Critic Reviews
Hurt Locker, The (2009) Rank 4 Reviews
Expert Review Summary
based on (53) reviews
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Fair
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MSNBC
The kind of uncompromising movie that any politician who claims to support the troops while extending the war and cutting funds for veterans' benefits (or any chickenhawk pundit who pooh-poohs the ongoing effects of PTSD) should be forced to see. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at MSNBC
New York Daily News
The film opens and closes with an unnecessarily heavy hand, but everything in between is edge-of-your-seat, burrow-into-your-brain stuff. And what you'll remember most will be Renner's remarkably complex commander. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at New York Daily News
Shared Darkness
Through it all, there are set piece moments of exquisitely fine-tuned pressure-cooker tension, executed by Bigelow with a steely precision and skill that matches her protagonist's on-screen bomb-defusing talents. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Shared Darkness
E! Online
If you're a cinematic thrill-seeker, this portrayal of the real deal is just the fix you've been looking for. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at E! Online
efilmcritic.com
Like its hero, the movie needs its adrenaline fix, but never at the expense of the drama that keeps the anedcotal narrative going. It comes by its thrills honestly, never losing sight of the potential cost in lives. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at efilmcritic.com
Entertainment Weekly
The Army bomb-disposal specialist so memorably played by Jeremy Renner in the extraordinary battlefield drama The Hurt Locker operates with the swagger of a hothead in a job that depends on cool. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Entertainment Weekly
ColeSmithey.com
Director Kathryn Bigelow's powerful Iraq war drama begins with the premise that "war is a drug," and proves that postulate with a thoughtful character study of Staff Sergeant William James, a bomb specialist played by Jeremy Renner. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at ColeSmithey.com
Combustible Celluloid
It's not too soon to declare The Hurt Locker a masterpiece from this gifted and underrated director. But it's the kind of popcorn masterpiece that people might actually like to see. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Combustible Celluloid
Film Jerk
Bigelow has successfully built a vision of war rarely seen on screen, a visceral nearly first person perspective of war where the rush of combat is a welcomed relief. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Film Jerk
Reeling Reviews
This is a must see film. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Reeling Reviews
Reeling Reviews
...this is without a doubt director Kathryn Bigelow's best film to date, one which should be Oscar nominated in every category it's eligible for. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Reeling Reviews
Brian Orndorf
Bigelow, best known as the director of "Point Break" and "Strange Days," approaches "Hurt Locker" like the ultimate suspense piece. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Brian Orndorf
AskMen.com
The very first explosion rattles the earth and the movie continues thereafter to rattle your mind. Inspired by screenwriter/journalist Mark Boal's experience with a special bomb disposal unit, The Hurt Locker is the Iraq War film we've been waiting for. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at AskMen.com
nickschager.com
The Hurt Locker is no different, save for the fact that it does so within the context of the Iraq War, a conflict that's largely been treated by Hollywood with ponderous moralizing. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at nickschager.com
Cinema Blend
He ignores protocols, refuses to use the relatively safe robots, preferring instead to suit up and walk straight into danger where, he disarms the bomb and gets the whole thing over with. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Cinema Blend
npr.org
That said, the adrenaline quotient is supplied only partly by the script. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at npr.org
MTV Reviews
The three lead actors are a convincing team; and Renner, last seen in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," is a quiet revelation (and, as of here, a star). ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at MTV Reviews
EmanuelLevy.com
I disagree with critics of "Hurt Locker," who charge that the film lacks politics or a broader social context. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at EmanuelLevy.com
Los Angeles Times
The film starts with a celebrated quote from the book "War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning" by Chris Hedges: "The rush of battle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Los Angeles Times
Slant Magazine
Yet rather than the bloodlust that such a concept might suggest, what's striking about William is his calm. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Slant Magazine
Rolling Stone
Here's the Iraq War movie for those who don't like Iraq War movies. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at Rolling Stone
ReelViews
The Hurt Locker may be the first movie set against the backdrop of the Iraq War with absolutely no political agenda. The film doesn't care if the invasion and occupation are right or wrong or moral or immoral. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at ReelViews
The Onion A.V. Club
For the first hour or more, The Hurt Locker boldly forsakes any conventional narrative hook beyond the ongoing tensions between these men and the terrifying grind of defusing bombs day after day. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at The Onion A.V. Club
USA TODAY
The Hurt Locker wisely probes the distinction between bravery and bravado and is sure to spur discussion on the subject. It is a hauntingly memorable film that is as visually riveting as it is emotionally intense. ...read the complete Hurt Locker movie review at USA TODAY
User Reviews
User Review Summary
based on (2) reviews
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by aravind08 on July 17, 2009 ,
I very like this movie, because here the action story and many scene contain the thrilling, most of people like this type of movie, nice say ...
by cicero0000 on July 16, 2009 Half Moon Bay, California
Not only a terrific war movie, but a must-see film that nails the Iraq War specifically. This story of a bomb squad is much more suspense than action, and shows us how this desert battle, with unseen enemies and danger at every moment, is different from ...
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