BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
Zero Dark Thirty was one of the best movies to come out in 2012. I almost had to be forced into watching it. The trailer made it look like a typical dry and dramatic war film. I heard tons of good things about it, but it was what I’d categorize a “task movie”. A “task movie” is a movie that looks like it’ll be long, it’ll make me think, and it’ll be intense. Sometimes you just don’t connect to content and engaging in it, no matter how good. And I know it sounds silly, but I knew that we “got him in the end” so I was in no rush. That’s the vibe I had going in. So after explaining all of that, I hope you understand my mixed bag of emotions. I knew it’d be good, but I dreaded the idea of sitting down with it. After purposeful delay, I took it in. It’s pretty damn great. Jessica Chastain was remarkable in the leading role. Her character is based on the woman who spent years tracking down Bin Ladin and leaders of al-Qaeda. That’s the story in the simplest of terms. That’s what we see in the trailer and we know what’s going on from the start. As I watched it, I realized it’s not so much about getting American justice or to exploit one of the country’s most recent huge victories. It’s more about Chastain’s character’s extreme dedication and how far we as a country went to seek justice. Plus, it’s based on real events that have directly affected many people. I would like to hope that it went down JUST like what happened in the movie, but it doesn’t matter in the long run. It’s a great story regardless of interpretation and controversy. We’ll never know the real truth. We might as well appreciate the fine acting and storytelling in this movie. It’s a classic story and one you don’t expect to find in a “dry and dramatic war film”. It’s a lot like Rocky. The hero fights and sacrifices to defeat the foe and overcome the odds. It’s JUST like that except with missiles and water boarding. A
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