War is a drug

Rating: 7/10 (22 October 2010)

When new bomb disposal expert and team leader James shows up, his reckless abandon to his task garners the respect and awe of his comrades, while instilling others with fear and repugnance. James, we realise, is in it for the kicks, regardless of the consequences.
If you can come to The Hurt Locker unencumbered by the hype the film carries around like so much over-stuffed baggage, you will enjoy a tense, rambunctious action movie about male bonding in extreme circumstances. There is no polemic here in the style of Green Zone: Iraq just happens to be the war of the moment, but you could just as easily take the theme of male addiction to thrill-seeking and set it in any combat zone. Yes, there is the usual Uncle Sam machismo shamelessly on parade, and the collateral characterisation of Arab characters. This reaches its zenith when one unfortunate local finds himself strapped with a bomb that looks beyond defusing. "He is a family man with four children" plead his compatriots. Why is this appeal always favoured by filmmakers? Are single, childless Arab men really so disposable? Still, the patriotic zeal does not smother the film the way it does others (e.g. Black Hawk Down), and the pacing and interpersonal conflicts are enough to keep you hooked from beginning to end.
There are some nice little touches, especially in James ill-fated attachment to a local street kid. Ralph Fiennes and David Morse contribute excellent cameos, and there is a sequence involving cat-and-mouse with a sniper that is as powerful as it is understated.
"War is a Drug" states the opening title, and the rest of the narrative does little more than elaborate on that theme. Good Hollywood style entertainment, but nothing more.