It’s a testament to the power of expectations that The Hurt Locker, a masterfully crafted suspense film and one of the best war films I’ve ever seen, feels like a disappointment. Kathryn Bigelow’s film about a team that diffuses bombs in Iraq is the most critically acclaimed movie of the year, topping countless top ten lists and winning critics awards left and right. It’s really good, but it’s not that good.
Perhaps had I gone in not knowing what to expect I’d have emerged a bigger fan of the movie. But I have to admit I watched it expecting to be blown away — excuse the pun — and noticing when my reaction fell short of the mark. It’s a weird and unfortunate experience when you’re more caught up in your own digestion of a film than you are in the film itself.
Which is not to say that The Hurt Locker isn’t engaging. It definitely is. A couple of sequences in this film are exceptionally riveting, and Bigelow milks the drama out of every second. One sequence in particular — a desert showdown with a group of snipers — is a masterpiece of controlled suspense as well as a window into the camaraderie of men at war.
The film does lose its way a bit toward the end, however, when the lack of insight into the lives of its main characters makes emotional realizations ring false.
I wish I’d seen The Hurt Locker eight months ago, when it was quietly released into theaters to little fanfare. I’m sure it would have struck me then as an underdog and the nicely crafted piece of cinema it is. Today, though, it’s king of the hill and I can’t help but compare it unfavorably to so many other seekers of the throne.
Meet Me In Montauk 
I love the way you describe that disconnect – being “more caught up in your digestion of the film than you are in the film itself.” That has happened to me so often – sometimes in a positive way (Wow. I’m really loving this film. This is a film to which I’ll have to devote a FB status or two) but more often not (really? This is the movie I’ve been waiting with such anticipation to see? [see Moonlight Mile or The Soloist for prime examples; better yet, don’t])
That’s why “discovering” a film is such a delight. I’m sure my adoration for Once, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Moulin Rouge or The Messenger owes at least a bit to the fact that I was one of the first to discover their charms. While I might have read some positive reviews, I hadn’t been inundated with the pressure to love this film or else. So my observation of the way I was “digesting” it (loving this metaphor 🙂 was along the lines of… I think I’m experiencing a film that is going to wind up as an all-time favorite… please don’t let it falter in the next hour 😉
So, this is a long-winded way to thank you for lowering my expectations of The Hurt Locker. Maybe when I see it, I’ll be able to just bite my nails from the tension rather than wonder why I’m not liking it as much as I’m supposed to.
I agree with your review 100%. I thought it was a very good movie and I’m certainly glad to have seen it, but I really don’t think it’s “Best Picture” level. Maybe it rightly belongs as a nominee in a category 10 deep, but I’m not convinced it should win.
It was intense and well done, and the scene you mention with the sniper showdown was probably my favorite part of the movie (if you can have a favorite part of a movie like this). Carlos said it was one of the most realistic depictions of this kind of scenario that he has ever seen in film (having experienced similar situations first hand as a Marine), and I give that a lot of credit.
In any case, I’m with you – I wish I had seen it before all the fanfare instead of days before the Golden Globes with it already having won the Critic’s Choice award…
I guess my reaction might be a greater testament to the truth of your review, as I finally saw the film last night after hearing all the hoopla, then knowing of your disappointment that the film didn’t live up to it.
I came away with the feeling that it is easily one of, if not THE, best picture this year. I couldn’t be more proud that a woman directed this film, and I will be thrilled if it wins not only Best Director but also Best Picture.
While I agree with Kerrie that this isn’t a film you necessarily love, I was so captivated by the way these characters approached their “work” that I did find myself loving the movie.
I’m glad you liked it, and that I was able to save you from expecting too much. 😉
The ‘woman director’ thing is interesting. I wonder if you (and the world) would have liked the movie as much had it been directed by, say, Ridley Scott. I think a big part of this movie’s success is due to the good will toward Bigelow. Which is not to say that she didn’t do an amazing job… I agree that she did. But it definitely creates a rooting factor.
Also, does it say anything that a woman will likely win Best Director for making a traditionally masculine film? I can’t decide if that’s good or bad. On the one hand it speaks to a sort of gender-blindness in that it proves you don’t need testicles to make a movie this ballsy. On the flip side, will it be another sort of milestone when a woman like Sofia Coppola wins for a movie like Lost in Translation (or Lone Scherfig for An Education)? Interesting discussion, I think.
Well, maybe. You’ve certainly had male directors win for films like Kramer vs. Kramer, so I don’t think it’s either/or. For me, having a woman direct a Deep Impact or a Hurt Locker is meaningful, because it shows movie studios having faith that a woman can direct any kind of film – not only a romantic comedy. For Bigelow to have made such a compelling, though provoking film, and to have helmed a cast almost entirely of men actors, and to have filmed in Jordan and incorporated explosives and all the other aspects of the film that made it so challenging, does matter more than if the first female director had been Nora Ephron for You’ve Got Mail.
So… yes, it is an intriguing discussion. I wish Lone Sherfig were the 5th director nominated, so that two very different types of films directed by women could have been in the hunt this year. I would give the award to Bigelow in this case, simply because I found the film to be exceptional in a way it’s difficult to imagine another director would have made it. If Cameron wins, I’ll never watch the Academy Awards again!!! 😉