A flawed gem

Rating: 7/10 (5 April 2013)

To be fair, it's hard to write spoilers for this since everybody knows what happens in the end anyway.
The face of Osama Bin Laden has hung over our heads for years. Even for non-Americans he has been in the shadows for 10 years, laughing at our fears as we have boarded planes and trains wondering if we're in the wrong place at the wrong time. Until May 2011, suddenly the man was no longer a part of the world we live in.
The story follows Maya, a CIA analyst, who - for reasons undisclosed - is pathologically fixated at finding and capturing or (more likely) killing Bin Laden. Played very well by Jessica Chastain, you really root for her as she fights to go after the one man she wants to reach. A lot of intrigue and investigation follows as the CIA and the military pursue Bin Laden, with setbacks apiece, and some scenes that just seem to come out of nowhere.
One of the flaws however, is the overuse of torture. Though it is an honest portrayal of the CIA's dirty little secret, it is not honest enough to show the fact that torture is a disastrously unreliable method of obtaining information (hence the 'WMDs' claim courtesy of Egyptian police).
The final raid is very exciting and atmospheric, except that it goes on for a bit too long, and the SEALs seem to not know how to shut up at some moments. One of the best moments being when the locals start to approach to find out what's going on, in a particularly eerie scene.
In general, it's quite a piece that takes some patience, but Katheryn Bigelow has really pulled out the stops for this one. Maya's final realisation of her success sums her situation up very well. She has achieved what she has wanted all this time. What to do with herself now? It might take some time to invest in, but the end truly pays off.