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The Hurt Locker

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It's directed by the director of "Point Break" (Kathryn Bigelow), but the only big name (Ralph Fiennes) only shows up in one scene. Two of the lead actors are nominated though for the Independent Spirit Award (for this movie), which is a pretty big deal. Guy Pearce and Evangeline Lilly also have small parts.

It's a damn good realistic action movie. Think Generation Kill without the liberal bullshit, and much more dynamic. The film is a realistic depiction of what happens to a bomb technician and his unit, as they go around disarming IEDs, carbombs, and investigating bomb sites. It also shows the viciousness and the inhumanity of the insurgency, without trying to manufacture any excuses for them.

The thing I like most about it though is that it doesn't try to elicit any cheap tears: people die, but there's no sappy music, no drawn out scenes, just a realistic depiction of how they die and how the other soldiers react to their deaths.

Plus, there are great action scenes, probably the best I've seen in all of 2008(no expensive, spectacular and over the top special effects though, which I also like). I highly recommend it, especially to everyone who liked "Black Hawk Down". It's that good, in some ways better. (the scale of the conflict is bigger, and yet the film manages to just capture a tiny, very telling slice)

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Sounds good, I'll have to look it up, especially if it's as good as Black Hawk Down. I watch that movie once or twice a month, sometimes more, sometimes less. I haven't seen Generation Kill either, or heard of it in actually.

Along the lines of recent "war" movies, I really like The Kingdom and Jarhead as well.

Edited by Chris.S
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So it's a documentary--without actually being a documentary. :lol:

I tried to watch Black Hawk Down once and I found it both tedious and pointless, the worst kind of Naturalist drek masquerading as a movie. I don't give two figs about realism--if I want something realistic, I'll watch a documentary. It's likely to at least be interesting. When I'm watching a movie, I want a PLOT.

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Black Hawk down was a dramatization of the actual events. Distorting the events in order to shoehorn in a plot would be contrary to the purpose of the work which was to tell the story of what happened. Dramatizations should be judged by same standards as documentaries.

It is unclear to me what relation The Hurt Locker is supposed to have to any actual events, or even what it claims.

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Sounds good, I'll have to look it up, especially if it's as good as Black Hawk Down. I watch that movie once or twice a month, sometimes more, sometimes less. I haven't seen Generation Kill either, or heard of it in actually.

Along the lines of recent "war" movies, I really like The Kingdom and Jarhead as well.

Generation Kill is an HBO series on the invasion of Iraq itself. (it's based on the accounts of a "Rolling Stone Magazine" reporter embedded in a Marine Expeditionary Unit(hope I got that right).

I watched it, but it's 7-8 hours, and I have to say it's not worth that much time.

To Jennifer (on "The Hurt Locker"-to be interpreted: the person who locks his hurt(ing) inside himself): there is a plot (though not very complex, just enough to give the lead character room to move about), and there's one well developed character.(the lead guy) It qualifies as a thriller, though I understand if you don't like the genre. You might not like it if you didn't like Black Hawk Down, even though I thought this is better. (it has the added bonus of the one good character, which is more than any action movie had lately-including The Kingdom-which had great action otherwise)

To Grames: it's out in Europe, so that's weird. Plus, it's nominated for the Independent Spirit Awards. Why would they wait to release it months after the ceremony? Had I known that, I wouldn't have posted on it now, sorry. At least it plays in Toronto and Montreal (and probably other places in Canada), I know that much.

Edited by Jake_Ellison
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  • 1 year later...

Jim May, commenting on Diana Hsieh's blog, sees a possible ulterior motive to this award:

Hollywood's altruists have had it in for Cameron ever since his use of the "I'm the king of the world!" line from the movie in his acceptance speech for "Titanic"... and what better way to slight him [for Avatar] than by handing the Best Director award to his ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow -- and the Best Picture award to her film, "Hurt Locker".
Edited by brian0918
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Jim May, commenting on Diana Hsieh's blog, sees a possible ulterior motive to this award:

There is no way in hell Avatar deserved a best picture nod, no matter how much money it makes.

I did eventually see The Hurt Locker. It had good acting, but the events depicted were overly dramatized and improbably enacted by a single person to make a movie. People familiar with EOD work find the film so over-the-top they can't take it seriously.

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People familiar with EOD work find the film so over-the-top they can't take it seriously.

Actually, it's mixed among EOD folks - some EOD soldiers say it's goofy, some say it's dead-on, many say they love it regardless of its dramatization, and one EOD soldier is so convinced the main character was modeled after him, that he is suing the studio for using his likeness. He may have a case, too - in 2004, the director followed his group around, in order to get material for a magazine article.

Source

Edited by brian0918
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Jim May, commenting on Diana Hsieh's blog, sees a possible ulterior motive to this award:

I'm not sure what reactions academy members had to Cameron's prior speech, but I have strong doubts that awarding his ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow is "sticking it to him." I don't remember if it was 20/20, Dateline, or whatever similar show it was that I watched recently, but they diffused that idea fairly well by getting feedback from both Cameron and Bigelow on the subject. Supposedly, there is little to no animosity between then, and they even share scrips and assist each other on a regular basis.

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Hurt Locker was ok, but I thought "The Blind Side" should have got Best Picture.

I didn't have a problem with Hurt Locker winning best picture, but I was very happy to see Sandra Bullock win Best Actress. The look on her face was priceless, she literally looked stunned when they announced her name.

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There is no way in hell Avatar deserved a best picture nod, no matter how much money it makes.

I did eventually see The Hurt Locker. It had good acting, but the events depicted were overly dramatized and improbably enacted by a single person to make a movie. People familiar with EOD work find the film so over-the-top they can't take it seriously.

I've not seen the movie yet but plan on it soon. However, I have seen countless clips from the movie and have to agree with you. Many of the action sequences are fictionally dramatic, realistically over-the-top. I don't have much of a problem with that, as long as it's not too bad, since it is a movie. Yet, I can see why EOD personnel, who may look at the movie in a more true to life perspective, can be turned off by it. My interests in the movie are primarily focused on some of the themes presented. In particular, the one that stands out is the idea of veterans seeking combat for the sake of action.

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