The absolute best and worst thing about the war on terror is that it never fucking ends. I mean, how does one puts an end to terrorism exactly? It's impossible to conquer an idea, let alone kill it. The neat thing for reviewers like me is that I don't need to spend my hard-earned cash in order to review the cultural byproduct of this war, because it's always pertinent and I can wait until it becomes free to watch. When the U.S Army allegedly killed Osama bin Laden in 2011, in Abbottabad, Pakistan, it was like they were finally vindicated for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. A couple years later, al-Qaeda is still thriving and the world in general has lost its illusions about the war on terror. What better timing could I ask for to give Kathryn Bigelow's celebrated account of Osama bin Laden's assassination ZERO DARK THIRTY a couple hours of my time?
Sometimes you just have to say ''fuck it'' and do what you gotta do!
So, ZERO DARK THIRTY is the jumbled recollection of the ten years manhunt that lead to the death of the world's most notorious jihadist. Fictional CIA agent Maya (Jessica Chastain) is pursuing a lead about bin Laden's courier. She thinks that if she can identify his most highly regarded courier, she'll be able to locate al-Qaeda's leader. So, basically the agency stops at nothing in order to pursue that lead (partly because Maya is VERY insistent), taking advantage of the ''detainee program'' that allowed them to legally waterboard human beings. Push comes to shove, Maya's effort are eventually rewarded and she gets a line on the most wanted man on the planet after years of struggling through the complicated and alien landscapes of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where white people are the utmost unwelcome. A long, elaborate scene about you-know-what ensues.
It's difficult to assess if ZERO DARK THIRTY is objectively a good movie or not, because the bulk of my appreciation came from the fact that I had to process every bit of information given to me. It's not an easy movie. Its apparent neutrality about the scenes of torture is going to work you and check out what you're made of. Kudos to Kathryn Bigelow for her unflinching stance in the face of the atrocities of the war on terror, but unlike philosopher Slavoj Zizek I believe that the slow developments were a quiet and distant statement that torture was a necessary evil in order to get to Osama bin Laden. The point of ZERO DARK THIRTY is that war is a dirty business and that there's no clean way of accomplishing what's right.
Sometimes you just have to say ''fuck it'' and do what you gotta do!
So, ZERO DARK THIRTY is the jumbled recollection of the ten years manhunt that lead to the death of the world's most notorious jihadist. Fictional CIA agent Maya (Jessica Chastain) is pursuing a lead about bin Laden's courier. She thinks that if she can identify his most highly regarded courier, she'll be able to locate al-Qaeda's leader. So, basically the agency stops at nothing in order to pursue that lead (partly because Maya is VERY insistent), taking advantage of the ''detainee program'' that allowed them to legally waterboard human beings. Push comes to shove, Maya's effort are eventually rewarded and she gets a line on the most wanted man on the planet after years of struggling through the complicated and alien landscapes of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where white people are the utmost unwelcome. A long, elaborate scene about you-know-what ensues.
It's difficult to assess if ZERO DARK THIRTY is objectively a good movie or not, because the bulk of my appreciation came from the fact that I had to process every bit of information given to me. It's not an easy movie. Its apparent neutrality about the scenes of torture is going to work you and check out what you're made of. Kudos to Kathryn Bigelow for her unflinching stance in the face of the atrocities of the war on terror, but unlike philosopher Slavoj Zizek I believe that the slow developments were a quiet and distant statement that torture was a necessary evil in order to get to Osama bin Laden. The point of ZERO DARK THIRTY is that war is a dirty business and that there's no clean way of accomplishing what's right.
Starlord, in his pre-galactic phase.
Now that the politics have been dealt with, I can tell you that ZERO DARK THIRTY's a pretty efficient war movie. There are some jumbled-up, shaky cam action scenes, but there isn't JUST that. If anything, Kathryn Bigelow understands the complexity of war, as she goes way beyond the battlefield. There are strategical reunion, bureaucratic jockeying (featuring the amazing Kyle ''Coach Taylor'' Chandler and his intense guy face), Homeland-style stakeouts and of course, the über-violent interrogation scenes. ZERO DARK THIRTY is a difficult movie to follow as it goes over a long time period in little time and it's a bit hermetic if you didn't follow the war on terror (lots of names, acronyms and middle eatern geography), but every scene is filled with killer, unspoken tension so it's hard to even look away for a second.
I haven't addressed the ending scene yet, which might be the crown jewel of ZERO DARK THIRTY, but I thought I'd leave you guys the surprise. It's a love-it-or-hate-it scene and I loved it for its ridiculous ambition. Overall, ZERO DARK THIRTY is a humorless, stylish (and maybe a little pompous) war movie, but it's so competently shot and its understanding of narrative conventions is so strong that it makes it a compelling movie nonetheless. I would've felt better about liking ZERO DARK THIRTY if it had been 100% fiction, but I did like the movie and I'm not shying away from it. It didn't make me feel like I was part of the ''good guys'' or anything like that, but it's a movie that offer slightly more than your usual ''rah! rah! rah! USA!'' bullshit. But only slightly.
I haven't addressed the ending scene yet, which might be the crown jewel of ZERO DARK THIRTY, but I thought I'd leave you guys the surprise. It's a love-it-or-hate-it scene and I loved it for its ridiculous ambition. Overall, ZERO DARK THIRTY is a humorless, stylish (and maybe a little pompous) war movie, but it's so competently shot and its understanding of narrative conventions is so strong that it makes it a compelling movie nonetheless. I would've felt better about liking ZERO DARK THIRTY if it had been 100% fiction, but I did like the movie and I'm not shying away from it. It didn't make me feel like I was part of the ''good guys'' or anything like that, but it's a movie that offer slightly more than your usual ''rah! rah! rah! USA!'' bullshit. But only slightly.