Leaving Tension-Filled & Thinking

Saturday night, my friend Rachel and I saw "The Hurt Locker" at Quad Cinema, a tiny movie house on 13th Street between 5th and 6th avenues.

The small theater was packed with folks who I suspect heard of the film only after it received nine Academy Award nominations last week. That was certainly the case for yours truly. I don't know how I missed this one when it was released in the summer.

"The Hurt Locker" is an important film that reminds us of the human price paid by American soldiers in the Iraq War.

Tension-filled throughout and frequently hard to watch, it's the story of a three-man U.S. Army team in Baghdad charged with defusing roadside bombs or IEDs (improvised explosive devices).

Kathryn Bigelow's direction was pitch-perfect. The acting was very good. I recommend seeing "The Hurt Locker" in the movie theater (not just on DVD) if it's still playing in your area.

In his June 2009 review, the New York Times' A.O. Scott called this film, "the best nondocumentary American feature made yet about the war in Iraq."

"You may emerge from “The Hurt Locker” shaken, exhilarated and drained, but you will also be thinking," Scott quite correctly added.

As of this writing, "The Hurt Locker" has a 97 percent rating (!) at Rotten Tomatoes.

Sully has a related post that's worth a look.