The Hurt Locker Movie Review by Sputnik

Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Evangeline Lilly, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, Guy Pearce

When Staff Sergeant William James (Jeremy Renner) takes over the team, Sergeant J.T. Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldridge (Brian Geraghty ) are shocked by what seems like his reckless disregard for military protocol and basic safety measures. As the fiery chaos of Baghdad threatens to engulf them, the men struggle to understand and contain their mercurial new leader long enough for them to make it home. They have only 38 days left in their tour, but with each new mission comes another deadly encounter, and as James blurs the line between bravery and bravado, it seems only a matter of time before disaster strikes.

Some of the scenes are excellent like the one where James points a gun at a guy in the car or the scene where James removes his gear while working or the scene where he examines the dead boy or his interaction with the Professor and his running away from there. The best scene of the movie is the one where he tries to remove the time-bomb strapped to an Iraqi civilians chest.

The Oscar winning Screenplay by Mark Boal is excellent. Cinematography by Barry Ackroyd (nominated for an Oscar for Cinematography) is excellent and gives the movie a realistic feel. The scene where James runs away from the Professor’s house is excellent and the background score is brilliant. Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders were nominated for the Original Score and were unlucky to miss out on the Oscar. Editing by Chris Innis and Bob Murawski is excellent and they won the Oscar for Editing.

Jeremy Renner is excellent in the role of Sergeant William James and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor. Anthony Mackie as the orthodox, protocol following Sanborn and Brian Geraghty as the pessimistic Eldridge give excellent performances. Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes are good in cameos. The kid who plays Beckam and the civilian strapped with the time bomb are excellent too. The rest of the cast give decent performances.

Kathryn Bigelow’s direction is excellent. The movie is intense and one can feel the tension as James goes about defusing the bombs. Kathryn Bigelow succeeds in not only showing how dangerous the squad’s job is but in also showing the effects on their psyche. The Hurt Locker is the best movie of the year 2009. It was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won 6 including Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay, Editing, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing.

Rating: 4 / 5 (Brilliant)