Hello Friends,
Zero Dark Thirty is yet another film I was against seeing, upon the premise that I lived through 9/11, and I didn’t want to relive the experience on the big screen. I was angry that the film was being made, feeling like somehow we were all being exploited, and I certainly wasn’t going to support it. (Can you tell I’m opinionated about films?) And yet, when it was nominated for Best Picture, I couldn’t keep myself away; it was like a train wreck you have to watch.
Here’s my author’s note. If you can’t imagine experiencing anything that has to do with September 11th ever again, I wouldn’t see this film. The first five minutes, in particular, were challenging.
Actually, all of Zero Dark Thirty was challenging.
Having grown up in D.C. and remembering the plane crashing into the Pentagon, 30 feet from where my best friend’s father worked, and now living in New York City, I must say that I felt disturbed while watching Zero Dark Thirty. When I left the theater I was filled with emotion. Some of that emotion was good; some of that emotion was bad. I also had a lot of questions. Luckily, I realized later, one of the great things about art is its ability to raise questions. So no matter how you feel about the subject matter, I don’t think anyone could argue about the quality of the film. And if you like seeing quality films, you should go.
Zero Dark Thirty is a dramatization about the trials and tribulations that led up to the detection and death (caused by American soldiers) of Osama bin Laden. We follow the story of Maya, played by Jessica Chastain, a young intelligence analyst working for the CIA. We watch her and her team of agent’s work from 2003 to 2011, completely focused on one thing, intelligence that relates to al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, intelligence that will give them Osama bin Laden, preferably in a body bag. We see the torture of prisoners, we see the bombing of the US Embassy, and we see brave soldiers, lives being lost, and people being found. Chastain, who won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her work on Zero Dark Thirty, is the ultimate star of this film. I found myself rooting for her, and praying for her. I was frustrated with her, and completely forgot that I already knew how the film was going to end. I wanted her to get what she wanted, and that had nothing to do with my politics-she’s just that good. I dare anyone to go see that movie and leave not completely on her side. Chastain was utterly brilliant.
The rest of the cast was pretty wonderful, too. It was strange seeing Jennifer Ehle, my favorite Elizabeth Bennett of all time, wearing fatigues and standing in an army base, but I loved her anyway. Jason Clarke plays a fellow officer, Dan, with whom Maya works very closely. Clarke is absolutely terrifying, and I mean this in the best way possible. Watching Clarke enter a cell with a prisoner, I couldn’t understand the depth of this man’s humanity, for he was able to portray a great colleague, friend, and torturer believably and at the same time. His character could have been sinister, and ugly, like a Disney villain that we all love to hate, but he wasn’t. He was deep, and rich, and absolutely scary.
This film makes you wonder how much creative license the filmmakers took, and how much is truly based in reality; I have no idea how much classified information the screenwriters had, but I keep thinking that someone should be in jail. (Please, don’t arrest anyone.) I was in part fascinated by the inner workings of the CIA, and in part horrified at the entire process, from beginning to end. How could I celebrate the death of a man? But didn’t we all? And then seeing on-screen how the CIA had initially been ready to forget about bin Laden, if it hadn’t been for Maya’s complete obsession, made me wonder for the first time how much of a threat he really was. Was he a symbol, by the time the US found him? This film did what so many history teachers, and political activists attempt to get people to do every single day. It made me question my government’s actions, not in things as simple yet enormously complex as tax laws, but in the actions taken by the US military in order to ensure my safety. I don’t mean question as in going from believing in my country to becoming an ex-patriot and moving to Asia. It wasn’t that sort of questioning, but instead just the sort you’d like an informed voter to be doing when voting for government officials. And all this, from a bit of “entertainment.”
Regardless of your politics, I recommend this movie. I think it asks more questions than it answers, which is a mark of true art. I think this film is a beautiful use of the first amendment right to free speech. It doesn’t hit you over the head with a message; instead it presents you with a scenario, and asks you to draw your own conclusions. When you leave the theater, you question your own suspension of disbelief. How much of that really happened? Was there a woman like Maya who was behind it all? Is that how the hunt really went? Who is being truthful, and who isn’t?
This isn’t a film for everyone, especially children. But it is a moving piece, and if you like thought-provoking films, then this is your Oscar pick for 2013.
Live, Love, Learn,