Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

If there is one event in human history which can draw fear and tears it is the events of 9/11, which witnessed the death of over 3000 people and the destruction of a sense of safety in western civilisation. With that event came an age of war and terror that is associated with the man who orchestrated the terrible events of September 11, 2001. Given that the age of terror in which we live began on this date it seems appropriate that Zero Dark Thirty begins our tale for the manhunt of Osama Bin Laden at this point. Director Kathryn Bigelow (Point Break, The Hurt Locker) takes us back to this day with a simple yet hauntingly effective montage of real-life phone calls from the twin towers from people desperately yet fruitlessly calling for help. Bigelow begins the film in this way perhaps to set the tone for the rest of the movie, which is a sobering and mind-boggling dramatization of the 10 year effort to capture Bin Laden.

When we think back to the day that our TV’s were barraged with the news that Bin Laden was captured we remember the images of smiling faces celebrating his death and we especially remember the moment that Barack Obama was broadcast across the world to confirm this death. On every newspaper we read headline after headline and feature after feature declaring one thing: that Obama had captured Bin Laden. Zero Dark Thirty, however, offers us the true story which is of special CIA operative Maya (Jessica Chastain) and her on-going and arduous battle to overcome the many obstacles in the way of such an operation. Given that this manhunt lasted for 10 years and that many attacks and terrorist operations happened in between this period it would be easy for ZDT to be bogged down by the facts and seem more like a documentary than a gripping yet faithful-to-the-events film. Bigelow and the writer behind this film, Mark Boal, manage to avoid this trap however and offer a gripping narrative which is separated by specific events that not only show the personal efforts of Maya, but also emphasise the network of people that helped bring down Bin Laden.

In this scene we see Chastain's determination and no-nonsense attitude come to the forefront in her bid to convince  her superiors that she has finally uncovered Bin Laden's location.

The film is a searing and at points uncomfortable biopic of the effort that went into gathering information and building up a profile of key people within al-Qaeda. Bigelow does not shy away from offering the audience the hard truth and this is intensely evident when at the beginning of ZDT we witness the torture of an al-Qaeda member who may or may not have vital information of terrorist activity. This makes for rather uncomfortable viewing and the fact that it was done in the effort of gaining information is a hard fact to bear, reminding the viewer that Bin Laden was not merely a man but rather an institution of fear and terror from which many drew inspiration, and whom many died to protect. The fact that torture was an oft-used instrument in gaining the necessary information speaks volumes of the personal character of Maya, who at the beginning of the film seems too vulnerable and feminine to be able to withstand such acts. But as the film progresses this vulnerability turns to hardness and her humanity and character all become fixed on one goal – to capture Bin Laden at any cost.

Chastain’s performance of this character is one deserving of the Oscar-nomination she received not only for the fact that Chastain could depict a person who so dramatically changes to assimilate with the pressures and necessities of capturing such a figure, but because she so effortlessly captures a feeling which many felt when news reached that Bin Laden had been killed. That feeling of ‘What now?’ which is so clearly etched upon Chastain’s face as the film comes to a close is perfect and transcendent of the global feeling. The many questions that we face seem to be embodied by Chastain’s character, a character (who is based upon a real CIA operative known only as ‘Jen’ in “No Easy Day”, a book written by one of the Navy SEAL members involved in the Bin Laden operation) whose whole life revolved around Bin Laden.

Here Chris Pratt and Joel Edgerton play two of the SEAL team members preparing for the operation. There roles are brief but pivotal in this History-thriller. 

The actual scene which depicts the capture of Bin Laden comes at the end of the nearly 3-hour film and is an intense 25-minute sequence (very close to the actual time it took for the Navy SEAL team to carry out their mission) which left me on the edge of my seat. Shot in the cover of darkness it depicts the accuracy and efficiency of the Navy SEAL team and takes us through those final moments which saw the death of those closest to Bin Laden and depicted the purportedly accurate compound in which Bin Laden spent the final months of his life. This scenes sense of adrenaline and camaraderie are fabulously depicted by the actors depicting the Navy SEAL team, most notably Joel Edgerton and Chris Pratt, whose sense of triumph is almost contagious as the film draws to a close. The intensity of this scene is aided by its claustrophobic setting and the darkness under which these men were operating, which is as true a reflection of the real events as the audience will ever get.

The intensity of this film is a product not only of the main and ensemble cast (Mark Strong, James Gandolfini, Mark Duplass and Jason Clarke to name but a few), whose performances depict rather wonderfully the sense of urgency and desperation in capturing this terrorist figure, but also of our own feelings as the film progresses. As we witness torture and bribing and the many other tactics that were involved in Bin Laden’s capture our own feelings of urgency and wonderment become a part of this films intensity. This film is a searing and intense experience because for so many it draws to conclusion the decade-long hunt to end terrorism and restore hope into all of those, young and old, caught up in its effects.

To cut a long story short…
Would I recommend this film? I would. The sense of closure it offers is hugely cathartic despite that ‘What now?’ question that is left hanging at the end of this film. 
A film ramblers star rating?

That's it for now folks...