“GUTSY & SUSPENSEFUL”
Starring: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse and Guy Pearce
Directed by: Kathryn Bigelow
MPAA Rating: R for war violence and language
Genre: War Drama
By John Delia
After seeing the trailer for this film I was expecting nothing more than a run of the mill war movie, but instead I found myself interested in every word and focusing on every incredible scene of The Hurt Locker. Not since PlatoonSaving Private Ryan and have I viewed a war film as worthy a selection for the Academy Awards. If you like your war films explosive (pardon the pun) yet intriguing, than The Hurt Locker should be on your must see list.
The film centers on the premise that war is not pretty and for Sergeant Sanborn (Mackie) and Specialist Eldridge (Geraghty) it can be down right 
ugly. They are two of the soldiers of Bravo Company stationed in Iraq who serve as protectors of the bomb expert who disarms the homemade killers called Improvised Explosive Devices or IEDs. While a squad member is specially trained to handle these tricky implements of war, the outcomes still unpredictable and there’s no room for error. When Staff-Sergeant James (Renner) takes over the team following the loss of their lead bomb specialist and institutes some reckless measures, Sanborn and Eldridge start to doubt their teammate.
Cinematography, stuntmen, and special effects are big winners here recreating the ghastly work of the bomb team. Because of their great work, I found The Hurt Locker very realistic and sometime nerve wrecking. It is truly a white knuckler. Add to this some fine direction by Bigelow who holds nothing back and attacks the subject matter with conviction.
The reason the story is so realistic comes from the fact that writer/reporter Mark Boal actually spent time with the U.S. Army bomb squad operating in one of the most dangerous sections of Baghdad, Iraq. Boal’s first-hand observation of the IEDs being disarmed both day and night and the men who had the unthinkable job was his inspiration for the film.
Acting plays a huge part of why I feel the movie is a success. The choice of
bringing some seasoned yet not so familiar faces to the screen instead of A-listers in the main roles made the film more docu-realistic.
The film is rated R for war violence and language so it may be wise to leave immature children at home so they can catch up on High School Musical re-runs.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A winner… gutsy, genuine, intriguing and amazing. (5 of 5 Palm Trees)
EDITOR’S NOTE: The term Hurt Locker means: (Taken from a recent interview passed along to the press)
“The place of ultimate pain (An actual military term that they would use and Mark Boal heard while he was imbedded with the unit)†– Kathryn Bigelow, director.
“A bad place that really makes you scared†– Mark Boal.