Hurts So Good

After a week of thinking, I'm ready to comment on The Hurt Locker.

War is a drug. At least that's what the first frames of The Hurt Locker, the sensational new movie from Kathryn Bigelow, tell us. The Hurt Locker is an intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat. 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 during the final month of their tour of duty in Iraq. It gives the audience an inside look at what it's like to be on the front lines of battle, before the reinforcement troops come in. There are life and death decisions that have to be made in a split second, and you never know who you can trust and who might turn out to be a suicide bomber or trigger man.

Jeremy Renner gives an incredible performance as the outlaw sergeant James, ready to stare death down any chance he can get. You get the sense that he was born to do this work, and that he couldn't have his life any other way. He also shares a few surpringly tender moments with his crew and also a young boy trying to sell him DVD's. His cocky attitude compliments Sanborn (Anthony Mackie, who is also exceptional) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty, outstanding as well), two young recruits that want nothing more than to survive their last 30 days and go home. Bigelow (former wife of James Cameron and one of the few female action directors working today) gives us a gritty, taut thriller, and one of the most realistic and (surprisingly) apolitical films about the war to be produced this decade. She and her actors and creative team let the story speak for itself. The US Government didn't cooperate with filming, and most of the film was shot in Jordan, sometimes just miles from the Iraqi border.

Sitting in the theater I became totally involved with the characters, and kept constantly thinking that this is a legit occupation, and there are people out there every day putting their lives on the line to detonate these bombs. It was amazing to me the lifestyle that these men lead, and the fact that they chose to put their lives in danger every day. It was refreshing, as I said earlier, to see that there was no strong opinion on the war one way or the other. Bigelow and screen-writer Mark Boal laid all their cards on the table, almost making the statement "this is what happens. YOU decide." Readers will know I'm a HUGE fan of films that make you think that let you draw your own conclusions, and this is definetly the case with The Hurt Locker.

I sincerely hope that this movie is remembered come the end of the year (I think it will be, it has a 98 rating on rotten tomatoes), and can easily pick up nods in major categories; Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Jeremy Renner - so far he's my choice for the win), 2 Supporting Actor, Original Screenplay and a few technical nods too - the cinematography was fantastic. The Hurt Locker is currently in limited release, but as it rolls out, see it. You won't be disappointed. Grade: A

Here's a defensive driving question - after getting coffee this morning, I was backing out of the space, and when I initially looked before backing up, there was no one behind me. As I was backing up, this car pulls into the lot and beeps at me - who had the right of way? I feel like I did since I was backing up, but I'm not sure. Feel free to comment.

This years All-Star festivities were a bust, the HR Derby was a snoozefest, as was the game, and Wakefield and Beckett didn't even get to pitch. LAME.

In other news, I just finished reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and was stoked to find out that this might become a series, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is getting released on September 15th. Awesome! If you haven't read Pride, Prejudice and Zombies, it's a must read.

(500)Days of Summer opens tomorrow and I've been hearing really good things about it. Probs check it out tomorrow night, before volunteering at Fenway for the Jimmy Fund on Saturday.

And, finally, the NHL Winter Classic is coming to Fenway January 1, 2010. The Bruins will play the Flyers on the infield.
Anyone want to go in on Bruins season tickets??