The Hurt Locker Essay

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"The Hurt Locker" Critical Analysis Paper
The Hurt Locker is an award-winning suspenseful film directed by Kathryn Bigelow. The film takes place in 2004, in Iraq. The Hurt Locker is about a United States Army bomb disposal squad, known as “Bravo Company.” The small, three member squad, responds and disarms bombs in order to protect citizens of Iraq. It’s an extremely dangerous job that the main character, Sergeant William James and the two supporting characters, Sergeant JT Sanborn and Specialist Owen Eldridge take head on. The Hurt Locker focuses on the squad’s struggles and victories, while in Iraq. The film tells a good story line and also uses film editing, music and cinematography to make an intense and fantastic film.
Sergeant William …show more content…

I do not believe a real life Army bomb disposal technician would be as gung-ho and reckless as Sergeant James is throughout the film. An example of Sergeant James’ recklessness is when he locates a car loaded with explosives. Once the area was evacuated and cleared, the bomb could have detonated and rendered safe; however, Sergeant James removes his bomb safety suit and rummages through the vehicle to locate and remove the detonation device. While he is rummaging through the vehicle he removes his radio headset and throws it out of the car when Sergeant Sanborn tells him that they can clear. This scene demonstrates Sergeant James’ recklessness for putting not only his own life in danger, but his two squad member’s lives in danger as well. In real life, this reckless act would not be tolerated in the United States Army or any team assigned to a bomb disposal unit and Sergeant James would not be able to continue acting in such a reckless …show more content…

This technique aids other elements in creating suspense because it makes the audience think that they should be seeing something when in reality there is nothing there. Overall, the editing in The Hurt Locker was effectively used along with audio and other elements to create the suspense present in the film. The music and sound plays a role in representing the intensity of the situation in many scenes. The music is instrumental, with an emphasis on long, low, eerie sounds to intensify

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