Welcome to The Hurt Locker

May 11, 4:37 PMLA Indie Movie ExaminerJeffrey King

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Jeremy Renner is no stranger to combat fatigues. 

The 38-year-old actor has played a marine, a SWAT team officer, and as of this summer, an Army bomb squad specialist. The Modesto native stars in Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker,” which will open in New York and Los Angeles on June 26th.

After helming such big name projects as “K-19: The Widowmaker” and “Point Break,” Bigelow has toned it down this time around for an intensive character study of three men who have the least desirable job in the American army: disarming poorly-made and unstable terrorist bombs in Iraq.

Renner heads up a cast which includes Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Anthony Mackie. The script was penned by relative newcomer Mark Boal, whose work includes a story credit for 2007’s “In The Valley of Elah.”

“The Hurt Locker” debuted at last year’s Venice Film Festival and was met with resounding success. The film won Bigelow four separate festival awards, and was nominated for The Golden Lion.

The cast, too, received heavy praise with both Renner and Mackie being nominated for Independent Spirit Awards.

While smaller in scale than other recent war films, “The Hurt Locker” isn’t short on suspense or explosions. Rather, it chooses its action sequences carefully and uses its set pieces to enhance the characterizations and suspense. While Transformers 2 or Wolverine might simply blow stuff up every five minutes to hold your attention, “The Hurt Locker” makes sure its blasts count.

The effect is a harrowing one.

Some of Hollywood’s most venerable critics have already showered praise on the film, including Time Magazine’s Richard Corliss, who called it “A Near-Perfect War Movie.”

With award-nominated performances and direction, and positive reviews from Time, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times, it’s surprising that “The Hurt Locker” isn’t getting a wider release on June 26th.

Just be glad you live in Los Angeles.

See the trailer for the film here.