http://catholicexchange.com/2009/07/11/120260/ Catholic News, Catholic Articles, Catholic Apologetics, Catholic Content, Catholic Information Fri, 10 Feb 2012 03:46:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.2 http://catholicexchange.com/2009/07/11/120260/comment-page-1/#comment-41155 anitacrane.com | In ‘Hurt Locker’ realism is the special effect Sat, 11 Jul 2009 20:26:31 +0000 http://catholicexchange.com/?p=120260#comment-41155 [...] Brian Geraghty’s character, Specialist Owen Eldridge, is supposed to be searching and weaker than the other two, but he surprises everyone.  Bigelow and Boal should be proud of the film’s intimate documentary feel. They shot it in Jordan, recreating war-torn Bagdad with some 10,000 photos and eyewitness accounts. They also hired refugee Iraqi actors to play Iraqis. Consequently, when James sweats bullets in his 100 lb. bomb suit, everyone – whether ally, enemy, or moviegoer – sweats bullets too.   On the other hand, certain characters lack depth. For example, most of Boal’s Iraqis seem menacing and no one shows gratitude for the bomb squad’s lifesaving work.   Boal explained, “In 2004, American troops, from the bomb squad specifically, did not have a lot of interaction with the Iraqi public. There were not a lot of translators to go around. Nobody I met in Camp Victory – no American I’ve ever met there spoke Arabic. …   “This isn’t about the diversity of opinions in Iraq,” he said. “That would be a great subject for a movie that someone should do. But The Hurt Locker is about the daily life of bomb squad soldiers.”    Furthermore, only one man, a Muslim, has faith.   Boal said, “One of the characters had that component. It was actually based on one of the soldiers I talked to there [in Iraq]. He was very religious and he kept an image of the Virgin Mary in his helmet. But two characters ended up on the cutting room floor, him, and me as an extra. [Laughs]”   As we wrapped up the interview, I asked both filmmakers why people should see The Hurt Locker.   Boal said, “I hope people enjoy it because it’s meant to be the kind of movie you enjoy. At the same time, it’s got some substance to it and maybe it can be thought-provoking and people will come away with some appreciation of what’s going on over there.”   Bigelow said, “Perfectly put. I would just add to that even though it’s set at a particular time, I hope it will remind people that there are still men in harm’s way. If the movie does that, it would fulfill one of our ambitions.”   The Hurt Locker certainly honors our heroic bomb disposal squads, but it doesn’t prove that the Iraq War is futile. Instead, as retired Master EOD Tech Jim O’Neil said, it proves that “sometimes the news isn’t the bomb. Sometimes the news is the silence.”   (The Hurt Locker is rated “R” for violence and profane language.)  Copyright 2009, Anita Crane. All rights reserved. Published by SperoForum.com, RenewAmerica.com, CatholicExchange.com. [...] [...] Brian Geraghty’s character, Specialist Owen Eldridge, is supposed to be searching and weaker than the other two, but he surprises everyone.  Bigelow and Boal should be proud of the film’s intimate documentary feel. They shot it in Jordan, recreating war-torn Bagdad with some 10,000 photos and eyewitness accounts. They also hired refugee Iraqi actors to play Iraqis. Consequently, when James sweats bullets in his 100 lb. bomb suit, everyone – whether ally, enemy, or moviegoer – sweats bullets too.   On the other hand, certain characters lack depth. For example, most of Boal’s Iraqis seem menacing and no one shows gratitude for the bomb squad’s lifesaving work.   Boal explained, “In 2004, American troops, from the bomb squad specifically, did not have a lot of interaction with the Iraqi public. There were not a lot of translators to go around. Nobody I met in Camp Victory – no American I’ve ever met there spoke Arabic. …   “This isn’t about the diversity of opinions in Iraq,” he said. “That would be a great subject for a movie that someone should do. But The Hurt Locker is about the daily life of bomb squad soldiers.”    Furthermore, only one man, a Muslim, has faith.   Boal said, “One of the characters had that component. It was actually based on one of the soldiers I talked to there [in Iraq]. He was very religious and he kept an image of the Virgin Mary in his helmet. But two characters ended up on the cutting room floor, him, and me as an extra. [Laughs]”   As we wrapped up the interview, I asked both filmmakers why people should see The Hurt Locker.   Boal said, “I hope people enjoy it because it’s meant to be the kind of movie you enjoy. At the same time, it’s got some substance to it and maybe it can be thought-provoking and people will come away with some appreciation of what’s going on over there.”   Bigelow said, “Perfectly put. I would just add to that even though it’s set at a particular time, I hope it will remind people that there are still men in harm’s way. If the movie does that, it would fulfill one of our ambitions.”   The Hurt Locker certainly honors our heroic bomb disposal squads, but it doesn’t prove that the Iraq War is futile. Instead, as retired Master EOD Tech Jim O’Neil said, it proves that “sometimes the news isn’t the bomb. Sometimes the news is the silence.”   (The Hurt Locker is rated “R” for violence and profane language.)  Copyright 2009, Anita Crane. All rights reserved. Published by SperoForum.com, RenewAmerica.com, CatholicExchange.com. [...]

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