'The Hurt Locker' (2009)

Title: The Hurt Locker

Rating: 15

Released: 2009

Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Starring: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Evangeline Lilly, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, Guy Pearce

Our Verdict: ** 2.5 stars

In a line: A tense and realistic snapshot of a US bomb-disposal unit in Iraq

Background: If y

ou’ve not heard of this relativel low-budget ($11million) war flick; you must have been living under a rock for the last couple of months. You are forgiven though, if you hadn’t heard of the film until the BAFTAs in February, where the film walked away with honours for ‘Best Original Screenplay’, the David Lean Award for ‘Best Director’ and the top

accolade of the night; Best Film. For many, the BAFTAs are seen as a precursor for the Academy Awards, and on March 7^th, The Hurt Locker triumphed once again at the 82^nd ‘Oscars’ ceremony. The film was presented with 6 of the 8 awards it was nominated for.

In Britain, The Hurt Locker received a (very) limited release in November and December of 2009. Many cinemas either showed the film for around one to two weeks, and it didn’t even play in a large number of UK cinemas. Out of 209 cinemas, 103 showed the film in the UK. But as the award season started, the film’s popularity gained momentum and by the time that the BAFTA and Academy Award nominations were released, everyone seemed to be talking about it. As the BAFTA ceremony took place; the film was already available on DVD in the Britain. Since the Hurt Locker’s prolific wins at the prestigious Oscars, there has been renewed interest in the film. It rocketed to the top of the UK DVD charts and began to fly off the shelves, as people became increasingly curious about the film that triumphed over the highest grossing film of all time; James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ which had also been nominated for ‘Best Film’, etc.

The Hurt Locker is the 8^th film by director Kathryn Bigelow; who became the first female director to win the Academy Award for ‘Best Director’. Her previous best-known films are probably ‘K-19: The Widowmaker’ (2002) and ‘Point Break’ (1991).

Synopsis: The film has very little in the way of a narrative. It is a series of basically unconnected scenes depicting the United States Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team at work.

Review: The film opens with one of the tensest and dramatic openings I’ve seen in recent years. Straight away we are catapulted into the world of the bomb disposal unit. The tension created as a soldier attempts to disarm the first bomb is really fantastic. It’s worth seeing the film for the opening 15 minutes alone. When the bomb goes off, the slow-motion explosion is simply beautiful. It made the film seem very promising; but in my opinion, the film fails to deliver after this point.

Personally I was disappointed with the lack of a tangible narrative. I wanted to connect with the characters, to get to know the men personally, and there was very little of this.

When the maverick ‘new guy’ enters the proceedings, I was again filled with hope that the film would become a more personal story; sadly this failed to materialise. The camaraderie between the men is quite touching. There are a couple of instances when the men vaguely discuss their family, or their fears about dying, but these are few and far between, and one such scene is rather rudely interrupted by the men gaining the sudden urge for a bit of rough-housing to display some masculinity and work off excessive testosterone.

I must praise the constant building of tension and threat. You could easily spend ¾ of the film sat on the edge of your seat. Despite the tension, there are some amusing moments and some upbeat streaks amongst the men.

Overall, it’s not a bad piece of tense action/drama. If you want to see a film showing the personal perspective of the Iraq war, this really isn’t for you. I’d say that’s where the film is most lacking. It should also be noted that many Iraq veterans have picked fault with the fail and hailed it as a very poor representation of life in the warzone. If you take the film for what it is (a fictional drama), then you won’t be disappointed. However, if you’re looking for something totally accurate or a gripping personal struggle, you might want to give ‘Saving Private Ryan’ (1998) another go.