The Hurt Locker

 

• Released Internationally on 26/06/09
• Released in Malta by KRS on 03/03/10

 

Nutshell Review

It’s hard to sit back and look at this film objectively because of all the intense hype and acclaim surrounding it. By this time next week, it’s quite possible that it would have struck gold at this year’s Oscars, slaying the mighty Avatar in the process. Yet even if it somehow ends up empty-handed, it already has long lists of awards in the bag. Which is quite a feat for a low-budget, bare-knuckles film which only made a slight dent at the box-office.

Don’t get me wrong – this is a great film. But I wasn’t exactly blown away, if you’ll excuse the pun. It’s an intimate look at a three-man unit of bomb disposal experts in Iraq, and it sets out to show one facet of war, which is how addictive it can be. This is clearly stated at the opening – “War is a drug”, and it is masterly portrayed during the course of the film, especially the excellent coda. Other than that, there’s not much of a story, but rather a series of tense and brilliantly-crafted sequences which expose the hurt and humanity of this ongoing war. Kathryn Bigelow’s direction is meticulous throughout, and she deserves all the praise she is getting. I wouldn’t say it’s as superb a film as all its awards make it out to be, but it’s still a great piece of work.

 

 

Trailer:

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/summit/thehurtlocker/