Reviews

Film Review: Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

One movie I had definitely been looking forward to seeing this week was Zero Dark Thirty, a film directed by Kathryn Bigelow, who also directed The Hurt Locker. Fans of Bigelow’s work are now asking themselves the same question: Zero Dark Thirty or The Hurt Locker? Well, to be perfectly honest it’s The Hurt Locker for me, but of course Zero Dark Thirty isn’t a bad film. In fact, it’s a thrill for anyone interested in biopics. I love biopics; my all-time favourites are Ed Wood and Raging Bull. However, this one, I didn’t love. Let’s explore why.

The Good:

Jessica Chastain as Agent Maya. Jessica Chastain was excellent in this film and the rest of the cast were all equally as good. Whenever Chastain was angry or frustrated, the audience really felt it and I think that she should win Best Actress in the Oscars this Saturday.

The plot. The plot was very interesting and gives the true insight into what happened during the ten year search for Bin Laden. The different threats Maya survives, as well as her great determination to capture Osama make the film so much more interesting.

The fact that they were allowed to make this film. There was much speculation as to how Osama Bin Laden really died or if he even existed. Now this film gets it straight and tells us what happened, I’m sure putting many people’s mind at rest. They also show the true terror of a terrorist attack and how dangerous a job a CIA agent’s really is.

The thrilling final act. This was the best part of the film. It was the part where the final assault on Bin Laden took place and it was this which reminded me very much of the Hurt Locker. The way it was shot and the shifts from normal cameras to night vision goggles really stood out and made it very realistic.

The Bad:

The Pacing. The pacing in this movie is pretty off. There are certain moments which I think were not as important as they were made out to be. If the movie had been cut by around thirty minutes, I would say that it would have engaged its audience more and been an even bigger hit. But unfortunately, it dragged like the third act of Skyfall.

Final Verdict: 9/10 Awesome. I think this movie was very good and well made, being tailored towards people who want the truth. However, I think if it had been presented in a documentary style rather than a dramatization, it would have worked better. That way we wouldn’t have boring telephone calls that just shout exposition but interviews with people involved, which would have involved me more. It was awesome but I don’t expect it’s going to be one of the movies I personally pick for my DVD collection. Probably just not my type of film.