Tense, gripping and satisfying end...

Rating: 8/10 (5 February 2013)

The controversy surrounding Kathryn Bigelow's latest manhunt saga may pertain to the depiction of inhuman interrogation techniques employed by C.I.A in its pursuit of Al Qaeda operatives but what might really worry the Agency, is Hollywood's persistent depiction of its scandals, cover-ups and failures overseas. While the 'Green Zone' blew CIA's cover on the pursuit of WMD in Iraq, its credibility was at stake in a decade long hunt for Al Qaeda's leader, Osama Bin Laden. Bigelow's 'Zero Dark Thirty' enlightens us about one agent's single-minded, relentless pursuit of that leader for almost a decade, through various leads, targets and disappointments. Her challenges are not only within the immediate environment in the region but also the bureaucratic nature of the Agency and Pentagon's contrarian directives back home. Bigelow takes quite some time to go through the decade of investigations and frustrations but soars in the last 30 mins as the film arrives with the navy seals in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
As Maya (Jessica Chastain) joins the CIA on field in Pakistan, she quickly learns that truth arrives only after intimidation. The detainees offer some vital leads about suspected leaders of Al Qaeda but Maya's tireless efforts in pursuing each one often leads straight into a wall. The world's most dreaded militant organization isn't such an easy nut to crack and therefore, through the years following various attacks across the world by the militants, the CIA is yet unable to obtain any clue about the leadership's whereabouts. This leads to Pentagon questioning the billions spent in Afghanistan and initiating troops withdrawal with the lack of success in finding Bin Laden. But in 2011, it all turns a sharp corner when there is conclusive evidence about Abu Ahmed's movements. Maya has long pursued this close aid of Bin Laden who was either believed dead or impossible to find, owing to his critical role as the leader's trustworthy messenger. Ahmed's car is followed to this compound that might have the jackpot that America has been on the hunt for a decade. It is now up to Maya to convince the Agency's heads to deploy a team to apprehend those hidden in there, based on her intuition, knowledge and experience in the pursuit of Osama Bin Laden. Thus, a US Navy Seal team is sent on a quick, discreet mission to Abbottabad, near the Pakistan Military Academy.
The failures and frustrations confronted by Maya are similar to those faced by Mariane Pearl, played by Angelina Jolie in 'A Mighty Heart'. In both cases, leads were hard to find and most findings led to a disappointing end. The complexity of working in a foreign land that can occasionally turn hostile on its tourists, is also well depicted in both these movies but there is one distinction; Jessica Chastain lacks the credibility that was portrayed by Angelina Jolie. Indeed the characters are completely different but drawing parallels between them does put the Oscar hype around Chastain into some doubt. With just one main character in the entire story, we needed a more dominating performance to really feel the complexity, the intricacy, the dedication, the frustration and the closure. Chastain has a couple of strong moments, such as her defense against her superior and in the decision room before the climax but are they enough to justify her trophy against many worthy contenders?
Through the film's patient, dedicated pursuit of several leads, hurdles and set backs, we arrive at the crux of its subject matter in the last half hour when it gathers an all new momentum. Suddenly, this docu-drama turns into a 'Black Hawk Down' action showdown and leaves us satisfied in the end because we had known it all along. Kathryn Bigelow's treatment of the story is similar to her Oscar winning 'The Hurt Locker'. She keeps the grip tight with some excellent narrative, which compensates for the lack of stronger characters and brings in the action at the right times, aligned well with their real time occurrence in recent history. The final 30 mins are simply brilliant with the Navy Seals preparing for their mission, flying through the Hindu kush ranges and eventually engaging in a tense raid of the compound at 12:30am.
Kathryn Bigelow deserves the respect and appreciation that she has garnered with her two most recent films and while 'Zero Dark Thirty' is a gripping dramatization of the real events leading to the end of Osama Bin Laden, the CIA on the other hand, will be glad that their hunt for the weapons of mass destruction wasn't futile. They simply had the wrong country and it was just 'a weapon' that caused mass destruction.

8.25 on a scale of 1-10.