Some Good, Mostly Bad

Rating: 4/10 (2 February 2010)

This movie came as a huge disappointment to me. After seeing previews, reading reviews, and knowing that I love modern war/combat movies, I was excited to finally have a chance to sit and enjoy this film. That chance was stolen from me about 30 minutes in.
At first what seems to be an intriguing and enticing plot, soon turns to rubble. The movies starts well with a large explosion, lots of suspense and a reckless but lovable character. However, each scene after the first large diffusion (on the cover) is poorly executed in delivery, cinematography, and writing. Jeremy Renner's character, while charming and dangerously likable at first, turns out to be very static, and never feels human.
In fact, that is the largest problem with this movie. None of it feels real. The characters provide lackluster performances while operating in unrealistic situations, spouting poorly written dialogue in a plot that leads ultimately to no where. There is suspense in many scenes, and I did feel myself creeping to the edge of the seat. But there are only so many times that you can watch a guy recklessly diffuse a bomb and get excited about it.
I gained nothing from this film. There is no master insight, no knowledge to be gleaned, no lessons learned... except that maybe this years Oscars are going to suck. If a piece like this is getting nominated for best picture then there is something terribly wrong in Hollywood.