Rating of
3.5/4
The Hurt Locker review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 08/22/11
A film that stars Jeremy Renner as Sergeant First Class William James, Anthony Mackie as Sergeant J.T. Sanborn and Brian Geraghty as Specialist Owen Eldridge. Eldridge is the person responsible for bombsuits, James is the fearless veteran who disarms the bombs and Sanborn ensures proper protocols and cautious measures when performing a mission. They encounter several missions that would test the team’s cohesiveness and character. Some major setbacks are its accuracy in real life perceived by actual war old-timers. Some combat veterans view the film as inaccurate based on the ff: Inaccurate uniforms, misuse of communications, lead character’s irresponsibility to its team, and splitting up to cover more ground.
In my perception it has one of the best cinematography and camera work on the big picture. Jeremy Renner displays a convincing performance that makes the character likable. The main protagonist doesn’t use any fancy martial arts or gun fights, just intellect, heart and grit. Rest of the cast does a good job with the dialogue and expressions during intense scenes. Its drama and camera direction was very genuine, as if you were part of the squads disarming the bombs or during missions. The background music suited the film as for the brilliant screenplay. Themes like responsibility, friendship, your passion, effects of war were well epitomized. Some personal favorite quotes: Sanborn: “But you realize every time you suit up, every time we go out, its life or death. You roll the dice, and you deal with it.” Willam James – “As you get older... some of the things you love might not seem so special anymore… And then you forget the few things you really love. And by the time you get to my age, maybe it's only one or two things.” One thing was indeed special for James, for many it could be this marvelous masterwork that entertained despite some minor inaccuracies in terms of realism.
