THE BEST OF THE IRAQ WAR MOVIES (THE HURT LOCKER AND IN THE LOOP)

It’s raining lions and pitbulls outside right now. It looks like the apocalypse. I half expect my doorbell to ring and the Four Horsemen to be standing there all doom and gloom…nope…just the peppy UPS guy with a package. A package of death!

Anyways, it’s war time. Er..time to review films about the subject of the Iraq War. Unlike the war, these films are good, so you should watch them.

THE HURT LOCKER (09):

I smell an Oscar or two. This explosive thriller is one of the year’s best films and the best to date to tackle the topic of the Iraq War. Hurt Locker is riveting, grabbing you by the throat from the first scene and never letting go. The action is extremely realistic, which heightens the impact and level of intensity to a pants-pissing degree. And by that I mean, you might actually forget that you’re not there for a second and wet trou because this flick is as raw as red meat ripped straight from the belly of a beast and rubbed in our Vegan faces.

Director Kathryn Bigelow (Near Dark, Point Break, Strange Days) has a great sense of visual style and character, and never has this been clearer as with this film (I mean, Keanu as a surfer was genius, but also a no-brainer). Big-budget blockbusters with constant explosions cannot match the tense thrills that Hurt Locker serves up. I was genuinely concerned each time the squad was called into action. Seeing all the Iraqi people standing quietly and staring at him (or filming the squad) as he approached a potential IED was ten times more nerve-wracking than watching Jason Statham or Bruce Willis avoid a CGI bullet in slow-motion.

The film delves deep into human psychology. It deals with the primary characters in great depth, forcing the audience’s emotional investment but not in a heavy-handed or overly melodramatic manner. To his credit, virtual unknown Jeremy Renner nails his role and breathes life into a complex character with a brilliant, career-making performance. Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty are pitch-perfect as the other members of the elite bomb squad. They are far more than mere caricatures and we genuinely want to see them make it through the film, nervously biting our nails and sweating along with them as they encounter enemy snipers and suicide bombers.

The cinematographer creates a documentary style atmosphere, successfully putting the viewer on the edge of the scene so that you feel that you are there with the characters. While some familiar faces pop up here and there (Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, and David Morse) for a quick cameo, the primary cast consists of unknown actors (mentioned above). This was a wise and necessary decision, because our protagonist and his squad would not be so believable if their shoes were filled by the likes of Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise.

The Iraq War is the first to involve or be characterized by IEDs, so presenting us with a story about a bomb de-fuser is perfectly relevant. It successfully placed me in the shoes of an American soldier in Iraq and gave me insight into what the war is really like over there (and what contemporary warfare itself is like). This is probably the best film I’ve seen from ’09 thus far (not necessarily my favorite though), so my apologies if I’ve overdone it with the singing of its praises and whatnot. But, damnit, job well done Bigelow & Co. Hope you get the much deserved Best Director Honors at the Oscars, so your ex James Cameron doesn’t get all the glory. Highly recommended.

9.3/10


IN THE LOOP (09):

The brilliant lovechild of Dr. Strangelove and This is Spinal Tap, this caustic mockumentary is the smartest comedy of the year. Director Armondo Ianucci has created a frighteningly insightful film filled with magnificently mordant wit.

Every scene (even the deleted ones) is peppered with clever dialogue and so many sardonic one-liners that you’re likely to miss the next one while still in the throes of laughter from the previous creative obscenity or sassy comment.

Ostensibly, it is a scathing political satire offering the viewer a behind the scenes look at the events and people that essentially predetermined the Iraq War. Of course, this is a fictional account with fictional characters, but the media circus and information manipulation are all too real.

The film benefits from a game ensemble cast including James Galdolfini as an armchair general, Tom Hollander as the inept British Minister of International Development (who becomes quite the clown in the center of a media circus after declaring that war is unforeseeable) and Peter Capaldi, who steals the show as the Director of Communications and winner of the most inventive vulgarity-laden insult competition. The rest of the players are excellent in their roles as well, particularly Chris Addison as the Hollander’s bumbling assistant.

While it never mentions the Iraq War by name, it is pretty clear that this cynical farce was designed with that fiasco in mind. BBC watchers and lovers of humour from across the pond will love this foul-mouthed comedy, as will anyone who ever wanted to see the New York Friar’s club roast members of our government (Not that this literally happens).

In the Loop serves up a hot dish of political theater and exposes the dark side of diplomacy and bureaucracy. Every one has their own self-serving agenda, and they all put their own spin on things as a means to an end. It is a fast-paced, riotously funny comedy, but when you stop to think about its message and implications it is rather dark and scary. Highly recommended. Apparently, this is rather similar to the BBC show The Thick of It (which director Armando Ianucci writes for and which I have yet to see), so check that out if you fancied this farce.

8.6/10