The Hurt Locker.

[GRColin]

Kathryn Bigelow directs this gripping drama (nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards) following one of the U.S. Army's elite EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) teams operating in the ferocious war zone of Iraq. As the squad identifies and dismantles improvised explosive devices and other bombs, they must also contend with the frayed nerves and internal conflicts that arise from living in constant peril.

So I just finished watching what is being hailed by some critics as the best war movie since Platoon, the motion picture of the year, etc etc. I wouldn't go that far. And for the record, Platoon was pretty mediocre. Anyways...My thoughts on "The Hurt Locker"...

For being directed by the lady who did "Point Break" and "Strange Days" I was pleasantly surprised. It was nowhere near as cheesy as the former and nowhere near as insipid as Strange Days. The acting for being a war film was generally top notch and the characters made me feel like I was watching a war film about the soldiers, not a political stance. I didn't feel like there was much political bias in it really. Sure, there were some soldiers portrayed as heartless but you know what/ Some are. Deal with it. They aren't all like the romanticized image of a soldier.

Not only was it well acted but it was pretty tense in parts. I felt my heart rate speeding up during a couple of scenes thanks in large part to the feeling of suspense Kathryn Bigelow gave the film along with the score and sound effects.

Bigelow also did a great job at capturing the feelings and emotions that come from living through the horrors of war. She turned what could have been a typical "bombs go boom" film into a decent character driven story.

My only real gripe is the lack of accuracy. The movie follows a team of explosive ordnance disposal soldiers. These guys are not infantry soldiers. Yet at many times throughout the film they go off base to perform their task with no support which EODs do not do. Not only that but it gets so ridiculous that at one point in the movie after a devastating bombing, the team decides to go hunt down those responsible, performing a nighttime operation. That's unbelievable enough that they would do that and not the infantry soldiers but they do it without infantry support. Or night vision goggles. Of course this results in a man getting shot and almost captured by insurgents. Of course nothing happens to the team leader.

Overall an enjoyable film thanks in part to some genuine tension, decent acting, striking visuals and a great sound team. Despite me having more negative than positive to say I'd give "The Hurt Locker" 4/5 stars.

TL;DR - A great film but horribly inaccurate in parts.

https://www.armywell-being.org/skins/WB ... owSSL=true

 

[KoalaRainbowPoop]

i loved this movie up till the end. he needed some redeeming qualifies to him. my favorite part? the sniper scene of the movie. plus it was nice to see a war movie without any political bias.

 

[BigZell2020]

I had never heard of this movie until I saw the previews a couple nights ago...it looks really good. I'll have to check it out, thanks for the info.

 

[Bretimus_v2]

Let's hear it for RedBox!

 

[Caped_Crusader]

If you want to see the best war movie ever made, watch "Born on the Fourth of July". And Bigelow's "Point Break" is still much better than "Hurt Locker" - Patrick Swayze, Keanu Reeves and Gary Busey together in one movie... Unreal.

 

[lokness]

I thought Private Ryan was the best war movie. WTF

 

[KoalaRainbowPoop]

oh please lokness, we all know tunnel rats by uwe boll is the besr war movie evar!

 

[GRColin]

I thought Private Ryan was the best war movie. WTF

It is.

 

[lokness]

Oh ok.

I hear Tunnel Rats is ok - for an uwe bowl movie.

 

[EliaSoZ]

The Hurt Locker is definitely one of my favorite war movies. Highly enjoyable.

8.7/10

My favorite war movie ever would be Apocalypse Now. Still a classic today and just as enjoyable.

 

[Robmiester]

Let's see any of you direct a better movie than Hurt Locker, it was all in all solid. Probably not 100% per cent accurate to what actually wages on in wars but what the hell else do you expect, a true story perhaps? No, I think it was grippingly entertaining. All shooting scenes were indeed top notch, the best part was the fucking koolaid jammers fucking juice break after the sniping scene.

 

[GRColin]

I didn't say I could direct a better movie. And yes, the sniping scene was pretty intense but also something they wouldn't be doing. I'd give the movie 4/5. It was a really well done action film. I just don't think it's worthy of all the praise it's getting or the best film of 2009. But like I said, a solid film, great visuals and sound, and above average acting for the type of film it is.

 

[MikeyVassallo]

I have a friend who is an IED technician and was brought on to consult very early on in the making of this film. He says it is as real as being there. I don't want to ever find out so I'll take his word for it.

They shipped him back out for his FOURTH tour last month.

 

[GRColin]

The explosive ordnance disposal scenes? You bet your ass they are.

It doesn't change the fact where the guy running around a downtown Iraqi city by himself at night or the three doing a search and capture mission are horribly unrealistic for what EODs do.

 

[BigZell2020]

The explosive ordnance disposal scenes? You bet your ass they are.

It doesn't change the fact where the guy running around a downtown Iraqi city by himself at night or the three doing a search and capture mission are horribly unrealistic for what EODs do.

I saw this tonight, and I didn't find those scenes to be as out of place as I thought they were going to be from what you had said. The movie acknowledged that those scenes were not something they were supposed to be doing, and it kind of fit in with that one dude being a renegade and doing his own thing the whole movie.

The whole movie had that trust no one tension to it, even as they walked amongst children you never felt like they were safe. I liked the way it kept you on edge throughout.

 

[GRColin]

Yes but the truth of the matter is - You cannot be a renegade in the fucking Iraq war when you are in command of other men. It is reckless, stupid and can get people killed. Renegade action hero types belong in the Lethal Weapon franchise, not a "realistic" war film.

If you don't know much about the military or have an avid interest in the real going ons and whatnot then it isn't a big deal - You can easily ignore it and there's nothing wrong with that. Not one thing. No point in arguing my opinion because this is just how I felt and many Marines and soldiers. But yes, while watching it if you don't know to think about that stuff and you just get lost in the film it doesn't seem unrealistic. It was a very entertaining movie.

 

[lokness]

I saw this today and after what i had read here, i'd have to agree. The opening scene where the leader suits up to pick up the dropped explosive had me pretty intense. The music that goes with it is nerve racking. I was constantly relaying in my head 'boom...booom, c'mon boom!'. It never came until he was running away which was a bit anticlimactic as a whole but worked well in the scene overall.

 

[GRColin]

Yeah the sound was pretty amazing and made much of the film for me - And I normally don't notice it that much so that's saying something.

 

[EliaSoZ]

I think the unrealistic complaints are pretty lame. Like someone already pointed out, the movie made a point of showing that they were doing something they were NOT supposed to be doing. And there were consequences. Just because there is no room for "a renegade" in the Iraqi war, doesn't mean soldiers won't do stupid shit.

It's like complaining about factual errors in Braveheart. (read: who gives a fcuk?)

 

[GRColin]

Well I think your response is lame then. I'm not faulting anyone for liking it, so you shouldn't be faulting me for wishing they spent a little more time with realism. What you're really doing is saying anyone who had issue with the unrealistic scenes are lame when in fact it's just realizing someone would NOT do that. A leader would not deliberately put their mens lives ind anger. It's as simple as that. Every single person I've spoken to in the military (and yes, even some EOD guys) have said that no one would ever do that. Yes, soldiers will do dumbshit but an EOD tech is NOT trained to do what he did near the end of the film and most likely would NOT say "hey men1 let's go hunt em down and smoke em out!" knowing there's a very large chance he would get his men killed.

Jesus I'm not here to turn this into an argument.