Desert Story-The Hurt Locker

Unless you've been in one, it's probably impossible to know what it's like to fight in a war. Acknowledged. Doesn't mean we shouldn't make the effort to try and understand. When I directed the Vietnam play "Tracers", the writer John Di Fusco told me that most people didn't understand that except for the kill or be killed part, you could actually have a good time fighting a war, or to be more accurate, when you're not fighting it. Young guys, most of whom have never been outside their own back yard, exotic lands, lots of beer, kick-ass dope, good buddies around you,adrenalin, sex. War was a stew of experiences, some good, some bad, some horrific. And all of it punctuated by long stretches of boredom. I never thought the war genre ever captured the experience of the grunt. I may never know for sure but I think "The Hurt Locker" comes close.

Jeremy Renner is a bomb disposal specialist in a war where the weapon of choice is the bomb. The film is structured around a series of bomb removals, a simple progression of incidents that require this unit to risk being blown into unrecognizable fragments, each one a personal time bomb for the members of the squad. In between comes the banality of conversation, therapy, drinking, buying movies from street vendors, until, ooops, time to go out and risk your ass again. And the adrenaline becomes addictive, both for the characters and the audience. Director Katheryn Bigelow gives us a cleaner, less streaky window into the lives of the soldiers who fight our wars and why that fight leaves nasty marks for the rest of their lives. Not a lot of story arc here but a truckload of insight for those of us who may never quite understand.

In a movie where performance is everything, lots of terrific actors deliver, not the least of which is Jeremy Renner. The list also includes Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty (both nominatable) and David Morse (remember Duval in Apocalypse Now? just as good) Writer Mark Boal and director Bigelow could both take home Gold Statues-no exageration. It's that good. This would be a Best Picture nominee even if the world was sane again and there were just five picks.