CRI听力: Movie Review: The Hurt Locker

It came as a surprise when "The Hurt Locker" upset the box-office miracle "Avatar" to take the crown of Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars on Sunday.

The drama was further heightened by the fact that the award-wining director Kathryn Bigelow is James Cameron's ex-wife.

Sure, it's a hack's job to overplay the relationship between the two directors, but what I was more keenly interested in finding out is how "The Hurt Locker" beat "Avatar" in the race for the top prize.

In a chaotic and war-ravaged Baghdad, bombs and murder loom around every corner, every day. When Sergeant Matt Thompson is killed on a mission to dispose of an explosive device, staff sergeant and explosives expert William James is appointed to take over the bomb disposal squad.(www.hXen.com)

But the newcomer in the camp doesn't gel with his subordinates, as the cavalier leader often infringes company rules and gets himself into dangerous situations.

The rising tensions between the new guy and his squad are strained until William reveals his emotional side and respectable working ethics.

"The Hurt Locker" emerged with a macho swagger. The ferocious setting, tough characters and explosive scenes are tightly woven to make you believe this is a movie made exclusively for men, by men. So it may have wowed academy voters to learn that it was a female director who produced this astounding war flick.

What takes the movie one step further is that it succeeds in getting inside of the men's heads while scanning their hidden sentiments. When watching Sergeant William abandon the easy life at home to return to the war zone, you are given a greater understanding of their predicament and are able to grasp a better insight into the opening quote "war is a drug".

Bigelow leaves out any controversy regarding the legitimacy of the men's presence in Iraq. We only see the frightened, threatening, sometimes villainous faces of the locals in the film, which serves to somehow highlight the American military's role as 'guests' and glorifies their work.

Finally, the U.S.-style heroism once again takes precedence and pushes the movie's anti-war sentiment to a hypercritical grounding.

The message is that when all is said and done, fighting in a war is a job for these men, and they are merely trying to make a living.

On a scale of one to ten, I give this movie a seven.