Aren't you glad the Army has all these tanks parked here? Just in case the Russians come and we have to have a big tank battle?

As part of Goal 57, I'm required to see all the Best Picture Nominees before the Oscars. In past years, I've averaged 2-3 of the 5 nominations, which was hard enough. But this year, the Academy decided to up it and nominate 10 films for this "prestigious" award. Which is ridiculous, in my opinion. It makes the title "Best Picture Nominee" a bit more worthless. I get wanting to recognize superior filmmaking, but really? Doubling the nominee pool? And sticking with my usual, broke, movie-going self, when the list came out, I counted TWO of the ten as ones I'd seen. Inglourious Basterds and Up in the Air. Which means I have a long way to go.

Number Three of Ten is The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow, 2009).

First of all, I'd like to congratulate Kathryn Bigelow for being the fourth woman ever to be nominated for Best Director. The Guardian did an article last week about why there are so few female directors. It's here if you're interested.

The film is about an Army elite bomb squad and their stint in a heavily dangerous Iraq. We follow Jeremy Renner (nominated for Best Actor - Leading Role), Anthony Mackie, and Brian Geraghty through bomb detonations, suicide bombers, and their daily life in the war. We're also treated to bit performances from Guy Pearce and Ralph Fiennes. The whole film keeps this great tension running at its core, and everyone and everything is a threat. It's like Black Hawk Down but much, much better. The thing about war movies is that they always throw grenades at you. You never know who will live and who will die, and Bigelow shows the character's reactions to war, death, and life in a realistic way. Each character has its breaking point. Each character has a choice. 

Shot in a documentary style manner, the shaky cameras and practical lighting puts the viewer in the danger zones with the unit. There's a moment in the last act where the three soldiers are running in the dark, and the screen is black for a full minute or so before their faces come back into view, creating a level of tension and fear that fit the moment perfectly. It's Iraq from the safety of your living room.

57. See all the Best Picture Nominees each given year

Avatar

The Blind Side

District 9

An Education

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire

A Serious Man

Up

Up in the Air

photos courtesy of Google search