tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post74580826668652677..comments2023-07-01T05:05:31.938-04:00Comments on Films Worth Watching: Zero Dark Thirty (2012) - Directed by Kathryn BigelowJonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10656287096270976604noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-77749709437526411962013-01-28T19:58:23.001-05:002013-01-28T19:58:23.001-05:00Thanks Sam I agree with all of your thoughts and r...Thanks Sam I agree with all of your thoughts and recall your initial reaction thus. Right now it very well be my favorite film of 2012.Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10656287096270976604noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-70593851836091196682013-01-27T23:02:38.569-05:002013-01-27T23:02:38.569-05:00Katherine Bigelow’s extraordinary ZERO DARK THIRTY...Katherine Bigelow’s extraordinary ZERO DARK THIRTY, a thriller/detective story hybrid that chronicles the real life revenge enacted against Islamic terror master Osama bin Laden can also be defined as a non-partisan intelligence procederal with some serious moral implications. The latter concern, documented with uncompromising and searing authenticity over the first 20 minutes or so of the film chronicles the torture of “Ammar” by American CIA and security operatives, one of whom is “Maya” played with ferocious intensity by Jessica Chastain in one of the year’s greatest performances. Bigelow’s refusal to take sides has attracted the outcry of some politicians, but there is nothing here that leaves one believing that anything has been fabricated or enhanced. And it’s clear this kind of intense interrogation led to the wipe-out of the world’s most wanted figure in a brilliant green-tinted end piece in the Pakistani bunker the world is now familiar with. The film opens with a dark screen, with all the audio panic of 9-11, and contains a speculative period, where lead-in events bring the SEAL teams and the CIA closer to their target. Brilliant script by Mark Boal, and videography by Grieg Fraser. You do a marvelous job by incorporating those literary passages Jon, and your prose really captures the essence of this visceral masterpiece.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-7543028407738205122013-01-26T08:16:57.756-05:002013-01-26T08:16:57.756-05:00Thanks Dan. You're right it's great the wh...Thanks Dan. You're right it's great the whole way, from beginning to end. Never lets up.Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10656287096270976604noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-80125466425651936592013-01-26T01:02:50.112-05:002013-01-26T01:02:50.112-05:00Good review Jon. Just one of those movies that get...Good review Jon. Just one of those movies that gets you from start-to-finish, and never stops being tense, even up until the last shot. And I mean that: THE VERY LAST SHOT.Dan O.http://www.dtmmr.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-70068561802842794842013-01-25T13:50:51.283-05:002013-01-25T13:50:51.283-05:00Thanks Hokahey I appreciate the support. Thanks Hokahey I appreciate the support. Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10656287096270976604noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-50684434342591995722013-01-25T11:29:59.940-05:002013-01-25T11:29:59.940-05:00Very well written, Jon, and I like the connections...Very well written, Jon, and I like the connections you suggest to <i>Moby Dick</i> and <i>The Searchers</i>. Yes, this is a very well-constructed film, and I agree it is not tied down to a specific agenda.Richard Bellamyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12397053921647421425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-6217868708219795362013-01-24T12:59:34.980-05:002013-01-24T12:59:34.980-05:00Hey thanks Maurizio...sounds like you and I are on...Hey thanks Maurizio...sounds like you and I are on the same page on this one. Yes you're right, ZDT was in the works prior to Osama being killed, and then was reworked a bit so I understand. I do like Zodiac to a degree, but this one is much better IMO. I agree on that the torture debate is sort of a dead end to begin with, however part of me is interested in the genesis of the inclusion of it and the portrayal and how that came about. It does remarkably avoid proclaiming absolutes about the subject. In fact the film as a whole avoids absolutes to a degree, wanting each person to form an opinion on the entire manhunt as a whole.Jonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10656287096270976604noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5703076346434344743.post-14152839416492696562013-01-24T08:28:43.876-05:002013-01-24T08:28:43.876-05:00You pretty much echo my own feelings and viewpoint...You pretty much echo my own feelings and viewpoint on ZDT Jon. It certainly does remind one of Moby Dick and also Fincher's Zodiac. Greysmith and Maya are very similar in that obsessive need to know/win mentality that allows them to sacrifice everything else in their respective lives. The passage of time and how it's portrayed in both movies is a fundamental key in understanding the stakes faced. <br /><br />I read that ZDT was actually being made before Osama was even caught. This would of aligned the films together even more thematically. Either way I can think of only one film this year that I would rate equally to Bigelow's overall. <br /><br />And the whole torture debate/debacle is best left unspoken IMO, since most of those complaints and discussions basically involve the personal baggage of whoever is commenting. The film clearly wants you to form your own opinion on water boarding/torture and makes a point on not giving absolutes.....Maurizio Roca Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com