War is a Drug

Rating: 10/10 (5 October 2009)

"War is a drug" are words among the first to appear on screen in Kathryn Bigelow's extraordinary new film, "The Hurt Locker".
DRUG (n): An often illegal and sometimes addictive substance that causes changes in behavior and perception and is taken for the effects.
The main character in "The Hurt Locker", Staff Sgt. William James, a bomb diffuser, enters the story after his team's previous bomb specialist dies in action. Death in the line of duty doesn't deter Sgt. James. War for him is addictive, and he participates for the effects (I'll leave it up to you as to whether you think the war is "illegal". Even the film shies away from political grandstanding).
"The Hurt Locker" is about Sgt. James and the team assigned to protect him and work alongside him as they scour Iraq for IEDs and other hidden explosives. Documentarian Ken Burns, in creating his recent series "The War", mentioned once that a big difference he found between the World Wars of the early 20th century, and the current war in Iraq is the mission. In World War II, soldiers fought for the cause – fight off Japanese oppression, end Nazi occupation, etc. Today, in an era when the overall mission can be unclear, soldiers fight for the man or woman next to them on the front line. In the case of "The Hurt Locker", that leads to a very complicated and sticky relationship.
Routinely under-heralded Anthony Mackie plays Sgt. Sanborn, head of the team that goes into the most dangerous zones of the war to uncover and diffuse bombs hidden in the ground, in the walls, in cars, nearly everywhere. Sanborn is counting the days until he leaves the desert, certainly a different mindset than war-addicted Sgt. James., yet it's clear that he and Sgt. James would die for each other. That male bond is brought vividly to life by director Bigelow. She doesn't employ tricky effects like David O. Russell did with his brilliant but different "Three Kings", her direction is more drenched in reality, one I would never want real for me. Jeremy Renner plays Sgt. James with a fiery deliberateness, and he referred to Bigelow's direction as that of "a voyeur". This is a great asset to the film. The movie has top-notch production value, but never announces it. Instead, we get a very credible relationship drama about people under intense pressure.
The film was written by Mark Boal, who wrote the great and very underrated "In The Valley of Elah", also about the Iraq War. That movie (and other Iraq-themed films) tanked, but I'm glad Boal remained undeterred and continued to write about the war. It's paid off, as "The Hurt Locker" is a money-maker, and is destined for Academy Award consideration. An acting teacher of mine often praises work in class when the relationship is "complicated". Too cut and dry, too easily-explained, and we're bored. Boal nails the complicated world of an Iraq soldier, who balances grief, fear, anger and exhilaration on a daily basis. They make life and death choices for themselves and others over and over again. "The Hurt Locker" is the first film to really portray Iraq as the most dangerous place in the world. Nearly everyone these soldiers come across could be guilty of planting bombs. Is it because they hate Americans? Is it because they are tired of Americans in their country? Do our soldiers belong in harm's way? Are they keeping peace? The end resultis complicated.
SPOILER TALK: How great is it to see Ralph Fiennes in the middle of all this? Then he gets offed. Same with Guy Pearce, as if to say, "Yeah, we're an indie film. We don't need no stinking movie stars!". The scenes near the end of the film are a true masterstroke for Boal and Bigelow. Sgt. James returns home and slides right back into cushy family duties like cleaning storm drains and shopping at a horribly bland grocery store bathed in bright light. I suppose we take those situations for granted as being safe and most likely we are happy to do them. Drumming out our little existence in our little corner of Earth is the goal of most people. But, damn, if "The Hurt Locker" didn't make normal life seem DULL.