Viewed in
2009
Premise
The film follows the adventures of a bomb squad in American-occupied Iraq in 2004.
Who should watch
Those who want to watch one of the best films of 2009 and one of the best war movies in recent memory.
Thoughts
A great film with tour-de-force acting and suspense.
Most of the time, I was on the edge of my seat, afraid yet enthralled. There were times when I wanted to close my eyes, but could not because they were glued to the screen. About halfway through, the film made a disturbing turn, as terrorists began using humans as bombs. Finally, in the climax, I was blindsided with emotion as the characters' humanity pour out.
To paraphrase Alfred Hitchcock: 'a bomb exploding is action, a bomb not exploding is suspense.', and this film literally proved it. I loved that it was not a political film, but a really believable and in depth exploration of what brave soldiers dealt with on a daily basis. I experienced the incessant life-or-death situations, and confusion and chaos in an unstable, unfriendly, foreign land. I saw characters going beyond human limits to achieve the seemingly insurmountable, and the price they pay.
The three unknown leads, Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, and Brian Geraghty were fantastic. They were believable as soldiers and as humans stuck in hell. Renner's character was either a reckless thrill-junkie or a man bent on accomplishing his task regardless of protocol. His character was memorable, but his performance was haunting. (Although sometimes he looked like Glenn Beck.)
I also loved how there were three unknowns in the lead, with Evangeline Lilly, Guy Pearce, David Morse and Ralph Fiennes in minor roles.
The most underrated quality was that it was easy to tell the soldier characters apart. Even the best war movies struggle with this. It's quite understandable, everyone has the same haircut, uniforms, and camera style is usually herky-jerky to portray 'in the heat of the battle' moments.
Obviously, the three main characters in this film were all wonderfully crafted characters, but on top of there, the film makers added some simple tricks. One is black. One wears goggles. All three have last names that were easy to tell apart.
This masterpiece was nail-biting and haunting, thanks to realistic suspense and memorable characters. I believe this belongs in the pantheon of great war movies.
What I would change
Nothing.
Personal
During most of the film, there were only three soldiers on screen, and it made me think. Since we decided to send these brave souls into hell, didn't they deserve to have all the company and support needed?
