will probably review this myself in the coming weeks as I won a copy on DVD now.

Comment by Bryn

March 5th 2010 06:53


Horrorphile
JD, yeah, knew this one would be up your alley. I too liked how the movie denied the ending you felt would provide the obvious dramatic irony.

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