Zero Dark Thirty

Best of the Year

I fail to see how anyone who has seen ZDT could ever come away thinking that Bigelow condones torture. To not incl. those scenes in a film that seeks to be truthful abt that episode in our history would be a whitewash & a lie. As Ms. Bigelow herself has said, "depiction is not endorsement". These are prob. the ppl who went in thinking it was going to be a rousing recruitment ad of a film instead of a thoughtful procedural. The baffling bandwagon of hindsighted public outry jumping, by those that admit they have not seen the film, prob. cost Bigelow an Oscar nod & the film Best Picture. ZDT is an anti-war film just as surely as Bigelow's last, The Hurt Locker. No one said that film was "pro-land mines" despite its depiction of their use.

Truly Disappointed

First, the torture scenes were a bit much but even bigger is the problem that it appears to be acceptable and even condoned and almost necessary in this movie. Could have fooled me but it looks like the movie is promoting this saying we had no other choice. Secondly, there was 90% of the script focusing on the CIA female agent who appears to be the only one who knows anything. Only 10% on the team that actually captured him and nothing about them or their lives prior to the last 10 min of the movie where Bin Laden is killed. Third, I do not see someone in the CIA talking with the head of the CIA in the manner the main character did, especially someone female and fairly new to the Agency and any real action. Many errors in the movie.

Torture?

I was struck by the Post' review which talked about the opening scene where a a terrorist was being "mercilessly tortured." So I watched the movie with some trepidation, but never saw any such merciless "torture." More most armchair quarterbacks these days, "torture" is running out of chips and dip before halftime. I don't consider a standard training procedure for US military to be "torture." I enjoyed the movie, which seemed more a police procedural than action movie, thought the end showing the SEAL assault was spell binding.

Suspenseful even thought you know what happens

The beginning torture scenes are somewhat disconcerting, but the movie's pace increases with every minute. The compound raid scenes were particularly realistic. The ending was soft. I would have preferred it to show and jubilant American on May 2, 2011. However, it shows that Maya's tireless effort would never truly be appreciated.

Zero Dark Thirty

Zero Dark Thirty does not need gratuitous sex, violence or inspirational speeches to move character and plot along. Nor does it need music to blunt the effects of bad acting or to foreshadow action or pick up the pace of the story for a drowsy audience. From the opening torture sequence to the killing of Ben Laden, the tension is intense because the mission is upfront, and it is not diluted with a lot of back story about the characters' motivation. The motivation is obvious--get Osama Ben Laden. If the movie sends a message to viewers it is that very nice, dedicated people do very nasty things in response to very nasty situations--so what else is new. Another item for audiences is that it's a dangerous world out there

Fact Check on Buffalo

Leon Panetta was Director of the CIA from: February 13, 2009 – June 30, 2011 I enjoyed the movie, by the way.

Pro WOMAN

Too much talk about the torture. There should be more talk about the bad a*s women (3 of them at least) who kicked a*s and smoked everyone involved. Maya is relentless. Then there is Jess. And Debbie the young analyst who pieces together the facts about the brothers. All of these women are strong, smart and kick a*s. They are not afraid. That's what I got from this very good movie.

Fact check

Um, Leon Panetta is not the Director of the CIA, he is Secretary of Defence.

PC or not PC

PC intrudes on this film in the 'torture' scenes in its first half. For me it was boring. It couldn't compete with violent films we have everywhere, in entertainment value, and conversely it could not stir any repugnance for the 'torture' shown in any political evaluation. In fact, the 'torture' seemed not to even belong in the film. Who cared that mass murderers were hurting? Not me. Were fingers missing? No. Teeth? No. Were people socked randomly in the face? Tied up to electric cords? Treated with hate even? No, no and no. This was a film of soldiers doing a job. Perhaps it was the very self-consciousness of the 'torture' which sucked the life out it and conversely flattened any moral conclusions. The rest of it was great.