Film Review: The Hurt Locker :: Wessex Scene Online

Film Review: The Hurt Locker

30th October 2009
Ben Good

About this film

Title	The Hurt Locker
Director	Kathryn Bigelow
Release Date	28 August 2009
Certificate
Genres	Action, Drama, Thriller, War
Our Rating	5.0/5.0
Shown at Union Films Wednesday 18th November 2009 7:00pm

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Jan 09 - Taken
Feb 03 - SOUTHAMPTON STILL RECOVERING
Oct 09 - Film Review: The Soloist
Oct 09 - Film Review: Inglourious Basterds
Nov 09 - Couples Retreat

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The lack of a big studio I can only see as an advantage, you see the action through a soldiers eyes rather than Hollywood’s interpretation.

The latest Iraq war film turns out to be the best yet. The Hurt Locker, a new independent film directed by Kathryn Bigelow, follows the everyday life of a bomb disposal unit in Iraq.

There have been several films that have attempted to tackle the Iraq war over the last couple of years. From the preachy (and boring) Lions for Lambs to the visceral and horrifying Redacted, none have managed to get across the true horror of facing modern guerrilla warfare, until now.

The film stars the relatively unknown Jeremy Renner as Cpl. James who takes over a command of the bomb disposal unit at offset. He is brash, cocky and reckless, and whilst he clashes with his squad mates you can’t help but smile at the bravado. His is a powerful yet subtle performance and he is likely to go onto bigger, but probably not
better things.

A lot has been made in the media of the uncommon sight of seeing a female director attached to the credits of an action film (although to classify it such is insulting to the films intelligence). Bigelow does superbly, the action flows and the movement of the camera underlies the uncertainty of the common soldier, trying to keep aware of potential snipers and IEDs nearby.

Successful independent cinema these days seems to be limited to the off beat alternative comedy; however, The Hurt Locker shows that this shouldn’t be. Films of great spectacle can also be made for a smaller budget. Each war has a defi nitive fi lm; Saving Private Ryan, Apocalypse Now, they both capture perfectly World War 2 and the Vietnam War. I believe The Hurt Locker will in future years be viewed as the Iraq film, and the war is not even over yet.