Sunday, August 9, 2009

SHORT TAKE: THE HURT LOCKER

FILM REVIEW--LEADING TO A SPEAKING POINT IN MY NEXT ENTRY

I felt so claustrophobic when i saw PLATOON, that when i left the theatre I had to walk in the open air for a long time.

I had a similar feeling watching this amazing film--actually, the feeling was much worse.

The unsteady camerawork brings you right into the danger as bomb experts tread lightly to find and deactivate hidden killers. At first we are riding on the nose of a bot; then we become voyeur as the men themselves view potential triggermen in the landscape.

My blood pressure rose and did not let down. In fact, when I got home I took a little more of my BP meds than I am accustomed to.

I was fascinated by just about everything: the close up horror of war itself; the horrifically fascinating detail of snipping live bomb wires; what it means, close up, to be a human bomb, and to see its effects once detonated; the contrast of those who follow protocol to the film's hero who doesn't; the fact that the adrenaline rush becomes habit, making those who do return home either unable to stay or unable to cope.

Wow.

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