A War Addict Rocks Iraq

Rating: 4/10 (18 February 2010)

The Hurt Locker opens with the quote: "war is a drug".
It is considered a movie about Iraq – specifically, a gritty, realistic movie about a 3-man bomb disposal unit in Iraq. But it is actually a movie about addiction – specifically, a gritty, yet ridiculous movie about one man's addiction to being a hero.
Like many addicts, SSG William James is self-destructive, putting himself and others in unnecessary harm. He is stubborn, violent, and unable to maintain normal human relationships or attachments to anyone, even his own baby son. (With the odd exception of one Iraqi street kid).
I have no problem with this part of the character. My problem is the fact that The Hurt Locker seems to glorify Sgt. James' out-of-control addiction to war. It tries to make it seem cool. Sgt. James is nothing short of a super-hero on a mission -- destroying the enemy and wasting no time with anyone who dares to question his martial instincts. He is the classic maverick who bends the rules, does things his own way, knows more than his superiors, and comes out ahead due to sheer talent and bad-boy bravado.
This would be OK if this film was supposed to be fun and action-packed like Rambo or Die Hard, with a bad-ass dude doing things that are not humanly possible.
But, at it's core, The Hurt Locker is supposed to be an edgy, uber-realistic look at Man's need to be a hero. Many Iraq vets complain about its lack of factual accuracy in terms of the military details. In my view, the problem is even worse than this. The problem is that it gets the story of addiction wrong. It shows all the cool parts about being a war-loving maniac, but virtually none of the downside. Sgt. James never gets injured, and never gets disciplined. Time after time, he risks his life and the lives of other men, and generally acts like a complete jerk. But, in the end, with cool music playing in the background, covered in desert dust, he always saves the day.
We're supposed to think: I may not like this crazy dude, but I gotta respect him. I may not want to be his friend, but I'm damn glad there are tough hombres like Sgt. James over there defending our freedom. Or protecting our women, or whatever we're supposedly doing over there. I think I remember something about weapons of mass destruction? I would compare The Hurt Locker poorly with other movies about addiction (Trainspotting, Requiem for a Dream, etc.). While those films might have portrayed drug use as cool or fun, in the end things usually end up very, very badly for the drug addict. Apparently, this is not so for the war addict. According to The Hurt Locker, the war addict is an invincible hero.