Zero Dark Thirty - 7 stars out of 10

Zero Dark Thirty - 7 stars out of 10 
Oscar Week

"Zero Dark Thirty" is a pretty brutal film to watch.  The completely aural introduction that surrounds the audience with 9/11 phone calls is upsetting, only to be trumped by its graphic portrayal of militaristic torture that dominates the first half-hour of the film.  Fortunately, this film finds redemption with the incredible story of the woman whose 8 years of intelligence work led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.  As much as I hate to address the elephant in the room, you also have to question how the writers received all of this classified information and whether this film is some sort of government propaganda.  I don't generally subscribe to conspiracy theories or live in a state of paranoia, but the power of this content really made me think.  While I believe that she has received too much praise for her performance, Jessica Chastain has some incredible moments.  There is a nice emotional variation between her timidity at the beginning and her passionate monologues later on, but I just didn't see the transformation.  Jason Clarke is the actor that really stood out to me, emotionally detaching himself as he tortures a detainee.  Although the film focuses on the gathering of intelligence locate bin Laden, it is a bit frustrating that the actual mission does not begin until two hours into the movie.  The film reads more like a documentary than a movie and, although there is some action and some emotion (particularly the Camp Chapman attack), the movie is pretty slow up until the raid.  Perhaps this was director Kathryn Bigelow's way of focusing on historical accuracy more than entertainment, but I wish that the script had been edited to shorten the film and get to the "main event" sooner.  In the end, "Zero Dark Thirty" gives unique insight into military intelligence and builds appreciation for the seemingly impossible task of locating the world's most wanted terrorist, but it just doesn't have the wow-factor necessary to win an Oscar for Best Picture.