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Download, Watch online The Hurt Locker Movie.
| Genres: | ActionThrillerDr |
| Starring: | Guy Pearce, Christian Camargo, Anthony Mackie, David Morse, Ralph Fiennes, Brian Geraghty, Jeremy Renner |
| Director(s): | Kathryn Bigelow |
| Available Quality: | DVD, Hi Def, iPod, Hi Def, Hi Def |
| Country: | USA |
| Year: | 2008 |
| IMDB Rating: | 7.7 |
US Army Sergeant First Class Will James, Sergeant JT Sanborn and Specialist Owen Eldridge comprise the Bravo Companys bomb disposal unit currently stationed in Baghdad. James is the tech team leader. When James arrives on the scene, Bravo Company has thirty-nine days left on its current deployment. It will be a long thirty-nine days for Sanborn and Eldridge whose styles do not mesh with their new leader. James is a renegade for who the thrill of the dismantlement seems to be the ultimate goal regardless of the safety of his fellow team members, others on the scene or himself. On the other hand, Sanborn is by the books he knows his place and duty and trusts others in the army to carry out theirs as well as he. And Eldridge is an insecure soldier who is constantly worried that an error or misjudgment on his part will lead to the death of an innocent civilian or a military colleague. While the three members face their own internal issues, they have to be aware of any person at the bomb sites, some of who may be bombers themselves.
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The Hurt Locker (iPod) | Resolution: 480x256 px | Total Size: 446 Mb |
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The Hurt Locker (Hi Def) | Resolution: 852x480 px | Total Size: 1090 Mb |
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The Hurt Locker (Hi Def) | Resolution: 1920x1080 px | Total Size: 10376 Mb |
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The Hurt Locker (Hi Def) | Resolution: 1280x688 px | Total Size: 8137 Mb |
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The Hurt Locker (DVD) | Resolution: 720x416 px | Total Size: 1492 Mb |
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Movie Photos: We have taken some photos of "The Hurt Locker". They represent actual movie quality.
Visitor Reviews: (20)
markgorman 17 May 2012
Iraq. futile but a blast for some, literally.
noun. A figurative place where someone is said to be or will be, ifthey are getting or expect to be getting hurt or beaten.You may not agree with the politics behind the invasion of Iraq (Icertainly didn't support its invasion and will, forever, despise TonyBliar (sic) for his misleading of the parliament) but whatever yourstance one must surely support the troops that operate there.This film takes a rather too pro-American stance in that it positionsmost Iraquis as "the enemy" in a fairy broadbrush way. But that isabout its only flaw, and if you can overlook that we are talking epicwar movies here.The film draws you in from the get go as we follow the episodicadventures of a team of bomb disposal experts filmed (documentarystyle) on the streets of an unnamed Iraqui city.The insurgents will go to any extremes (hence why they're known asextremists I guess) to ply their dirty trade, most gut-wrenchingly bycreating a human bomb out of a murdered 10 year old boy (maybe itshould have been called a cadaver bomb).It's pretty much a three man performance but the acting plaudits goprincipally to Jeremy Renner, a died in the wool adrenalin freak, andhis more considered colleague, played by Anthony Mackie. I am notfamiliar with either of their work previously but both deliver measuredand moving performances.The central axis of the film is around Renner's character SSgt WilliamJames who has defused over 800 bombs and approaches the task with abravado that terrifies his more conservative colleagues. (In fact themovie's opening line essentially captures his ethos; "The rush ofbattle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug." )Buthe always gets the job done in the most difficult situations. He'spositioned as a cold and callous redneck but, as often in these movies,the cracks begin to show and an entirely more human soldier emergeswhich revolves around his relationship with a cheeky young Iraquimarket trader (perhaps the only sympathetic Iraqui character in themovie). This ends with a delicious twist that I'll not spoil here.There is no question that Bigelow deserves her place at the top tablecome Oscar time and might even win. It would be amusing to see her putone over on ex-husband James Cameron who is probably also in therunning for Avatar.This is a grown up movie with a really powerful hit. It powerfullycaptures the emotion of war and sense of place that few war movies do(Thin Red Line by Terence Malik being an exception as well as theexcellent made for TV movie, Occupation, made earlier this year withJames Nesbitt; and also set in Iraq).A big fat 9 out of 10 from me.
16 May 2012
The Bomb Squad
Hard to fault this movie as it provides a very compelling portrait of the troops in Iraq, and with the use of hand-held 16 mm cameras certainly gives you the feeling of being there. However, I found myself wondering why Bigelow chose to make this so exclusively a "boys' movie," with no significant women characters and little feeling for the Iraqis except for the empathy Sgt. Will James felt for young "Beckham."Like Gunner Palace, The Hurt Locker is one for the soldiers serving in combat. She takes you into their world, and makes you see Iraq through their eyes. In this case, we follow a "bomb squad" as they defuse land mines around Baghdad and in one compelling scene venture into the desert where they come across some private contractors and soon find themselves under fire by insurgents.If you are looking for more in this "war movie" you will probably be disappointed as Bigelow chose to make this movie politically non-partisan, based more or less on Mark Boal's "embedded" stories from 2004, when he was a journalist in Iraq. The movie lacks the inner struggle that is found in Chris Hedges' War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning which she references at the start of her movie with the phrase, "war is a drug."
razorsharp2505-1 11 May 2012
A decent film but it might not blow you away.
When a movie you haven't seen before wins an Oscar, there's anexpectation that something great is going to unfold on the screenbefore you. With Hurt Locker you are presented with a solid, watchablefilm but you might be left wondering what all the hype was for.Bravo Unit are tasked with making safe a number of potential bombs andexplosive devices in a variety of guises and situations. Guy Pearceshows us how it should be done but then promptly exits the movie.That's big a shame as he would have been ideal as lead actor.Enter arrogant bomb disposal expert Jeremy Renner who breaks all therules, puts other people's lives at risk but gets the job done with acertain style. There's an over-arcing story about how war affects different people indifferent ways but it's hardly anything new. The Hurt Locker containssome decent action and realistic sub-plots but again it's nothing outof the ordinary.Perhaps Hurt Locker got so much attention because it was the best of amediocre lot at Oscar nomination time. Do watch it, just don't expectto be blown away - literally or figuratively!
the_weedy_seadragon 10 May 2012
pounded into the carpet...
caught the first matinée of : the hurt lockeras a maker, an artist, a writer, a poet, a musician the easiest part is starting : the hard part is carrying the work :rare as hens teeth is ending it... rightthe hurt locker was as good as it gets : everything top to bottomscript : production : direction : camera : actors : editingeverything was dialed in and... perfect except for the **cking ending : damn it...it was in the directors hands : like all people who do not know wherethe ending is : she went to far it was wrapped with a nice satin ribbon and Hollywood bow tie : *hitthe end is the 4rd scene from the end : grocery shoppingcamera pans down the cereal isle one way : pans the other : cut toblack : end of filmsee : i called it a film, not a movie : but, it got movie-izedthe superb lines from the 3rd to last scene:sergeant james talking to his baby boy (paraphrased) "As you get older,the things you love fall away. Maybe there's just 2 left, for me, it'sone."those lines don't have to be lost and shouldn't move those lines earlier : stage a mano e mano scene between SargentJames and Spec JT SandbornTHEN, later, the 4th scene before the end when JT says "Nobody caresabout me. I want a son."the power of that moment would go off the charts plus, you'd have your superior: robotic : over-saturated : vacant :empty : material world moment in the grocery isle cut to black : end of filma 10 rating
cheechako_1 10 May 2012
Dear Ralph, How Could You?
REALLY??? I am truly amazed to see the glowing reviews here! This is one of the worst movies I have ever seen. It is one bigpathetic, grainy, cliché. I would have laughed out loud, and a lot, butwas on a date with an ex-military guy. I could not hide my otherresponse, BOREDOM. Yes, I think my date, a flat-line "good old boy",liked it. That's not a compliment. I know an actor wants to work....Fine for the others. But Ralph, come on.It was a painful tease from Ralph. I vote a 2 only because Ralph lookedSO STUNNING. But I must plead, Ralph, how could you? And, why?? I'm going to go watch The End of The Affair to heal and recover now....C1
rinoa-3 09 May 2012
A necessary, more-than-successful work.
"The Hurt Locker", the 2010 Academy Award for Best Picture. While Imaintain my soft spot for "Inglourious Basterds", and consider it anoverall superior film, I am not at all upset at the Academy's choice:"The Hurt Locker" is a necessary work, an exposition of the mindlessaddiction that war can turn into and of the horrors practiced in it.Wonderfully directed, with carefully crafted sound effects and hauntingcamera movements (indeed, all of the technical Oscars it won weredefinitely well-deserved -- and don't be fooled by those who mistakethe film's lack of clarity for bad directing, for it is only a verysuccessful attempt at reproducing the war atmosphere), this film willpass on a very accurate anxious feeling from the beginning to the verylast minute: you will awe, hate and wonder; you will feel both angryand relieved; if you are at all sensitive, you may even feel the urgeto shed some tears at a couple of particularly well-achieved moments.Original and overall extremely successful at what it attempts toconvey, this film does have a stronger social/political message than"Inglourious Basterds": so, in spite of my personal preference for thelatter, I must admit that I'm glad for the exposition this Oscar willgive it, and can only hope that many people (especially the rightpeople) will watch it and learn from it.PS: Yes, this film WAS directed by a woman. Congratulations, Kathryn,on outdoing your ex-husband on all accounts.
04 May 2012
Don't listen to the soldiers who hate this movie because of its inaccuracies
This wasn't my favorite movie of the year, but I did enjoy it on its own terms: as a taut, suspenseful action thriller with a level of psychological insight that was at least a little deeper than most movies of this genre.What bothers me is the amount of vitriol leveled at this film by actual soldiers who served in Iraq. A movie's primary job is to entertain. Inevitably a few--or perhaps many--actual facts are omitted, fabricated, bent, or altered for the sake of a compelling narrative that should at least convey an emotional truth about the very human characters they represent. I believe this film achieves the "emotional truth" part at the expense of the facts. I'm fine with that, especially if you consider the following:Bigelow and her crew made several requests to the U.S. military for assistance and consultation and were repeatedly and categorically refused on each occasion. Given this lack of access and the budget limitations, Bigelow was forced to sacrifice some accuracy in regard to the soldiers' equipment and, perhaps most glaringly, in the implausibly small number of men on the EOD unit.Ironically, the U.S. military DOES frequently lend assistance and consultation to bigger budget--and more blatantly untrue--escapist popcorn movies like G.I. Joe or Transformers.I have a couple of soldier friends who loved the Transformers movies and hated The Hurt Locker. I can only shake my head. I have the utmost respect for their service, but not for the type of cognitive dissonance they exhibit in (some of) their movie preferences.
Tweekums 04 May 2012
Gripping but not quite what I expected
I suspect my hopes for this film were raised a little too much by thefact that it had recently won the Oscar against apparently strongcompetition; as I've yet to see the other films I can't comment onwhether that win was deserved though. I did enjoy it although it wasn'tquite the realistic depiction of life in a bomb disposal team I wasexpecting. It grabbed me from the first scene where the character Ithought was being set up to be star of the film was killed in anexplosion. It turned out the main character was going to be hisreplacement Sergeant William James; a bomb disposal expert who appearsto enjoy the danger of his work a little too much. I could believe itwhen he was depicted as he seemed to relish his work trying to defusevarious bombs but later on when he went out of his base alone anddressed in civvies looking for the person responsible for death of alocal boy he had befriended seemed unbelievable as did the scene wherehe and the other two members of his team split up to search thealleyways near a bomb blast rather than waiting for regular infantry toarrive. Ignoring these faults the film does manage to tell an excitingstory where there was a sense that anybody could die.Kathryn Bigelow did a great job directing and I'm not surprised thatshe won many awards for this film, she certainly proves that you don'tneed to be a man to make a very macho film. The cast of mostly unknown(to me) main characters did a fine job, especially Jeremy Renner whoplayed Sgt. James. There are a few star names to be seen but don'texpect them to be on screen for long most of them only appear in onescene. While I did enjoy the film I feel it would have been better ifit had stuck to looking at Sgt. James addiction to the danger of hisjob rather than having him seek out situations which would almostcertainly not be tolerated in real life.
moviemanMA 03 May 2012
Addicted to war
The Hurt Locker is a brilliant examination of the war in Iraq, inparticular a bomb squad unit faced with the task of replacing theirbomb technician.Jeremy Renner is SSgt. Williams James, the replacement bomb specialist.He knows that the unit lost a valued member, but he makes it clear thathe is no ordinary bomb diffuser. James is a renegade, adrenaline junkieset on doing the job his way. He has some regard for his unit members,Sgt. JT Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Spc. Owen Eldridge (BrianGeraghty), but when it comes to him performing his job, he doesn't letthem get in the way.The three members form a bomb unit that go around encountering allsorts of situations to suspicious automobiles to possible suicidebombers. James wears the bomb suit while Sanborn and Eldridge are hiseyes and ears. They rely on each other to stay alive, whether they likeit or not. Much like a chain, each link depends on the other to staytogether.I have said this several times, but it is the originality of a storythat makes me interested. War is a popular genre. For a movie tointerest me, I need to be invested in the story, the characters, andthe technical aspects. A good filmmaker focuses on one or two of these.A great one makes the package complete. Kathryn Bigelow, who beforethis film was probably more well known for being the ex-wife of JamesCameron, has established herself as a very gifted filmmaker. In theopening scene she shows her ability to build suspense, releases it, andfollow through with intensity, action, and fantastic camera work. Greattracking shots and impressive slow motion effects help make this a verymemorable opening sequence.Bigelow wasn't the only person to impress me. Renner takes a big stepin the right direction with this role. There is something about himthat is so interesting. We know nothing about him other than he is theunit's new member. After seeing his renegade approach to the job, weassume he a nut job, someone who doesn't care about whether he lives ordies. As the story moves along we learn more about him and his familyback home. He develops a friendly relationship with one of the kidsthat hangs around the base. Renner slowly peels back the layers of hischaracter through little interactions with those around him. We see heis a true, blue collared soldier who wants nothing more than to servehis country.At the beginning of the movie we are given a quote that ends with, "waris a drug." Renner's character exemplifies this statement, beingvirtually the only person who wants to be where he is. It's a perfectway of setting the tone. A movie called The Hurt Locker is not going tobe about sunshine and lollipops. It's going to be gritty and powerful.Bigelow presents some intense and moving images. This is a movie thatstays with you. It's a movie that opens your eyes. That's exactly whata war movie should do.
stopjen 02 May 2012
It's a worry!
Yet another one-sided, simple-minded, righteous, and racist American'sdefinition of "war". The locals are portrayed as uncommunicative,ignorant, cunning, cowardice, pitiful, barbaric, and slightly scary ifyou find yourself alone in their community. Other times just keeppointing the guns and shouting then maybe they'll suddenly get English.Undeniably the topic (the job) is interesting, but I fail to find theviewpoint and focus. There are very classic moments - like the firsttime we see our hero on duty, and like the desert scene. But there arealso extremely dull and forced moments. The tension becomes a boringroutine and by the last quarter of the film whoever dies will notsurprise me at all. All characters are stereotypical - you see them inalmost every war film. Even the little unnaturally conductedrelationship with the local boy is stereotypical. The fewconfrontations and the last soul-to-soul chat make everyoneuncomfortable, including the camera.If this was not the film that just won the best motion picture, Iprobably would've been kinder. But a best film should possess betterquality in script, in character development, in story, in acting, ANDin continuity (it's a shocker!). Unfortunately this is a long filmabout 3 not-so-interesting people.I wouldn't call this a war film. The only war is a guy fighting againsthis own passion for work. This film is not trying to say (andcriticize) that this guy is just a piece of war machine not unlike thesuicide bombers. No. It's saying that if that's the only thing you love(your own son included), then go for it and be a hero. And this filmwon so many awards, it's real a worry.Finally, what's with the taxi driver?
25 April 2012
Not your typical war movie
I will admit this movie is a love it or hate it kind of movie, and Ican understand why some people didn't like this movie due to what somepeople claim unrealistic scenes and plot. This is understandable, aswith all movies, if your disbelief is not suspended, you're probablynot going to like the movie.That being said, I found this movie highly thought provoking andexhilarating. It is pretty much neutral on the war, it shows the truehorrors of war but in the end the main character decides he wants to goback for more, because defusing bomb's is the only thing he reallyloves. I thought that scene at the end with his kid was spectacular andgave a very interesting perspective on things, one of if not the bestpart of the movie.This movie is like an effective pitcher, it throws you whatever youaren't expecting. This is one of the movie's best qualities, along withhaving brilliant sound, editing, and camera work. The plot ispractically unpredictable, which makes the most dramatic scenes insidethe "hurt locker" even more dramatic. This movie should have you on theedge of your seat.The Hurt Locker also provides many interesting perspectives andinsights on the war, despite being unbiased. Character development issurprisingly well done. When I think back on the movie, at first youhate the main character, then love him, then feel sorry for him when hebecomes psychologically affected by the perceived loss of the Iraqikid. The mentally traumatized soldier also gives good perspective onwhat war is really like.Overall the Hurt Locker is definitely worth watching, a true "rebel" ofa movie that is brilliantly put together with a surprisingly terrificplot in a controversial subject matter
24 April 2012
Outstandingly realistic film...
This film focuses on just enough realism for civilians to absorb, and enough realism for Marines to recognise as not just another phoney Hollywood glossy about what really goes on in Iraq. What is interesting is to watch it with a Marine who has served in Iraq and listen to their comments about what they see. This film is similar to the film in the UK, a short series about bomb-defusing units during WWII in London: obviously it had a short series in that over the respective weeks, each of the primary actors in the unit meet their doom in one way or another, showing how serious defusing bombs was in the mid-40's. Incredibly dangerous work. Without giving away the ending, which is a surprise ending, it hones in on the reality and unique results of this MOS. Each of these individuals (not sure females are permitted into this MOS, or that might have changed by now) are Purple Heart Heroes, bar none.
ASAx2345 18 April 2012
Unbelievably disappointing
Though this movie incorporates a wonderful message (war is a drug)andhas very good character development, "The Hurt Locker" has probably thepoorest writing I have ever experienced from any form of media, be itbooks, television, or movies. This script fails to incorporate thebasic fundamentals of the English language. This script also containsmany phrases intended for laughs, but all of them intensely fail to befunny. Honestly, was this your first-grade writing project?My biggest concern with this movie is that it has no identifiableconflict. Sure, their new leader was kind of a pain to deal with, butin the movie (spoiler): he has no change of heart and continues to dothe things he would normally do, and the others just out of the bluebegin to deal with it. Not that they tried to fix this about him atall. This movie was basically just a bomb squad walking around Iraqputting out IEDs, which is fine if you want if you want to make adocumentary, but that's obviously not what Bigelow and Boal intended,and for that, they failed in making this movie.
17 April 2012
Horrible! I'd rather poke myself in the eye with a pencil
This movie is boring. I love war movies but I could not wait for this movie to end. Don't waste your time with this one!
Mark Smith 15 April 2012
The exciting field of bomb technician
It's not the job you want your kids to aspire to. Or your spouse. Oranyone you care about. But we are so thankful there are people who dothis. This sad tale is centered on the unique skills of the tragicallynecessary field of bomb technician. Bomb techs, of course, are thoseheroic individuals who get called when a bomb or other explosive deviceis discovered. Their job, under life and death pressure daily, is todefuse the bomb and make things safe for the rest of us. Unfortunately,in war environments, this is a daily occurrence. What kind of personcan do this kind of work? How do they do it day in and day out? Someonehas to be a little crazy to do this in the first place, donât they?These are the questions this movie explores. The movie evokes sadness,inspiration, sympathy, concern, and even awe as we watch the heroes ofthis movie struggle with their daily grind.
14 April 2012
I was there, this, for the most part, is realistic. SPOILERS
I was deployed to Iraq last year. My response to this film was visceral (I suspect similar to other veterans). I didn't relax at all, the film grabbed me with its intensity from the get go and din't release.I had some issues with aspects. There is a very strict "no alcohol policy" for US troops. Some of the actions taken by the EOD team are reckless and, I don't believe would have happened. For instance, the SFC James car jacking a haji insisting he be taken to "Beckham's house, then running back to the base. Going off to pursue the bombers on the side streets (there are men who's mission is to do that and they would know where each other would be, making friendly fire incidents less likely).The emotion, the filthy streets, the behavior of the "Iraqis," the use of weapons, the sense of "I could die at any moment" are all very real. As they drive around on patrol and going to mission ANYTHING can be a threat, a box on the side of the road, a dead animal, a young child on a bicycle (bike bomb), an old lady (she can throw a grenade). As I said, it is a filthy country with, seemingly, no sanitation, determining what is a threat and what is not comes from experience and from constant vigilance, all evident in the film.This film represents only a small aspect of war in the Middle East, but it does provide an excellent insight.
bbonacci-1 13 April 2012
What?
This is a good movie. GOOD. Not GREAT. Not FABULOUS, and not worthy ofan Oscar for best picture. I went to the goofs part to see if somethingI noticed was there. It wasn't, so I added it, but I was amazed by allthe other things listed.I haven't seen all of the nominated films yet, but I would put everyone I did see above this movie. Avatar, A Serious Man, Up in the Air,Up, Inglorius Basterds, and District 9.It seems that everything that happens these days has to be some kind offairy tale or underdog story. OH BOY, James Cameron's ex-wife beat himfor best picture Oscar. WOW what a GREAT story! Unfortunately, thewrong movie won the award just so we could have this super cool twistat the Oscars. SAD.
jon.h.ochiai 13 April 2012
Where we find peace...
I finally saw Kathryn Bigelow's "The Hurt Locker" on DVD. Bigelow'sorchestration is masterful. "The Hurt Locker" is gritty, stark, pulsepounding, and tense. Jeremy Renner emerges as a star, delivering atragic heroic performance. Much like Bigelow's direction and MarkBoal's storytelling, "The Hurt Locker" brands an inspired authenticityand grace. Mark Boal's screenplay probably depicts the first story ofthe horror and heroism of the Iraqi War on the big screen. Renner playsSpecialist William James, who leads an Army bomb disposal team thatdiffuses IEDs. James is called a "wild man" by gung ho Colonel Reed(always strong and solid David Morse). But there is more to theseemingly fearless or reckless James (Renner). In a poignant arc, Jamestells nearly shell shocked Eldridge (vulnerable Brian Geraghty),"Everyone's a coward somewhere " James replaces beloved deceased Specialist Thompson (charismatic GuyPearce). James admits to his new team mates Sanborn (powerful AnthonyMackie) and Eldridge (Geraghty) that he can never hope to truly replaceThompson, who was a good man. He is just here to do his job. However,Sanborn and Eldridge soon wonder if maverick James is going to get themall killed, before their tour of duty is over. In a riveting scene,James uncovers a car laced with IEDs in the middle of the street.Presuming that he is totally screwed, he strips off his protective gearto discern the solution. Here Bigelow is so effective in using handheld and close in shots, resulting in a claustrophobic atmosphere.Everything culminates in a suicide bomber, who has a change of heart,with James's prowess in the balance.The paradox lies not only with the violence and tragedy outside, butalso within the characters. Eldridge constantly dreams of his death.Sanborn literally trades blows over James's sanity. Sanborn wonders ifthey would not better off, if James were dead. Renner balances a cockyheroism with a subdued broken soul in James. Perhaps, James is indeedfearless. But like he told Eldridge that everyone is a cowardsomewhere; his fear lies perhaps at home. Consequently and ironically,James forms a touching bond with an Iraqi kid Beckham (charmingChristopher Sayegh), who sells bootleg DVDs. Tragedy strikes and thistrails down the dark path, and insight into James. Here Renner isbrilliant. All actions have consequences. In this Bigelow is pitchperfect in her vision, and storytelling. Everyone perhaps forfeits partof their soul in war, and where one finds peace or solace is notnecessary what we expect. "The Hurt Locker" is thoughtful, thrilling,and one of the best movies of the year.
tedster_98 10 April 2012
good cinema, grossly inaccurate.
I am a two-time Iraq veteran. While the scenery and photography of thefilm were wonderful, the inaccuracies of Army life were just too muchto ignore. Alcohol on the FOB (Forward Operating Base), running outsidethe wire (perimeter) at night then checking back into a checkpoint withno repercussions (either on or off the FOB)..... Taking off the bombsuit during an operation, EOD guys knowing sniper and infantry tactics,running around doing infantry tactics without commo gear, the showerswere too nice on the FOBs, flying in choppers without battle gear on,an Army shrink going off the FOB (be for real!)....the inaccuracieswith explosives etc etc etc.... the list goes on ad naseum.....I liked the film in the beginning, but it kept getting slower andslower and slower. Then the errors of the film regarding Army life weretoo gross and if the script writers did a little bit of homework, theycould have made this film really good.... as it stands, it is mediocre.This movie had so much potential, but it was a real let-down.
Chaz_233 10 April 2012
Barely misses perfection
This movie gives you exactly what you want. Several episodes of highintensity life-or-death situations involving the military equivalent ofa "bomb squad" in Iraq. The team is made of 3 men. One who wears aprotective suit and deactivates bombs, another who is in communicationwith him and supervises the area, and a third who is told by the secondwhat to do- which usually means also to be on the lookout for bad guys.In the intro our bomb deactivator dies when a bad guy detonates a bomb.He is replaced by James, played perfectly by Jeremy Renner. This isyour typical American movie hero. The cowboy-type who doesn't careabout orders, protocols, or the safety of anyone else. He just goesinto the action recklessly and takes care of business without muchfanfare. He's good at what he does but he is irresponsible- much to thechagrin of Sanborn (team member #2) who is to ensure the safety of theteam. That leads to a confrontation between the two. Meanwhile ourthird guy is traumatized by the death at the beginning and regularlysees a psychologist.We get various scenes of bomb deactivation that are perfectly shot andconceived. This is very exciting stuff. In between these we get scenesof the boys being boys, drinking, messing around with each other. Atsome point while driving through the desert they stop to help someunknown foreigners change a tire when they are suddenly shot upon bysnipers. This leads our team to play snipers as well. This scene seemssomewhat out of place but is fun nonetheless.The recklessness of James reaches a peak when he leads the team tosearch for whoever was behind a suicide bombing of a tanker. They runoff into a town at night and without backup. In this process one of ourguys gets injured.This movie tries to balance realism with elements that are just notbelievable. James gets away with things that one can't possibly imaginewouldn't have any serious consequences. At the same time, the settings,the situations, the way it's filmed, everything has a very realisticsense to it- as if you were a witness to these events. The movie looksgreat: bright, crisp, and colorful. It sounds good, and the languagetoo is very realistic, being reminiscent of a Michael Mann movie, whereyou are thrown in the midst of a group of specialists who have theirown lingo and don't explain themselves to the audience.But it's also this episodic character of the movie that makes itsomewhat unsatisfying. A thread of continuity is missing. An arc ofdevelopment isn't really there. This is a very minor flaw, but it'sthere. Fortunately, the movie doesn't fall into the trap of trying togive these people full lives in a cheesy Hollywood way: there are nolove interests, no romantic conquests, no extended scenes of what thewomen back home are up to, which is done to sickening death in showslike The Unit. There is just enough minimal background about theseguys. There is also barely any larger context of war, or of othermilitary units. The focus is very narrow on the three guys. Alsomissing, and this is a weakness, are villains. There are 2 shortappearances of bad guys here, but there are just that- appearances thatlast a couple of seconds. Nothing more is said, we don't know if theyare caught or what happens. I would attribute this to the filmmakersintent on being realistic. Our team is deployed to a situation,resolves it, and leaves. That's their job, that's it, no questionsasked.The ending of the movie, however, is perfect. James completes hisrotation and goes back home to his wife and son. But can someone whohas been dancing on the very edge of the abyss find himself in a worldthat is filled with choices and mind-boggling variety? A world wherethings aren't as simple as 'cut this wire and you live or cut the wrongwire and you die'? A world that at the same time completely lacks theurgency and seriousness of war? I won't reveal the final scene but itis probably exactly what would happen with a man like James.