Student Film Reviews

Film reviews from theaters, couches, and film festivals

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1. Jeremy Leibowitz 03.08.10 / 9pm

   I have not seen this movie, but after reading this review I definitely would like to see it. War is always a very sensitive and intense subject and this movie seems like it puts you right in the heart of the Iraq war. Especially because it is from the perspective of the soldier, I would imagine this movie would really hit you in the heart. I am a nineteen-year-old boy and so it would be very easy for me to relate to these soldiers, since they a lot of them are around my age. Also, it sounds like the direction is astounding, so you would really be able to get a good feel for what is going on in the war.
2. Nicolette Caruso 03.09.10 / 11am

   This film depicts the war through great detailed sequences. It depicts the complexity of war through vivid images and offers the audience a more personal perspective on the reality of war. There is a powerful energy that exceeds from this film creating a stunningly realistic appearence. While watching this movie I was on the edge of my seat. I felt like I was a part of the action, feeling a sense of anxiety along with the men in the movie.
3. Corina Calderon 03.11.10 / 8pm

   I have not seen The Hurt Locker yet, but I am definitely planning to after hearing such praise and it winning best picture at the Academy Awards. I did however see a clip of the movie it was a scene where the main character cannot detonate the bomb strapped to a man. The scene was intense and I was worried and horrified from just that one minute clip. I can only imagine how suspenseful the whole movie is. It really opens people’s eyes to what many soldiers are experiencing, which is terrifying but helps us try to understand what they are going through.
4. Nancy Cole 03.19.10 / 4pm

   I really enjoyed the movie The Hurt Locker I thought it was a very in your face and honest depiction of the war in Iraq. The film follows the story of the men in the bomb control unit, I feel like this is a story that hasn’t really been told yet in the war movie genre. Having such different characters all working together gave the film depth and excitement. I think that this was a good review of the film and I like how she talked about the camera angles. The way the movie was filmed was very straight forward. There weren’t any unnecessary filler scenes or angles. It really felt like you were there in the desert with the characters. You could feel the intensity and the stress of what was happening. The men and women at war are real life heroes.
5. Hunter Matos 05.01.10 / 5pm

   Before I rented this film I had heard mixed reviews from various military personal. Most of their complaint had to do with realism. With that in mind i think this movie was that bad. I guess what helped is that I didn’t go into it expecting an accurate depiction of life as an EOD tech. There were definitely scenes that seemed unbelievable. The one that stands out the most was the ‘car on fire’ scene. And there were others that left you asking ‘is this really how things are done?’ Specifically… why disarm vs. blow an IED up in place? And there’s the minute specifics which nobody outside the military, myself included, would ever notice. Overall I found it entertaining, but I dont really think it deserved an Oscar (however I would prefer this won as apposed to avatar).
6. Sean Farrell 05.06.10 / 3pm

   i found this to be a very interesting film in which i witnessed two completely different reactions. I went and saw this film with my girlfriend(who granted said she did not want to see a “heavy” movie) and when the film ended I turned to her to tell her how much I liked it when she proceeded to tell me how bad the film was. but I think that the people who do not like this movie do not like the movie is because coming into the film they are expecting a war movie, but in fact this movie is more about personal emotions and how they affect everyone. i thought that it was a very good capture of the emotional stress that people that are in the army have to go through everyday. also, how those emotions build upon each other resulting in not being able to deal with “normal” everyday life.
7. Paul Montoya 06.27.10 / 9pm

   The “Hurt Locker” introduces the world of the life of a veteran war-junkie and the drug-like addiction spawned from the adrenaline produced in war. For many, and preceeding the release of this film, this idea was incomprehensible; however Katheryn Bigelow uses a wide array of cinematic techniques in which to engulf the audience in order to get them inside the lives and minds of the characters. Most military tours during the height of the Iraq war lasted over 18 months; that is a half of a year longer than Ben Williams stated in his review. And during this time these men matured bonds of brotherhood and comeraderie, another theme prevalent in this film, that provoked the need to be eachother’s protectors. This film was well deserving of the praise it has revieved as it gave society a glimspe into this modern sub-culture deemed War-Junkie.
8. Katherine Miranda 09.27.10 / 12pm

   Ben, your review left much to be desired. While I usually appreciate brevity when it comes to summary, I was eager to hear more about the emotional journey each of the characters undergo and Bigelow’s approach to characterization. Your extremely objective view leaves the film sounding like every other war movie out there.

   Kathryn Bigelow’s talent is best demonstrated by her appreciation for authenticity and story-telling. You can tell that a patient director is behind this film waiting for the most opportune moments to strike both a physical and emotional breakdown. And while she guides her film with accuracy, she also reminds herself that there is a story in every war – people are not just dying, their stories are. The suspense of war life was captured by a meticulous artist, one who was patient in her directorial approach and confident in her story; She let the story tell itself, she just gave it a stage. The characterization and relationships in the film is convincing and the challenges of war life and camaraderie is prevalent throughout. Bigelow’s depiction is ambitious but not cocky of its raw nature. It moves like a documentary, keeping its grip on the viewer until the very last scene.
9. Erik Malmberg 10.17.10 / 11pm

   This review was very interesting yet confusing. I believe that the review could have been a bit longer as I did not quite get the entire concept of the movie. As this movie was rewarded with great awards in 2009, I feel like the reviewer fails to display its full potential.
   The review was left with much to desire and people often appreciate short summaries of movies that are complex, this review lacked a lot of crucial information that the movie truly desires. By judging from this review, the movie does not come out as good as it really is. With all your objective and lack of subjective opinions it makes the movie look like every other war movie. I believe you focus more on the details and make the review stand out from other reviews regarding the same aspect of movies.
10. Shelby Harvey 10.25.10 / 12pm

    I feel like this film definitely deserved all of the awards that it received, including the Best Picture of 2009. I agree that the film really makes you feel the emotions and intensity that the soldiers feel in their life or death situations. After watching The Hurt Locker, I could not stop thinking about he scene at the end of the film when the main character finally returns to home and after all of the painful things that he had been through in the war, he is standing in the grocery store attempting to make a decision between an endless amount of types of cereal. The camera does a long shot of him in the aisle, displaying all of the different choices, and then cuts to his face where he looks overwhelmed and confused. I feel like this particular scene really brings the whole movie together and is crucial in understanding his choise to go back to the war
11. Nick Zelinka 10.16.20 / 9pm

    I have personally seen this movie and thought it was amazing. I wanted to see what another review would look like about it and yours delivers fully. After reading your review and discussion of The Hurt locker i want to suddenly watch it again. You did a great job of bringing out the grueling details of the film without giving away too much but making it leave the reader wanting more. This review is not extremely hard to break down either and this makes it seem. more approaching. You made it easy to follow and starts with a strong lead that grabs the readers attention.
12. Lauren Hill 03.03.21 / 6pm

    My almost immediate reaction while watching and after watching “The Hurt Locker” was just as you said, I felt as if I were one of the soldiers on this mission because of the way it was shot and the overall storyline. This film seemed to have a constant flow of stressful situations, never giving the audience much of a break from being on the edge of their seats. This constant stress seemed purposeful in order to emulate the feeling of constant stress, being on edge, and the adrenaline that the soldiers themselves would have been feeling in this war scenario.
13. Tyler Haughney 03.05.21 / 8pm

    hey ben how are you doing? I recently had to watch the movie the hurt locker for my film study class and thought about this movie in that same exact way. I was also a very nervous why watching the film because it always gave them a unsafe or an unfriendly area to where they had to defuse the bomb. I also liked what you mentioned “The rush of battle is often potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug.” because this describes Staff Seargant William James perfectly and also when you said he doesn’t listen to instructions well.
    Thank you ben for your review!
14. jon apple 03.05.21 / 8pm

    gg
15. Kevin Rodriguez 03.05.21 / 10pm

    I could not agree more with Ben Williams’ review of The Hurt Locker. Most people would know Jeremy Remer as Hawkeye in the Marvel cinematic universe. However his early work especially in this film is anything an ordinarily. As William states the shot were sharp and made a more personal experience. The film is also dark as the characters go psychiatric evaluations after the lost of their Staff Sergeant. This make sense especially towards the end of movie were Staff Sergeant James has PTSD not from he war but actually living a normal life as civilian rather than solider cause him to enlist for another tour. This gives an ending conclusion to the audience that his state or mind is different than his brother in arms.
16. Jack Bush 06.05.21 / 1am

    The quote you mentioned about how “The rush of battle is often potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug” (Chris Hedges), really contextualized and clarified Sergeant James’ character for me. Before reading this, I had really only believed that James was just a reckless, possibly depressed soldier, but this quote really brings his character together for me, and I think of the scenes where he is blasting metal in his room and taking jokes too far with Beckham and Sergeant Sanborn. It also gave me a perfect word to describe the sharp design you mentioned, as well as the narrative and acting: adrenal. The way that the entire movie feels so crazy and somewhat panicked at times can be well attributed to these factors bringing everything full circle for me.
17. Matthew Mitchell 07.16.22 / 12pm

    After watching The Hurt Locker, I was very satisfied with the outcome of the film. The film started off with a very unfortunate scene where the United States military loses their original bomb defuser that is currently located in the middle east. They end up receiving a new bomb defuser who comes off as a know-it and does everything on his own. This ends up leading to conflicts within the team and results in some quarreling. After trust building and a while of getting used to each other, they finally all come together and figure things out.

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