If you like your war movies raw, realistic and gritty

Rating: 9/10 (12 November 2019)

The Hurt Locker
This movie directed by Kathryn Bigelow is a stunningly crafted piece of filmmaking.
One that doesn't present a story in the conventional method. More of a character study of a group of men at war.
The camera follows these soldiers around and the audience can witness the strength of character needed to endure the events of day to day life.
Bigelow lets her movie slowly unfold but still
there's some supremely staged action and nail biting tension in many a set piece scattered throughout the movies 2hr 11min runtime.
None of this would work if it wasn't for the masterful performances by Jeremy Renner and Anthony Macklie.
Each of them dealing with their life in the baking hot sun very differently.
Renner plays Sergeant James, a soldier who seems to relish the intensity of his job.
Tasked with disarming bombs on a day to day basis.
Mackie plays Sergeant Sanborn. Both men have seen enough death to change them and as the film progresses it is Sanborn who wishes to return to civilian life.
Bigelow's film is completely engrossing. One that entertains by creeping up on you unexpectedly.
The sublime camera work is unsettled but still coherent.
Editing is punchy and direct.
Cinematography conveys the searing heat very effectively.
On 1080p Blu-ray Image quality has a noticeable amount of grain.
This gives the film a gritty cinematic appearance. It's never distracting, just note that this film isn't digitally slick.
The picture quality has a raw texture.
Abrasive almost. The audience will feel the soldiers discomfort as the dust and dehydration gets the better of them.
Black levels and detail are mightily impressive.
On SDR Blu-ray the colour palette fluctuates.
There are some colourful scenes. Mainly the blinding fireballs and explosions.
Dynamic range is splendid and really accentuates the scorching sun and exploding bombs.
Skin tones look natural, sun baked faces with beads of sweat and dirt clearly visible.
Other scenes appear to be bland allowing the dusty environment to be hyper realistic.
On Blu-ray the DTS HD Master audio sound mix is an absolute belter.
I believe this is a reference quality mix.
LFE is spectacular. Explosions and gunshots have real impact.
You can feel the thud of fifty cal machine gunfire rattle your viewing environment.
Surround sound effects are wide and immersive.
Bullets wizz from speaker to speaker and helicopters soar through the soundstage.
This is fantastic considering it's not object based like a Dolby Atmos or DTS X mix.
All these technical attributes add to an already effective cinematic experience.
If you like your war movies raw, gritty and realistic then this is up there with the best of them.
I'd love to see this movie make its way on to 4K
Blu-ray. HDR will only elevate the already sublime visuals and a Dolby Atmos sound mix could improve on near audio perfection.