I cannot possibly do a better review of this movie than A. O. Scott has done for The New York Times, so I’m not going to try.  You can read his version here.

The Hurt Locker is beyond intense.  [The title refers to soldier vernacular in Iraq, where experiencing a bomb is going to “the hurt locker.”]  It surpasses the normal war movie (Platoon, Saving Private Ryan, for example) because nothing appears as a movie “up there on the screen.”  It views more like a documentary in which you’ve been ripped from your couch and transported to the dizzying, terrifying life of a bomb squad.  Nothing is gratuitous.  The anguish, the horror, the pain, the psychology…it’s all there…and believe me, you feel it all.  I had to push pause, just to pop a couple of Tylenol.

No matter what anyone says about the pros and cons (or ethics) about the war, tribute is due to those who are there, trying to protect the area (and America’s interests).

I cannot imagine that you (who are fighting/working in any sort of military capacity) get much praise or thanks for the dangers and horrors you face every day.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

[Post image: Partial of The Hurt Locker poster]