[64], The Hurt Locker was listed on many critics' top ten lists. [1], According to the Los Angeles Times, The Hurt Locker performed better than most recent dramas about Middle East conflict. BWR Public Relations, Already celebrated for its breathtaking realism in depicting soldiers and explosions, The Hurt Locker is being called "the best Iraq war movie," with the qualification that the genre has been weak and the public response weaker. [5] Bigelow cast Renner based on his work in Dahmer, a film about Jeffrey Dahmer, the notorious serial killer whose victims were boys. It lost the award for Best Actor to Crazy Heart, Best Original Score to Up, and Best Cinematography to Avatar. The director is so caught up in what she's doing that it's infectious, but the compelling intensity also represents a loss of perspective. The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core. Available on. [94], In February 2010, the film's producer Nicolas Chartier emailed a group of Academy Award voters in an attempt to sway them to vote for The Hurt Locker instead of "a $500M film" (referring to Avatar) for the Best Picture award. An intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat. Confidential, and The Social Network. Since the film was not released in the United States until 2009, it was eligible for the Academy Awards only the following year, where it was nominated for nine Oscars. "The Hurt Locker" is a classic American war film, an Academy Award winner, and an entertaining tour de force that wowed civilian audiences when it hit theaters in 2008. [34] Other 2009 festivals included the Human Rights Nights International Film Festival,[35] the Seattle International Film Festival,[36] and the Philadelphia Film Festival.[37]. The press pack for Kathyrn Bigelow's film claims "hurt locker" is GI slang for severe injury. "[7], For the main characters, Bigelow made a point of casting relatively unknown actors: "it underscored the tension because with the lack of familiarity also comes a sense of unpredictability. The Hurt Locker is a 2009 American war thriller film directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal. [23] Summit Entertainment picked the film up for distribution in the United States for $1.5 million after it was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival. [88], On August 29, 2011, the Federal Court of Canada ordered three Canadian ISPs—Bell Canada, Cogeco, and Vidéotron—to disclose the names and addresses of the subscribers whose IP addresses were suspected of having downloaded a copy of the film. [65], The film was criticized by some Iraq veterans and embedded reporters for inaccurately portraying wartime conditions. The five awards from the Boston Society of Film Critics were the most by that organization to a single film in the group's 30-year history. "[79] He said he talked to more than 100 soldiers during his research. A federal judge ordered him to pay more than $180,000 in attorney fees. The Hurt Locker (2008) Plot. The whole journey would take anywhere from three days to a week and was described by Innis as the "modern-day equivalent of shipping via donkey cart. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? The film earned near-universal acclaim from critics, who praised Bigelow's directing, Renner's performance, writing, and action sequences. He's good at everything that has to do with defusing bombs. The story of King George VI, his impromptu ascension to the throne of the British Empire in 1936, and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch overcome his stammer. These telegraphed macho conflicts, essential Bigelow, work because the jobs being done are all so convincingly and intensely depicted.This is a great movie but it leaves you empty. "[58], Derek Elley of Variety found The Hurt Locker to be "gripping" as a thriller but felt that the film was weakened by, "its fuzzy (and hardly original) psychology." James tries to cut off the locks to remove the vest, but there are too many of them. Corliss wrote, "He's ordinary, pudgy-faced, quiet, and at first seems to lack the screen charisma to carry a film. [19][22] The goal was to edit a brutally realistic portrayal of the realities of war, using minimal special effects or technical enhancement. [10][11] The producer Greg Shapiro spoke about security concerns of filming in Jordan, "It was interesting telling people we were going to make the movie in Jordan because the first question everybody asked was about the security situation here. Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 97%, based on 289 reviews, with a weighted average rating of 8.50/10. The Hurt Locker premiered at the 2008 Venice International Film Festival before it was released in the United States on June 26, 2009, by Summit Entertainment. Called to a petrol tanker detonation, James decides to hunt for the insurgents responsible, guessing they are still nearby. Some of the locations were less than three miles from the Iraqi border. "[6] Bigelow was fascinated with exploring "the psychology behind the type of soldier who volunteers for this particular conflict and then, because of [their] aptitude, is chosen and given the opportunity to go into bomb disarmament and goes toward what everybody else is running from. The Hurt Locker is about the long, painful endgame in Iraq, the asymmetric nightmare in which the military cannot engage the enemy in any meaningful sense. "[54] He concluded, "This unapologetic celebration of a testosterone-fuelled lust for war may gall. It made me believe in film. It's still excruciatingly tense, a textbook street IED diffusion job that conveys how terrified the two backup guys are and sets up what's to come. [20], "This movie is kind of like a horror film where you're unable to see the killer," says Innis. Describing the experience of filming in Jordan in the summer, he said, "It was so desperately hot, and we were so easily agitated. "[77], In early March 2010, U.S. Army bomb disposal expert Master Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against The Hurt Locker. "[75], Former British bomb disposal officer Guy Marot said, "James makes us look like hot-headed, irrational adrenaline junkies with no self-discipline. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James' true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever. The production was unwilling to risk sending undeveloped film through high-security airports where the cans could be opened, X-rayed, or damaged. When you start hearing the stories from a true perspective ... of people who were actually there, it gives you a clear viewpoint of where you are as an artist and the story you would like to tell. "[55], Joe Morgenstern of The Wall Street Journal called it "A first-rate action thriller, a vivid evocation of urban warfare in Iraq, a penetrating study of heroism and a showcase for austere technique, terse writing and a trio of brilliant performances. It displays combat at its best in Iraq. It was nominated in nine categories at the 82nd Academy Awards and won in six: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing. After they split up, insurgents capture Eldridge. Sanborn protests, but when James begins a pursuit, he and Eldridge reluctantly follow. [30] In 2009, The Hurt Locker screened at the Göteborg International Film Festival,[31] the 10th Film Comment Selects festival,[32] and the South by Southwest film festival. But this is a figure that, as Kimberly Peirce's Stop-Loss depicts, is often set back to start again.The opening sequence, where James's predecessor is killed, leaving Eldridge and Sanborn in need of a new leader, is pretty obvious. The group comes under fire; when the prisoners attempt to escape in the confusion, the leader of the mercenaries shoots them, as they are valuable dead or alive. [33] It was the closing night film at Maryland Film Festival 2009, with Bigelow presenting. U.S. sales of the DVD topped $30 million by mid-August 2010. This is Kathryn Bigelow all right: macho men in dazzling exploits, exhilarating and always a little terrifying to watch, with adrenalin and testosterone spurting off the screen. Sanborn openly contemplates killing him by "accidentally" triggering the explosives, making Eldridge uncomfortable. It was the second highest-rated film of 2009, behind Pixar's Up. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in Italy during 2008. [19][20] Innis stated that they "really wanted the film to retain that 'newsreel' documentary quality... Too many stage-y effects would have been distracting. The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Director was given to Kathryn Bigelow, the first time the honor has gone to a woman. An intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat. Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. [4] Director Bigelow was familiar with Boal's work before his experiences, having adapted one of his Playboy articles as the short-lived television series The Inside in 2002. When a new sergeant, James, takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn and Eldridge, by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat, behaving as if he's indifferent to death. ", Bigelow's choice to film in the Kingdom met some resistance. Description. The film garnered half a million dollars in its opening weekend in the United Kingdom of August 28 through August 30, 2009,[42] and grossed over a million dollars in the UK, Japan, Spain, and France through March. [63], The Hurt Locker was named the tenth "Best Film of the 21st Century So Far" in 2017 by The New York Times chief film critics A. O. Scott and Manohla Dargis. ", Scott noticed that the film reserved criticism of the war but wrote of how the director handled the film's limits, "Ms. Bigelow, practicing a kind of hyperbolic realism, distills the psychological essence and moral complications of modern warfare into a series of brilliant, agonizing set pieces." Directed by Kathryn Bigelow. James and Sanborn rescue him, but one of James' rounds hits Eldridge in the leg. An egomaniacal film star develops a relationship with a young dancer against the backdrop of Hollywood's silent era. “The Hurt Locker” , written by Mark Boal and directed by Kathryn Bigelow. "Mackie's back in town", List of accolades received by The Hurt Locker, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Director, "Shrek Has Been Inducted Into the National Film Registry", "Box-office numbers for Oscar best-picture nominees", "'Hurt Locker' a soldier's-eye view of the Iraq war", "Jordan poses as Iraq Cinecittà for Hollywood", "Hurt Locker Producer Lauds Film Crew and New Mexico Industry", "Artful Editing and All-Avid Workflow Propel The Hurt Locker," Avid.com, Guy Lodge, "The Crafts of 'The Hurt Locker'", "Collateral Awards – 65th Venezia Film Festival 2008", "Göteborg International Film Festival 2009", "Recovering Treasures From Below the Radar", "The Hurt Locker (2009) – Weekend Box Office Results", "United Kingdom Box Office, August 28–30, 2009", "The Hurt Locker (2009) – International Box Office Results", "Brian Mackey: Declare your love for indie films", "Theaters deal with glut of new films: Sequels, Tentpoles Crowd Release Schedule", "Soldiers on a Live Wire Between Peril and Protocol", "Fest Bet: The Iraq war, brought down to the pavement", "Hurt Locker, Other Award Pics Directed by Women", "IFTA Picks 30 Most Significant Indie Films", "The 25 Best Films of the 21st Century...So Far", "Metacritic: 2009 Film Critic Top Ten Lists", "AP critics Germain, Lemire pick top films of 2009", "blog.richardroeper.com » Blog Archive » The best (and worst) of 2009", "The Hurt Locker Doesn't Get this Vet's Vote", "Real Hurt Lockers in Iraq: Life is no movie", "10 Most Inaccurate Military Movies Ever Made", "Army bomb expert claims 'Hurt Locker' based on him", "At the Movies: Plumbing the Depths of 'The Hurt Locker, "Iraq War Vet Ordered to Pay $187,000 in Failed Lawsuit Against 'Hurt Locker' Producers", "Hurt Locker Producers Suing Torrent Downloaders", "Accused pirates to indie filmmakers: Sue us", "US Copyright Group Drops Cases Against Alleged Hurt Locker Pirates", "Hurt Locker File Sharing Suits Come North: Federal Court Orders ISPs to Disclose Subscriber Info", "The 82nd Academy Awards (2010) Nominees and Winners", "Academy Awards: Kathryn Bigelow is the first woman to win an Oscar for best director", "Kathryn Bigelow tops directors with 'Hurt Locker, "Complete List of 2010 Golden Globe Nominations", "'Hurt Locker' producer banned from Oscars", "Hurt Locker Special Effects: Physical Bombs", The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Film, Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Film, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Picture, Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Feature, Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast, Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Picture, Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Film, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Film, New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film, Nikkan Sports Film Award for Best Foreign Film, Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Picture, Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion Picture, San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting Ensemble, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Hurt_Locker&oldid=1022593838, Films that won the Best Sound Editing Academy Award, Films that won the Best Sound Mixing Academy Award, Films whose director won the Best Directing Academy Award, Films whose director won the Best Direction BAFTA Award, Films whose editor won the Best Film Editing Academy Award, Films whose writer won the Best Original Screenplay Academy Award, Films whose writer won the Best Original Screenplay BAFTA Award, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Film winners, United States National Film Registry films, Articles with dead external links from April 2017, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 2nd – Michael Rechtshaffen, Ray Bennett, &, This page was last edited on 11 May 2021, at 11:39. Before being airlifted for surgery, Eldridge angrily blames James for his injury. After the Super 16mm film was transferred to DVcam at a lab in London, the video dailies were transported by plane back to the Middle East to be imported into the editing system. But the hero of this film, Staff Sgt. The critic also felt that the script showed "signs of artificially straining for character depth. [92] The film won six awards at the BAFTAs held on February 21, 2010, including Best Film and Best Director for Bigelow. Written by The critics' consensus reads, "A well-acted, intensely shot, action filled war epic, Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker is thus far the best of the recent dramatizations of the Iraq War. Theater owners have also complained about distributors "bunching too many movies too close together". The small-budget film was independently produced and directed by Kathryn Bigelow. [70], Author Brandon Friedman, also a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, shared a similar view at VetVoice: "The Hurt Locker is a high-tension, well-made, action movie that will certainly keep most viewers on the edges of their seats. The film grossed $49.2 million worldwide. During the Iraq War, a Sergeant recently assigned to an army bomb squad is put at odds with his squad mates due to his maverick way of handling his work. Share to Reddit. The film follows an Iraq War Explosive Ordnance Disposal team who are targeted by insurgents and shows their psychological reactions to the stress of combat. I just mean the news doesn't actually put photographers in with units that are this elite. At that point, "people wanted to quit. Accordingly, film was hand-carried on a flight by a production assistant from Amman to London. The Hurt Locker was the first one that really succeeded. The Hurt Locker is a movie written by Mark Boal and directed by Kathryn Bigelow. "[13], Renner remembered, "I got food bugs. -- using real Iraqis -- while Bigelow sticks to showing Iraqis as the American soldiers experience them -- an experience that turns out to be insane, paranoia-inducing, and scary. Start your free trial to watch The Hurt Locker and other popular TV shows and movies including new releases, classics, Hulu Originals, and more. Bomb disarmament protocol requires a containment area. Movie Review. ", On the embedded side, former correspondent for The Politico and Military Times Christian Lowe (who embedded with U.S. military units each year from 2002 to 2005) explained at DefenseTech: "Some of the scenes are so disconnected with reality to be almost parody. Was hand-carried on a warehouse, James discovers a body he believes is Beckham in! A creepy marvel to watch on Netflix severe injury across Germany in,... Contact high the plane you realize it 's a creepy marvel to James... 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She took this long to do so routine one of the DVD topped $ 30 by! Borrow a gun to dispatch three attackers, while Eldridge kills a fourth is its anti-war messages selection! Days are left to fight for their lives in one piece lawsuit blasted out of court Night film Maryland...
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