Detroit

First Hit:  Extremely powerful film about racial injustice in the city of Detroit in 1967.

Kathryn Bigelow has a history of taking on difficult powerful subjects and bringing them to life. She is a master director. Her filmography continues to get stronger and stronger. From her Blue Steel and Point Break days to The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty and now, Detroit.

I feel fortunate that, once again, in the matter of a few short weeks I’ve been able to see films where the focus is the story and not particular characters. And what makes this film even better is that although it takes place in 1967 it reflects the targeting of blacks today by law enforcement.

To do this Bigelow seamlessly incorporates actual 1967 film footage and stills into her vision of this story. We follow several black characters who end up being innocently targeted by law enforcement for being at a particular place, at a particular time, and because of the color of their skin.

The script was developed from court transcripts and proceedings, interviews of some survivors and an honest interpretation by the writer. The focus is the murder of three black men and the beatings of seven other black men and two white women by the Detroit Police Department and tacitly condoned by US National Guard. This incident took place at the Algiers Motel, in Detroit during the 12th Street Riots. They victims had gone to the hotel to hide out and stay off the streets because there was a curfew and people couldn’t get home.

One of the guests at the motel shoots a toy pistol, which is mistaken by the police and National Guard as sniper fire. In rushing the motel’s building the police drag these motel guests down to the bottom floor and begin interrogating them to discover where the gun was and who shot the gun. Despite killing the person who shot the never found toy gun, the police used extreme tactics to scare the other guests. They systematically pulled people into rooms threatening to shoot them if they didn't have answers to their questions. They also mercilessly beat each person.

In doing so, they killed another two. For hours they continued to beat each of the suspects to get them to talk. Finally, the police decided they need to leave. To cover their tracks, they threaten each of the remaining suspects, that if they were ever to speak of this event again, they will die.

Eventually, this event and the officers are brought to trial and the all-white jury exonerates the three guilty police officers. Sound familiar?

John Boyega (as Dismukes) is amazing as the black private security officer that attempts to be the peacemaker and mediator between the cops and guests. Boyega is great at hinting, what appears to be, regret that he didn’t do more to help his fellow brothers. Will Poulter (as Officer Krauss) did a wonderful job being everyone’s nightmare. It was not an enviable role but as the racist officer he made the hate real. Algee Smith and Jacob Latimore (as friends and bandmates Larry and Fred respectively) were fantastic as their dreams were taken from them that night. Hannah Murray and Kaitlyn Dever (as Julie and Karen respectively were the beaten white women) were wonderful. They really made their roles standout with honesty. Anthony Mackie as Greene the Vietnam vet who got caught up in the motel was perfect. Mark Boal wrote a fantastic Oscar worthy script. Bigelow, as I previously said, is clearly one of the strongest directors of our time. Her clarity of vision and storytelling is amazing.

Overall:  I recall reading and seeing television news stories about these events when they happened, but only until I saw this film, did I understand the horror.

Zero Dark Thirty

First Hit:  An impactful, single focus, no nonsense story about how Osama bin Laden was killed.

This film is about one subject and one subject only – the finding and killing of Osama bin Laden (OBL).

There are no real subplots in this film which meant that we follow one storyline from beginning to end. To do this, the writing, characters and acting have to be clear, focused and crisp. This film does all this in spades.

We follow Maya (played by Jessica Chastain) from when she arrives in Afghanistan, about 10 years of interviewing, analyzing, and searching until she identifies and verifies, to the US Government, that OBL as dead. The in office Presidents are heard on occasion in the background but only as place markers in time and to spout policy and precedents.

We join her as she gets her first indoctrination into the torturing of prisoners to get information. Then we follow her as she digs up small leads and puts pieces of the puzzle together and with her unqualified belief, she finds OBL’s hiding place. There have been questions about the showing of torture and even more questions about if the US Government tortures people.

Nothing I saw on film is beyond the ability of our government. I know our government likes to think we treat prisoners fairly, but frankly I don’t believe it. Although I never saw waterboarding, I’ve seen some pretty terrible treatment of the enemy while in Vietnam and I’m sure it is worse today.

Chastain is sublime in her role. There is nothing else in her mind except finding Osama bin Laden. Although her face is extraordinarily beautiful she doesn’t draw attention to her beauty. All the audience focuses on is her driven single-mindedness and the story. Jason Clarke plays Dan her boss when she first gets this job, and he is outstanding in intensity and drive. Mark Boal wrote a great screenplay. Kathryn Bigelow’s direction was amazing and easily on par with her Oscar direction of “The Hurt Locker”.

Overall: Amazingly detailed film with a single focus.

The Hurt Locker

First Hit: Wow! This film is extremely well directed and acted and effectively brings a powerful reflection of war to life on the big screen.

Having spent 19 months in the Vietnam War I have a little experience with what war is like. Each war is unique and in their own venue is full of its own distinct particular problems.

Hurt Locker is about Iraq and a specialized group of men, the elite Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit. This film focuses on one team of these specialized group of men whose job is to clear road mines, car bombs and other explosive traps and situations. Doing their job helps to protect the civilian and US soldier population in Baghdad from surprise bombings.

Staff Sergeant William James (played by Jeremy Renner) joins two others as their leader after the previous team leader lost his life attempting to defuse a roadside bomb. James is brash, brazen and appears to have little regard to the protocol of the job.

One of the things that keeps this film’s suspense right in the for front is that we’re always aware of how many days this unit has remaining in their current tour of duty. They are very close to going home and starting with day 38, tension begins to arrive with each new and increasingly dangerous mission.

While the team is cognizant of how close they are to leaving Iraq, James' level of disregard for the bombs he is diffusing enhances this tension.

However, as this film moves along, you begin to see James' driven madness to diffuse every bomb as a genuine obsessed respect and addiction for his job because he prides himself in his ability to figure out how to beat the bombers' intentions and bomb making skills.

Kathryn Bigelow directs this film superbly. From the moment the celluloid hits the white screen, you drop into this film. There is no escaping it and most of the time it feels as though you are watching a polished documentary. It feels real. Mark Boal was the writer and must be given kudos for creating a script that reflects so many different aspects and feelings about war through the three main characters. Jeremy Renner as James, Anthony Mackie as Sanborn and Brian Geraghty as Eldridge are outstanding as soldiers’ representing different realistic feelings soldiers can find themselves embodying.

Overall: I cannot say enough about this film in the way it left everyone in the theater, slightly stunned, educated, and more aware about the real casualties of war.