Hurt Locker vanquishes Avatar: patriotism triumphs over anti-Americanism at the Oscars

London Telegraph Blogs (U.K.) ^ | March 8, 2010 | Nile Gardiner

[Schnucki]

I’m glad The Hurt Locker triumphed over Avatar at tonight’s Oscars. Not only is Hurt Locker a far superior film – with standout performances, an intelligent and brilliantly executed script, as well as three dimensional lead characters – it is also a tremendously patriotic film which pays tribute to the courage of American troops serving in Iraq. For all these reasons I named it as one of the top 10 conservative movies of the last decade. The film won six awards, including Best Picture, Best Director (Kathryn Bigelow), and Best Original Screenplay.

I acknowledge that Hurt Locker has attracted a good deal of controversy and has divided opinion in the States over aspects of historical accuracy, and the debate will continue to rage. But I believe it thoroughly deserved its Oscar wins, and that the powerful message it projects about the US mission in Iraq and those who serve in the American armed forces, is an overwhelmingly positive one.

Avatar is technically brilliant with the most sophisticated special effects ever committed to celluloid. Its director James Cameron has made some of the greatest sci-fi films in history and has been a visionary and ground-breaking figure in Hollywood for over 25 years. The film deservedly picked up awards for Visual Effects and Cinematography , but was not deserving of a Best Picture win.

The acting in Avatar was mediocre, the storyline simplistic, and frankly large stretches of the movie, while visually impressive, were rather dull. In terms of sheer cinematic excitement, Avatar is not in the same league as Cameron’s earlier classics, Terminator and Aliens, and less engaging than Titanic.

But what I found most jarring about Avatar was its overtly anti-American and anti-military bias. As I wrote at the time of the film’s release in December:

Avatar “is an

[Age of Reason]

Hurt Locker was boring.

[jessduntno]

“Hurt Locker was boring.”

Avatar was agitprop. The best film won, IMNSHO.

[max americana]

Sandra Bullock also made history as the first woman to win the Razzies as worst actress and best actress at the Oscars. The odds alone are astronomical.

[SoCal Pubbie]

Parts of it were slow, I agree. I would not say it’s boring though.

[Stultis]

My immediate reaction to Hurt Locker was disgust. I certainly didn't see it as “conservative” at all. It appeared to me is was transparently replaying the Vietnam myth of the irreparably damaged and ruined vet.

[devere]

“Sandra Bullock also made history as the first woman to win the Razzies as worst actress and best actress at the Oscars. The odds alone are astronomical.”

Sandra won the Razzie because she agreed in advance to show up to accept it. A great publicity stunt by Bullock.

[prophetic]

So between Cameron's Avatar which is a glammed up sci-fi anti-american anti-military smear vs Hurt Locker which is a ripoff of a guy's true story but spun to do another hit piece on our military, I'd say that hollyweird is still consistent at spinning crap this year.

imho it was either mega-crap (Avatar) or crap lite (Hurt Locker) to get the awards and crap lite won as the lesser of the 2 evils.

[freedumb2003]

>>“Hurt Locker was boring.”

Avatar was agitprop.<<

I wouldn’t know. I have not been in a theater in he USA in probably 15 years. I wait for them to come out on Netflix.

The theater experience has been ruined by high prices on tickets, ridiculous prices on concessions and rude people with cell phones who think their silly conversations are more important than my enjoyment of the film.

And everything I have read says this hasn’t changed and has gotten worse with the advent of texting, flickr and the like.

So, I’ll see these films in a few months and that works for me.

[freedumb2003]

>>Sandra won the Razzie because she agreed in advance to show up to accept it. A great publicity stunt by Bullock.<<

I am not sure that is true. Do you have a link or something to back that up? I am not accusing you or anything, but I think the Razzies are voted on and adjudicated well before the “winners” know.

[nutmeg]

ping

[Electric Graffiti]

Good observation......I got that feeling also. I never really understood the message or point of the movie. No doubt Hollyweird’s way of painting the war effort as futile and our military as knee-jerk drunken yahoos.

[CondoleezzaProtege]

*PING*

[DemonDeac]

I did not see Hurt Locker but Avatar didn’t deserve to be considered for a best picture. It was fun and the 3D effects were amazing but it really was nothing more than a decent movie wrapped up in ground-breaking special effects. The story underneath the glitz just wasn’t that great. I don’t get to many films but the one I liked the best was District 9. Had that as an in-flight film on Qantas and it was fantastic.

[Electric Graffiti]

Definite snooze fest.

[Halgr]

There was absolutely nothing PATRIOTIC in the Hurt Locker.....did this fool even watch it....

Here we have a EOD Team Leader supposedly in Iraq who is a compulsive addictive personality who is an Adrenalin Junkie???!!! He constantly puts his men in danger. Then once he returns home to America He abandons his wife and kids so that he can go back to Iraq and get his “Drug”.

Disgusting.

[freedumb2003]

>>Here we have a EOD Team Leader supposedly in Iraq who is a compulsive addictive personality who is an Adrenalin Junkie???!!! He constantly puts his men in danger. Then once he returns home to America He abandons his wife and kids so that he can go back to Iraq and get his “Drug”.<<

“Full Metal Jacket” on slow-unfold?

[citizencon]

Suddenly, patriotism is fashionable and glamorous among the Hollywood libs...

It’s the new Kabbalah.

[Allegra]

So, I’ll see these films in a few months and that works for me.

I think they're out on DVD now. I know "Hurt Locker" is and I read somewhere that "Avatar" has a DVD release date. I know it's still playing in theaters, but I think the release date is fairly soon. (I have not seen it.)