FAIR VIEW

From IDMB:

A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011.

Review:

The movie begins with a statement that it is based on first-hand accounts and is told as if it is a documentary. So there are no preachy voice-overs or anything like that. It begins with a black screen and some voice recordings from the September 11 disaster to bring that calamity to mind. It continues from there to recount the tracking of Osama bin Ladin by Maya, played by Jessica Chastain, who doggedly followed him for 10 years. This involved watching tortures and tapes of tortures plus pushing her superiors to the limit. The effect of torture on the torturers is also shown. If you see this film, you will see actual torture. [Well, as done by actors.] But the final clue to where bin Ladin might be, comes from a piece of information from 2001 that was overlooked and we are given no idea if torture was used to obtain it. The movie then moves on to Washington and the decision to make the assault on the assumed bin Ladin complex. After that, the Seal Team is assembled in Afghanistan, and the maneuver is shown in satisfying detail.

The big question is: Does ZERO DARK THIRTY support torture? I feel that it does not. First of all, the audience gets to watch actual torture and see just how horrible it is and the cost of it to the torturers. Second of all, prisoners who are tortured will say anything to make it stop. Third of all, the useful information gleaned from Ammar, Reda Kateb, who was water-boarded, came because he was disoriented, and they trick him into it. Disorientation is something that happens even just with sleep deprivation. So, the point that the movie makes is that all of the horrible torture he went through was really unnecessary. Finally, the best clue of all was obtained from 2001, and the use of torture to get it is left ambiguous. Furthermore, the movie does not preach about anything, so I don’t get why anybody feels that this movie supports torture. I think that if enough people see it, they might feel that torture is horrible and does not produce results. But I also think that everyone should see it and make their own decision.

Was it a good movie? It was a good documentary about the CIA’s stalking and killing of bin Ladin. The trade craft used, torture, Government bureaucracy and final assault as carried out by the Seal Team were well portrayed. Jessica Chastain did an excellent job in her role as Maya.

**** of five stars

Also read Michael Moore’s In defense of Zero Dark Thirty.

Last night I saw THE HOBBIT in 3d and I loved it! In spite of the many differences from the novel, it flowed smoothly and had tons of wonderfully executed special effects. The nearly 3 hour length of the movie zipped by and the only disappointment I had was when the movie stopped and the plot was only half-way through the book! Casting was terrific! My favorite scene was the riddle scene with Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins and Andy Serkis as Gollum. If you are a LOTR or Hobbit fan this film is definitely worth seeing.

I give it **** out of five stars.