Saw the Hurt Locker, and I have a question.

[suejai]

I watched the Hurt Locker last night and I'm not entirely sure that I liked it. It was touted as being very realistic and I'm sure that in some aspects it was, however I do feel that in other, fundamental, ways it wasn't at all; in particular the behaviour of the main character, Sgt. James. I'm not a big fan of loose cannon-type characters, especially in a military setting, which to my mind, is founded on teamwork.

I was interested in learning what members of the military thought of this movie. Did you find the movie realistic, did you like the movie?

 

[Dan Murphy]

I did not see the movie, but the several times I heard interviews on TV or radio with actual military people involved in that, they said it was not realistic.

 

[Piecey]

We didn't watch it... DH won't watch movies like that. (He was a Marine..) They irritate him, so I don't even ask anymore.

Sad that the movie isn't accurate. Happens too often!

 

[sunnyday123]

All I know is Jeremy Renner is freakin hot.

That being said, I don't think any war type movie is ever realistic. Or any other movie.

 

[Tink888]

I saw the movie and liked it. I'm not in the military though. I read on wiki that there were a lot of people in the military who saw it and felt there were parts of the movie that were completely unrealistic and many who thought that, to date, it was the best movie about the war in Iraq.

IMHO from my perspective I agree that there were parts of the movie that didn't seem realistic. What I took from the movie was that it was more about the main character psychologically and how he had become addicted to the life & death risk of war and less about the details of the war itself (if that makes sense). I could be wayyyy off, but that's what I got from it.

 

[PatsGirl]

My son went through Air Force EOD school last year and they all saw the movie months before it became available to the public. I'm not quite sure how but they did because he called me the night they saw it and told me not to miss it.

Take this with a grain of salt because DS has not deployed but he felt that it was "Hollywood" real if that makes sense. He said that what they were doing with the bombs was pretty accurate and the sense of superiority amongst the teams is straight-on but that it was a movie so of course had certain elements to make it more watchable.

EOD is one of the most dangerous jobs in the military and all four branches train boys/men for the job. It requires top secret security clearance and high ASVAB scores, as well as a certain degree of physical strength. I personally think it also takes a hefty dose of testosterone and a character that embodies invincibility.

That being said, the "wash-out" rate exceeds 70%. School is about 10 months long. DS started with 30 in his unit and with 4 weeks left, they were down to 4 (just less than 90%)~ that is the same week he washed-out. His "failure" is bittersweet for me. He is now training in a cyberspace electronics position and will be leaving for Misawa, Japan in May for at least two years

 

[suejai]

I saw the movie and liked it. I'm not in the military though. I read on wiki that there were a lot of people in the military who saw it and felt there were parts of the movie that were completely unrealistic and many who thought that, to date, it was the best movie about the war in Iraq.

IMHO from my perspective I agree that there were parts of the movie that didn't seem realistic. What I took from the movie was that it was more about the main character psychologically and how he had become addicted to the life & death risk of war and less about the details of the war itself (if that makes sense). I could be wayyyy off, but that's what I got from it.

Yeah that's how I took it as well, and that is what I want to see when I go to a movie, because otherwise it's just a documentary KWIM. It's just that I didn't feel any involvement with the characters. I think they did a good job of depicting a little bit of how it is in Iraq, but I didn't care about any of them. And I really think Sgt's James and Sanborn would have been up on charges of some kind for the stunt they played in getting the other guy shot.

Anyway, it wasn't a terrible movie, but I didn't find it all that memorable IMO. Just wanted to see what other people thought about it.

 

[Golf4food]

I had it in our Netflix queue but after reading so many reviews it seems that almost every former or current military reviewer with any actual knowledge of the situation hated the movie and said it was a joke and disgrace to the memory of the service of the EOD teams. I took it out of our queue for that reason. I'll catch it on TV in a few years.

 

[surfergirl602]

its a stolen Hollywood vamped up movie. Not realistic at all and very dramatised in order to get $$$. We didn't like it.

 

[mickeyboat]

We watched it last night, and did not like it at all. I can't speak for the realism, but I didn't think it had an interesting story line at all.

 

[DawnCt1]

I had it in our Netflix queue but after reading so many reviews it seems that almost every former or current military reviewer with any actual knowledge of the situation hated the movie and said it was a joke and disgrace to the memory of the service of the EOD teams. I took it out of our queue for that reason. I'll catch it on TV in a few years.

DH said the same thing and refused to watch it.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

I have two brothers in the military who both liked it. For me, it was one of the best movies I've ever seen.

 

[chisnpeke]

I thought it was good. Not the best movie I've ever seen and I thought Inglourious Basterds was better for best picture. It definitely kept my attention and was tense throughout the entire thing but I'm not sure I would want to see it again.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

DH saw it, I did not. He was in the Gulf War and spent 8 years in the Army before having to get out on disability after the war. He said it was alright but not realistic, though he didn't expect it to be. I had wanted to rent it and still may but his recomendation wasn't glowing so I haven't yet.