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Oscar Winner 2010: Best Picture: The Hurt Locker

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:00:00 +0000

The winner of the 2010 Academy Award for Best Picture goes to The Hurt Locker. Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, and the cast accepted the award and boy were they excited. Bigelow held both her Best Director and Best Picture Oscars in her hands and thanked all those who believed in the film when so many people didn’t. They also once again mentioned the men and women serving in the military to protect our country. Such a monumental night for records to be broken and history to be made.

See who they beat out this year in the Best Picture category…

The nominees for Best Picture were:

Avatar – Avatar centers on an ex-Marine who submerges himself into the culture of an alien race. With the help of his Avatar body, he is able to adapt to his new environment even though he’s still present in his human mind. Jake Sully is the lead character as played by Sam Worthington, while Zoe Saldana is featured as his love interest, Neyteri.

The Blind Side – Based on the humble beginnings of Michael Oher, an abandoned inner city kid who’s mother is a drug addict and father is no where to be found. A family friend finds a way to enter him into an upscale private school due to his size and athletic ability. While there he struggles with his grades, sleeps in the gym, and wears the same outfit on a daily basis. During a rainy walk from school, he’s discovered by the Tuohy family and slowly becomes a permanent staple in their lives. Throughout his stay, he’s given a tutor to help with his studies, a shot a college education, and a chance to play professional football in the NFL.

District 9 – A group of alien refugees who land in South Africa. A giant corporation is trying to reveal the technology behind their weapons, but they need alien DNA to unlock the mystery. A man contracts a strange virus, and he turns out to be the key to understanding the aliens weaponry. The only place the man can hide is in District 9.

An Education – A coming-of-age story set in the 1960’s about a teenage girl who lives in the suburbs of London. Her life is turned into a dream when a charming playboy nearly twice her age shows up and changes her life forever.

The Hurt Locker – 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 (Jeremy Renner), takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty), by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

Inglourious Basterds – Set during WWII in Nazi-occupied France, where a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are sent in to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by killing Nazis in as many obscene ways as possible.

Precious – (Based on the novel Push by Sapphire) Precious is set in Harlem. The story centers around an overweight, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child, who is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction.

A Serious Man – The story centers around Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), a Midwestern professor who watches his life unravel when his wife prepares to leave him because her brother-in-law won’t move out.

Up – The film is about 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen who embarks on an adventure to South America by tying thousands of balloons to his house and allowing his house to float down south. Midair, Carl receives a knock at his door and discovers 8-year-old Russell on his front porch.

Up in the Air - The story centers on a corporate downsizing expert (George Clooney) who travels all over the US in pursuit of more opportunities to fire people. As he approaches the 10-million frequent flyer miles milestone and meets the frequent-flying woman of his dreams (Vera Farmiga), his cherished lifestyle is threatened as his company wants to move him to headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska.

Further Reading:

Oscar Winner 2010: Best Director – Kathryn Bigelow

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:56:55 +0000

The winner of the 2010 Academy Award for Best Director goes to Kathryn Bigelow. She’s made history as the first female to win the Best Director Oscar. She received a standing ovation and an intro by Barbra Streisand who said, “the time has come.” Bigelow described her win as the moment of a lifetime. She also dedicated her award to the women and men in the military who risk their lives on a daily basis around the world.

Check out who she bear out for the Best Director Award…

The nominees for Best Director were:

James Cameron – Avatar
Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds
Lee Daniels – Precious
Jason Reitman – Up in the Air

James Cameron – Avatar - Avatar centers on an ex-Marine who submerges himself into the culture of an alien race. With the help of his Avatar body, he is able to adapt to his new environment even though he’s still present in his human mind. Jake Sully is the lead character as played by Sam Worthington, while Zoe Saldana is featured as his love interest, Neyteri.

Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker - 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 (Jeremy Renner), takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty), by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds - Set during WWII in Nazi-occupied France, where a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are sent in to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by killing Nazis in as many obscene ways as possible.

Lee Daniels – Precious - (Based on the novel Push by Sapphire) Precious is set in Harlem. The story centers around an overweight, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child, who is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction.

Jason Reitman – Up in the Air - The story centers on a corporate downsizing expert (George Clooney) who travels all over the US in pursuit of more opportunities to fire people. As he approaches the 10-million frequent flyer miles milestone and meets the frequent-flying woman of his dreams (Vera Farmiga), his cherished lifestyle is threatened as his company wants to move him to headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska.

Further Reading:

Oscar Winner 2010: Best Editing – The Hurt Locker

Anet Hovhanesian — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:08:47 +0000

The winner of the 2010 Academy Award for Best Editing goes to The Hurt Locker’s Chris Innis and Bob Murawski. Both first time winners were very excited to be taking home their awards and thanked the cast and crew of the film while doing so. They also wanted everyone to know that the movie was made without compromise, without focus groups, or studio changes. Everyone involved was involved because they wanted to be.

See who they beat out this year in the Best Editing category…

Nominees for Best Editing were:

Avatar – Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron

District 9 - Julian Clarke

The Hurt Locker– Bob Murawski and Chris Innis

Inglourious Basterds– Sally Menke

Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire– Joe Klotz

Avatar: This film centers around Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) who wakes up in a VA hospital where he is surrounded by wounded war veterans. He then finds himself dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission where he is torn between doing what he is told protecting the world he feels is his home.The Sci-fi adventure also stars Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang.

District 9: The Neil Blomkamp film is about an extraterrestrial race of aliens forced to living on Earth under bad conditions who find a kindred spirit in a government agent that is exposed to their biotechnology. The Sci-Fi thriller stars Sharlito Copley, Jason Cope and Nathalie Boltt and a bunch of other unknowns.

The Hurt Locker: Set in Iraq during war time, an elite Army bomb squad unit must come together in a city where everyone is a potential enemy and every object could be a deadly bomb. In this film, Kathryn Bigelow‘s gives audiences an intense portrayal of elite soldiers during the early months of the post-invasion period. Starring in the film are Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, and Ralph Fiennes.

Inglorious Basterds: In a film set in France during World War II, Quentin Tarantino tells the story of a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” who are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. The film star Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine, the ruthless leader of the group and Melanie Laurent as young Jewish refugee Shosanna Dreyfus witnesses the slaughter of her family by Colonel Hans Landa, whom she seeks revenge from.

Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire: Set in Harlem, Lee Daniels brings us the story of an overweight, illiterate 16 year old who is pregnant with her second child. is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that her life can head in a new direction. Precious, played by Gabourey Sidibe, fights to find a way out of her traumatic daily existence through imagination and fantasy. The drama also stars Mo’Nique and Mariah Carey.

Further Reading:

Oscar Winner 2010: Best Original Screenplay – The Hurt Locker

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 02:18:10 +0000

The winner of the 2010 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay goes to The Hurt Locker. In his acceptance speech, screenwriter Mark Boal talked about his background as a reporter in Iraq who thought his experiences would make a good movie. He stated that the film went far beyond his expectations and he owed that to director, Kathryn Bigelow. He also dedicated his award to the thousands of troops still serving overseas and his father who passed away a month ago.

See who he beat out this year in the Best Original Screenplay category…

The nominees for Best Original Screenplay were:

Mark Boal – The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds
Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman – The Messenger
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen – A Serious Man
Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy – Up

Marc Boal – The Hurt Locker – 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 (Jeremy Renner), takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Eldridge (Brian Geraghty), by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds – Set during WWII in Nazi-occupied France, where a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as “The Basterds” are sent in to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by killing Nazis in as many obscene ways as possible.

Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman – The Messenger – A solider (BenFoster) is pulled been from battle and is paired-up with a seasoned officer (Woody Harrelson) to do possibly the hardest job in the army — inform people that their loved have been killed. The young solider gets in trouble when he becomes involved with a widow of a fallen officer.

Joel Coen, Ethan Coen – A Serious Man – The story centers around Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), a Midwestern professor who watches his life unravel when his wife prepares to leave him because her brother-in-law won’t move out.

Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy – Up – The film is about 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen who embarks on an adventure to South America by tying thousands of balloons to his house and allowing his house to float down south. Midair, Carl receives a knock at his door and discovers 8-year-old Russell on his front porch.

Further Reading:

Producer Nicolas Chartier Banned from Oscars

Anet Hovhanesian — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 04:21:46 +0000

French producer Nicolas Chartier who was a part of the Best Picture nominated film The Hurt Locker has been banned from attending the Oscar awards ceremony this Sunday due to an e-mail he sent. According to USA Today, Chartier is being punished for trying to sway Oscar voters towards his film by talking trash about a fellow nominee.

Chartier sent Oscar voters an e-mail urging them to support the low budget Iraq war drama directed by Kathryn Bigelow over “a $500 million film” — an obvious dig at James Cameron’s monster blockbuster Avatar. Chartier angered the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences who were contemplating not only banning Cartier but also taking away his film’s nomination.

Avatar has grossed millions and is more than likely going to win Best Picture at the Oscars no matter how many e-mails Chartier sends Oscar voters. I think even Chartier knows this and was acting in a state of desperation.

Do you think Cartier went too far with his e-mails? What do you think of the decision to ban him from the Oscars?

The Hurt Locker Causes a Military Stir

Mali Elfman — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 21:50:59 +0000

With the Oscars right around the corner and The Hurt Locker finally getting the attention is deserves, someone has to complain about it. The film has already received praise from critics and the military personal alike. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has commented on the film and called it both “authentic” and “very compelling.” Purple Heart winner, Drew Sloan, recently sat with the cast and crew on a panel to speak about the film.

Suddenly it’s being said that the film-makers may have gone a little too far…

…the government says it pulled its “Hurt Locker” production assistance at the last minute in 2007, saying that the film’s makers were shooting scenes that weren’t in the screenplay submitted to the Defense Department, including a sequence that the government believed portrayed troops unflatteringly. The film’s producers dispute elements of the account.

The problem isn’t in the facts, but in the personality of the main character, Staff Sgt. William James played by Jeremy Renner who comes off like a Mad Max renegade. Many times over the character puts his and others life on the line for an adrenaline rush. Real life EOD team leader, taff Sgt. Jeremy D. Phillips has come forward stating that his job is not nearly as dramatic as what the movie makes it out to be…

“My interest is bringing myself and my team members home alive, with all of our appendages in the right place.” Although he was glad the film highlighted their trade, he disliked the celluloid treatment of EOD units. “There is too much John Wayne and cowboy stuff.”

All I can say is, welcome to Hollywood! Kathryn Bigelow‘s film does a great job of bringing the truth to the big screen, but it is still a movie and they did use a fictional character to make it work. Writer/Producer Mark Boal reminds us that the film was not intended to be a documentary or a training film…

“We certainly made creative choices for dramatic effect,” he said. “But I hope the choices were made respectfully and conscientiously.”

More to the point, just because this one EOD team leader wasn’t like Renner’s character doesn’t mean anything. Many military personal have held the much talked about position, surely some of them are like him and many of them are not. To say that one person isn’t like another shouldn’t really be a surprise to anyone.

Who thinks this is just propaganda for the film? Who thinks that the film has done a poor job at representing the real EOD team leaders?

Source: ChicagoTribune

Avatar, Hurt Locker Lead 2010 Oscar Nominations

Krystal Clark — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:49:08 +0000

This morning the Oscar nominations were revealed for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards and once again James Cameron has found himself on top of the world thanks to Avatar. But he shouldn’t celebrate just yet, because there’s plenty of competition coming from the dark horse The Hurt Locker led by Best Director nominee, Kathryn Bigelow. Let’s see how these two stack up against each other…

Both films were nominated for nine Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. Each film is visually and dramatically different, which is probably why Avatar has a solid lock on the technical categories like Best Editing and Sound, and The Hurt Locker has someone up for Best Actor (Jeremy Renner) and Best Original Screenplay (Mark Boal).

Cameron has already won a Best Director and Picture Oscar for 1997′s Titanic, which might keep some voters from giving him the honor again. Avatar also swept those same categories at the Golden Globe Awards and has become the highest grossing film of all time. Those might be too many accolades for the Academy to stomach.

If Bigelow takes home the Best Director Oscar she’ll be the first woman in less than a handful of previous female nominees to ever take home the award. And even though this show is supposed to be about awarding the best, it’s also about ratings, and people want to see history happen.

Other notable competition in the Best Picture category includes Up in the Air, Inglourious Basterds, and the shockers District 9, The Blind Side and Up. The competition here is too steep for Avatar to walk about with the trophy, so don’t be surprised if there’s a huge upset this year.

Who do you think will take home the most awards on Oscar night?

Hurt Locker Wins National Film Critics Top Honor

Krystal Clark — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:31:22 +0000

The Hurt Locker continues to destroy the competition by adding another critics award to its growing mantle. The National Society of Film Critics selected the Kathryn Bigelow war drama as their top film of 2009. The film has become the golden child of award’s season and took home three of the top honors the group had to offer.

The National Society of Film Critics is composed of critics from some of the country’s top publications, and they all decided to show love to Bigelow and her little engine that could. Not only was Locker honored as the best film of the year, but Bigelow earned her 1,347th Best Director award, and Jeremy Renner was named Best Lead Actor. Some of the other major winners included Yolande Moreau who was named Best Lead Actress for her work in the French film Seraphine, while Mo’Nique and Christoph Waltz took home the prize for their supporting work in Precious and Inglourious Basterds respectively.

The Coen Brothers also got a bone thrown their way (not that they don’t have plenty already) for their film A Serious Man, when they won Best Screenplay. The National Film Critics are falling in line with every other awards ceremony, society, and group that’s given their two cents over this past year. The Golden Globes will take place in a couple of weeks and then it’s on to the Oscar red carpet. How much do you want to bet that the majority of the winners here will make an appearance on Hollywood’s biggest night?

Do you agree with the National Film Critics picks for 2009?

Source: Yahoo

Will Kathryn Bigelow Make Oscar History?

Krystal Clark — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:37:27 +0000

All year Up in the Air has been a festival and critics darling thanks to the great script and direction of Jason Reitman. The only thing that may keep it from gaining Oscar gold is the dark horse, The Hurt Locker. The Kathryn Bigelow drama has been running neck and neck with Reitman’s latest, and is on it’s way to making Academy Awards history. If Bigelow gets a nomination and a win, she’ll be the first woman to ever receive a Best Director Oscar. But in order for her to break that barrier she has to take Reitman and his flick out of contention, which won’t be an easy feat.

For the Golden Globes, Up in the Air led the pack with 6 nominations, which included the major categories of Best Picture, Director, Actor, Screenplay, and Supporting Actress. The Hurt Locker went on to receive recognition in all the same areas except for acting. The snub of Jeremy Renner was one of the biggest surprises but when the Screen Actors Guild gave their two cents, his performance was noted with a Best Actor nomination. Now he’s going head to head with Up in the Air’s George Clooney as well as a slew of other talented actors.

Up in the Air won Best Picture from the Southeastern and Washington DC Film Critics, while The Hurt Locker took the honor from The New York Film Critics Circle and The Boston Society of Critics. This is one of the few times that a female directed film has garned so much critical attention. Locker‘s Kathryn Bigelow has single handedly swept most of the directing categories this year, which means an Oscar could be in her reach.

Throughout history only three women have been nominated for the coveted prize with the last one being Sofia Coppola for her work on Lost in Translation. Even though Reitman has been noted as the early frontrunner, Bigelow’s work on The Hurt Locker can’t be ignored. She helmed a brutally honest war film, with strong performances and a great screenplay. She’s proven that female directors don’t have to stick to romantic comedies to have a successful career.

With the exception of Lee Daniels and Precious, the big Oscar showdown will be between Reitman and Bigelow. If Reitman wins he’ll be one of the youngest, second generation directors to take home the award. But if Bigelow wins she’ll be the first woman to ever do so, which will make this year’s ceremony truly history in the making.

Who do you think should win Best Picture and Director at the Oscars?

AWFJ Journalists EDA Awards Nominees and Winners

Andrew Payne — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:25:54 +0000

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists is a relatively new critics organization with only a few years of awards to their credit. Still, it does give us another group of winners to look at, and yet another reason why The Hurt Locker is poised to be a lock for a Best Picture nominee as it won the group’s Best Picture Award.

The other good thing about this group? They have dozens of funny awards that incisively point out sexism in Hollywood – always a good thing.

Check out the full list of nominees and winners below…

(Winners in Bold)

Best Film:

An Education
The Hurt Locker
Precious
Up In The Air

Best Animated Film:

Coraline
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Up

Best Director:

Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
Jason Reitman – Up In The Air
Quentin Tarantino – Inglorious Basterds

Best Screenplay, Original:

(500) Days of Summer – Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber
The Hurt Locker – Mark Boal
A Serious Man – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Best Screenplay, Adapted:

An Education – Nick Hornby
Precious – Geoffrey Fletcher
Up In The Air – Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Best Documentary:

Anvil! The Story of Anvil – Sacha Gervasi
The Cove – Louis Psihoyos
Food, Inc. – Robert Kenner

Best Actress:

Carey Mulligan – An Education
Gabourey Sidibe – Precious
Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia

Best Actress In Supporting Role:

Vera Farmiga – Up In The Air
Anna Kendrick – Up In The Air
Mo’Nique – Precious

Best Actor:

Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
George Clooney – Up In The Air
Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:

Woody Harrelson – The Messenger
Paul Schneider – Bright Star
Christopher Waltz – Inglorious Basterds

Best Ensemble Cast:

An Education
The Hurt Locker
Precious

Best Editing:

District 9 – Julian Clarke
Inglorious Basterds – Sally Menke
Up In The Air – Dana E. Glauberman

Most Beautiful Film:

Bright Star
The Lovely Bones
The Young Victoria

Best Non-English-Language Film:

Broken Embraces – Pedro Almodovar, Spain
Sin Nombre – Cary Fukunaga, Mexico
Summer Hours – Olivier Assayas, France

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS

Best Woman Director:

Kathryn Bigelow The Hurt Locker
Jane Campion – Bright Star
Lone Scherfig – An Education

Best Woman Screenwriter:

Jane Campion – Bright Star
Nora Ephron – Julie & Julia
Rebecca Miller – The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Best Animated Female:

Coraline in Coraline
Ellie in Up
Mrs. Fox in Fantastic Mr. Fox

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Anna Kendrick – Up In The Air
Carey Mulligan – An Education
Gabourey Sidibe – Precious

Women’s Image Award

Kathryn Bigelow
Jane Campion
Meryl Streep

Perseverance Award:

Drew Barrymore
Kathryn Bigelow
Agnes Varda

Actress Defying Age and Ageism:

Sophia Loren
Robin Wright Penn
Michelle Pfeifer
Meryl Streep

Sexist Pig Award:

Michael Bay for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Zach Cregger and Trevor Moore for Miss March
Robert Luketic for The Ugly Truth

This Year’s Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry:

Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker
Jane Campion for Bright Star
Meryl Streep for Julie & Julia and It’s Complicated

Lifetime Achievement Award:

Jane Campion
Meryl Streep
Agnes Varda

AWFJ Award For Humanitarian Activism:

Rebecca Cammisa for Which Way Home
Mia Farrow
Angelina Jolie

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

AWFJ Hall Of Shame Award:

Lars Von Trier – Antichrist
Jody Hill – Observe and Report
Robert Luketic – The Ugly Truth

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent:

Megan Fox
Katherine Heigl
Hilary Swank

Movie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn‘t:

Amelia
Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
Precious

Unforgettable Moment Award (tie):

Inglorious Basterds – Shoshanna (Melanie Laurent) burns down the theater.
Precious – Mary (Mo’Nique) admits the truth about abuse.
Zombieland – Surprise celebrity cameo (no spoilers here)

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction (tie):

An Education – Carey Mulligan and Peter Sarsgaard
Bright Star – Abbie Cornish and Ben Whishaw
It’s Complicated – Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin

Sequel That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award:

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Terminator Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

The Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award:

Fame
Land of the Lost
Taking of Pelham 1-2-3

Cultural Crossover Award:

Amreeka
District 9
The Stoning of Soraya M.

Bravest Performance Award:

Charlotte Gainsbourg in Antichrist
Mo’Nique in Precious
Gabourey Sidibe in Precious

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest Award:

Crazy Heart – Jeff Bridges and Maggie Gyllenhaal (28 years)
Paul Blart: Mall Cop - Kevin James and Jayna Mays (14 years)
Whatever Works – Larry David and Evan Rachel Wood (40 years)

Watch the First 8 Minutes of The Hurt Locker

Mali Elfman — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:08:19 +0000

In case you haven’t seen Kathryn Bigelow‘s latest film The Hurt Locker starring Jeremy Renner with Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty, and appearances by Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes, we have a little something to entice you into theaters. Just to wet your appetite they have uploaded the first 8 minutes of the film to Hulu.

Now, this clip is intense, and I personally feel it should be seen with the whole movie. BUT if you’re on the fence as to whether or not you should see this film, I think this clip below should seal the deal.

Watch the first 8 minutes below…

Are you convinced yet?

The Hurt Locker: Movie Review

Mali Elfman — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 18:36:35 +0000

Kathryn Bigelow‘s (interview) new film The Hurt Locker starring Jeremy Renner (interview), Anthony Mackie, and Brian Geraghty, with special appearances by Guy Pearce, Ralph Feinnes, David Morse, and Evangeline Lilly is a must see film about men who do one of the most dangerous job’s in the world.

This film has amazing performances, an unbelievable setting, and will have you sitting on the edge of your seat. It’s not just another war film, Bigelow has redefined the genre with this film.

Check out the good, the bad and the plot below…

Plot:

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 (Renner), takes over a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst violent conflict, he surprises his two subordinates, Sanborn (Mackie) and Eldridge (Geraghty), by recklessly plunging them into a deadly game of urban combat. James behaves as if he’s indifferent to death. As the men struggle to control their wild new leader, the city explodes into chaos, and James’ true character reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever.

The Good:

Non-Partisan POV: Bigelow creates a world where you have respect for what our soldiers are doing and why they are doing it, and yet does not support war. In fact, the film doesn’t outwardly say anything about war, but rather what it does to and for the people in it.
The Suspense: Bigelow is a master of suspense. She knows how to take us out of our comfort zone. Nothing plays out like you expect it to, so just like the characters you’re watching, pay attention and along for a ride.
The Acting: From Pearce’s kick ass entrance to Renner’s fast but loose, crazy man performance, the acting in this film was amazing. Mackie was a powerful Sergeant that brought sense to what was happening and could stand up to Renner. Geraghty was the sweet kid who we all know doesn’t belong in a war and yet finds courage to risk his life everyday.
The Location: They shot this film in Jordan, not far from active-war zones in 120 degree weather and you can feel it. From the beautiful long-range shots to the sand that wedges itself into your pores.
No Answers: Without giving anything away, the film proposes questions without answers. In fact even in our interviews with Bigelow and Renner, they weren’t giving away any answers. So it’s up to you to decide how you feel.

The Bad:

Runtime: I’m being very picky by even mentioning this, but I do think you could have cut the run-time just a bit. There were a few moments where the pace could have been slightly picked up to make the film clip along a bit faster.

Overall:

The is a great film that sticks with you. It’s not your typical war film because it’s not about the war, it’s about what’s important, the people in it.

RATING: 7

Check out the film in theaters June 26th.

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Overall:

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