Sunday, June 15, 2014
The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt locker shows the overwhelming boredom of army life, followed closely by the insane, stressful moments that come with war. This film uses music very sparsely in order to emphasize the soundtrack when something important happens; a sort of audio "white space", creating a very minimalist soundtrack. The film begins on a quiet Iraqi street, and an EOD (Explosives Ordinace Desposal) team disarming an IED. Sgt. Sanborn and Spec. Eldridge are talking about the lawn business they want to start. Suddenly, with very little warning, they are stressed, screaming and being blown up. This is really a good example of what Bigelow does to ease the viewer into a false sense of calm then thrust them into a heart pounding, adrenaline rushing sense of fear. This all plays into Sgt. William James' personality though. He craves the adrenaline. He cannot function without it. The last few moments of the movie, Sgt. James is home from war, shopping for cereal in a supermarket. for this scene they actually moved the aisles farther apart than would usually be customary to create a sense of hugeness, and him not knowing how to function outside of war. This is why the movie is called The Hurt Locker. A Hurt Locker is someone who is in a lot of trouble/ has lost it mentally, usually referring to people like Sgt. James who cannot function outside of war.
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"This is really a good example of what Bigelow does to ease the viewer into a false sense of calm then thrust them into a heart pounding, adrenaline rushing sense of fear" Good, but how does she do this? What camera techniques? What editing? Music?
ReplyDeleteThis movie fascinated me. I come from an Army background and was married to a Marine so I'm familiar with the adrenaline addiction that life in a war zone produces in some people. At home the main character zmovies is just one more bored, restless young man with few future prospects. As an Army bomb disposal expert in Iraq he can play cowboy every day, challenging the odds in deadly circumstances and riding the rush each time he walks away unharmed. High-ranking officers praise him publicly and other soldiers either fear him or are in awe of him. The greater the thrills, the greater the craving for them.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea whether the conditions in Iraq are portrayed accurately here, so if you're looking for documentary realism don't watch this movie. If you want a study of, as the quote in the opening says, "war as a drug," this 123movies online is superb. Plus, Jeremy Renner nails the leading role cold.