The Hurt Locker (2009)

While watching this film (which I just saw on Friday) I kept thinking about how fresh it felt. Now war movies have been done in 1001 ways but this felt new to me. Not a political statement like most of the movies linked to Iraq and the broader war on terrorism, this movie is about the profession of war, and its effects on the psyche of those who work in it. The movie works on many levels, its genuinely exciting and can be appreciated as an action movie, it’s a great ensemble piece, with some reasonably big named actors used effectively in small supporting parts, it’s also a genuinely good character study and psychological examination of war. Jeremy Renner’s performance really ties this film together, it’s a great one, but not showy. Obsession, adrenaline rush, ego trip, alienation, competitiveness, earnestness, they all flow seamlessly together in a fully realized portrait of a human being whose been emotionally rewired by his military experience. The film doesn’t judge him however, it doesn’t really judge anyone, it just shows you how things are and lets you make the call, all the more impressive given how politicized the subject matter could easily have been rendered. A real triumph, rightly recognized, and at this point just a few hours away from the Oscar’s, I find it perfectly possibly that it may have garnered the necessary momentum to put it over the top for the best picture award. We’ll know shortly. Recommended.