Renner is the only thing that makes this watchable.

Rating: 5/10 (8 January 2011)

Having heard from several people that this movie was at best mediocre, and knowing (in my own little mind, not by anything confirmed by anyone involved with the Oscars) that the only reason it won Best Picture was simply because it was about our people in Iraq, I was curious, yet wary, to see this movie. Unfortunately, I was sadly disappointed...
The plot, character development, and conflict in this movie could have been shown in sixty minutes or less. Yet we are bogged down with an extra hour of nothing but slow motion shots of shells falling to the ground, silent shots of men walking and/or laying in the dessert, and of course the all important male-bonding scene in which our three main characters wrestle with each other while downing a bottle of liquor. Jeremy Renner - who always amazes me with his depth and understanding of ever character he portrays - is the only one who's character is developed beyond that of a stick figure. He portrays two completely different sides of the same man: the man who loves his job, and the man who loves his family.
The cinematography is breath-taking at times, but there is to much use of the shaky camera, resulting in a lot of confusion during any of the action scenes.
All in all, I recommend seeing it once and only once. If only to yet again be in awe of Renner and his wonderful acting abilities.