Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 (2013)

Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Jon Favreau, James Badge Dale, Paul Bettany (voice), and Ben Kingsley 

Directed by Shane Black

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The (current) RyMickey Rating:  B

Click here for my previous RyMickey Rating

Mare of Easttown

 Mare of Easttown (2021)

Starring Kate Winslet, Julianne Nicholson, Jean Smart, Angourie Rice, David Denman, Guy Pearce, and Evan Peters

Directed by Craig Zobel

Written by Brad Ingelsby

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  A

Mary Queen of Scots

Mary Queen of Scots (2018)

Starring Saiorse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Guy Pearce, David Tennant, Jack Lowden, Joe Alwyn, and Gemma Chan

Directed by Josie Rourke

Written by Beau Willimon

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

Movie Review - Genius

Genius (2016)

Starring Colin Firth, Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Guy Pearce, Dominic West, and Laura Linney

Directed by Michael Grandage

***This film is currently streaming via HBO Now/GO***

As the words of Thomas Wolfe were read aloud and his mellifluous prose lyrically opened Michael Grandage's film Genius, I was drawn into this tale about the unique author (played by Jude Law) and his publisher Maxwell Perkins (Colin Firth).  However, as I imagine I'd feel attempting to read one of Thomas Wolfe's lengthy tomes, lovely descriptive verbiage can only get you so far -- story also has to have some importance.  Unfortunately, Genius begins to falter as it enters its second half, failing to really take its characters on any type of journeys that weren't obvious from the film's opening scenes.

In 1929 New York, Perkins is reading Wolfe's first attempt at a novel with much aplomb.  Shot down by innumerable other publishers, the hickish-sounding, though verbose Wolfe was taking one final shot, going out on a limb by giving his novel to Perkins who edited and published works by F. Scott Fitzgerald (Guy Pearce) and Ernest Hemingway (Dominic West).  When Perkins agrees to publish Wolfe's work, a parental-type friendship is formed with Perkins seeing Wolfe as the son he never had.

There is something compelling in the opening act of Genius -- rarely do films translate the art of writing to the screen successfully and this film was working...at first.  However, as it progresses, it falls into stereotypical traps that don't allow its characters to feel fresh.  Its script also grows repetitive -- Perkins continues bickering with Wolfe about editing down his tomes, Perkins' wife Louise (Laura Linney) wants her husband to spend more time with his five daughters, Wolfe's lover Aline (Nicole Kidman) resents Wolfe spending all his time with Perkins -- failing to advance its characters in any substantial way, reiterating the same story notes over and over again.  Director Grandage with his first film has a fantastic cadre of actors at his disposal, but with the lukewarm script, he's unable to really pull anything substantial from any of them.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Results

Results (2015)

Starring Guy Pearce, Cobie Smulders, Kevin Corrigan, Giovanni Ribisi, Anthony Michael Hall, Brooklyn Decker, and Constance Zimmer

Directed by Andrew Bujalski

***Ts film is currently streaming on Netflix***

Despite nice performances from Guy Pearce and Cobie Smulders as fitness instructors Trevor and Kat, Results feels like a film searching for its core plot.  Is it a film about the current business and potential personal relationships between gym owner Trevor and employee instructor Kat?  Or is it a film about Danny (Kevin Corrigan), an overweight divorced guy who, following his mother's recent death, has received a windfall of money and decides to use some of it to try and lose weight (and emotionally grow) by hiring a personal fitness instructor from Trevor's gym?  Or is Results about Danny wanting to use his money to help Trevor expand his gym empire from a small single storefront to a chain of all-encompassing wellness center?

Writer-diretor Andrew Bujalski's film seems completely unsure of what it exactly wants to be.  While it succeeds at creating an appropriate balance between comedy and light drama, its various plotlines prove to be underdeveloped and scattered.  Initially, I thought the film was going to be all about Danny, but then that character seems to disappear in the film's final half after we've already invested a good amount of time with his storyline.  The switch is jarring and ultimately proves to be disappointing in a film that I was somewhat buying into initially.  As mentioned, Pearce and Smulders are quite good, proving to have a chemistry with one another and other characters that keep the film interesting, but it's simply not enough to make the flick recommendable.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Breathe In

Breathe In (2014)

Starring Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Amy Ryan, and Mackenzie Davis

Directed by Drake Doremus

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

A bit too subdued for its own good, Breathe In treads a familiar path -- older married man (Guy Pearce) falls for a much younger teenage high school student (Felicity Jones) -- but finds itself buoyed by some nicely mannered performances.  Pearce and Jones certainly make Drake Doremus' film watchable, but its slow pace and slight payoff leave a little to be desired.

When British exchange student Sophie (Jones) boards with a suburban New York family for a semester, husband and wife Keith and Megan Reynolds (Pearce and Amy Ryan) and their teenage daughter Lauren (Mackenzie Davis) look forward to being able to show the young woman what the United States has to offer.  A rather advanced pianist, Sophie finds herself placed in Keith's high school music class where her talent and focus is a turn on to the struggling cellist Keith who wants to leave his teaching career behind and earn a coveted spot in a world-renowned orchestra.  Heretofore, Keith certainly never seemed unhappy in his marriage to Megan, but Sophie's interest in his interests invigorates him with the two eventually finding themselves bonding a bit more than they should.

Rather interestingly, Doremus and his co-writer Ben York Jones keep things as innocent as possible for as long as possible and even when Keith and Sophie turn towards romance, their feelings are depicted as more like lustful puppy love as opposed to lustful abandon.  While this is certainly an intriguing idea to keep things more "clean," it also doesn't quite provide the spark that a movie like this really needs.  Once again, Pearce and Jones have a palpable chemistry that makes their burgeoning relationship work and I guess there's kudos to be given to the duo for making the whole situation not feel "icky," but Breathe In doesn't quite overcome its overarching sense of dullness.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 (2013)

Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Jon Favreau, James Badge Dale, Paul Bettany (voice), and Ben Kingsley 

Directed by Shane Black

After the overhype that was The Avengers -- yes, I didn't love it, so perhaps my thoughts on Marvel movies automatically get negated because of that -- I admittedly wasn't looking forward to tackling Iron Man 3.  In fact, my biggest issue with The Avengers was Robert Downey, Jr.'s portrayal of Tony Stark who I found to be obnoxiously annoying in that piece.  [Yes, I realize that's the point, however, as I mentioned in my Avengers review, setting him amidst "nicer" superheroes made the character's self-important sarcastic nature more grating.]

So, color me surprised when I sat through Iron Man 3 and found it an enjoyable action flick.  Tony Stark is dealing with the aftermath of that wormhole/alien incident in The Avengers and it's mellowed him out, helping to build a character that has more depth than the playboy we've seen in movies past.  Stark still has his sarcastically quippy replies to most things, but the script (and Downey, Jr.) does a nice job of creating a few more emotional layers on the character.

In Iron Man 3, Stark is faced with battling The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley), an American terrorist who's hellbent on making the US pay for their "crimes" against humanity.  After a bombing outside the Chinese Theater in L.A., the police are unable to find any bomb residue or any evidence that a bomb even existed onsite which begs the question of how exactly the Mandarin is causing these disasters.  Despite being more based in reality than some of the previous Marvel flicks, let's just say that the cause of the explosions takes us down that fantastical comic book unrealistic path -- and I don't mean that in a condescending way at all.

Admittedly, director Shane Black hasn't had much experience behind the camera (this being only his second film) and it shows a bit when it comes to lensing action sequences.  While the quick cuts aren't necessarily abundant, I couldn't help but think that many of the "BIG" scenes felt a bit muted in terms of excitement and were a bit confusing and slapshot in the way they were filmed.  Still, Black does a very nice job in the film's quieter moments and gets some good performances from all of his players with Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, and Jon Favreau making return appearances and Kingsley, Guy Pearce, and Rebecca Hall making solid debuts in the Marvel universe.

The RyMickey Rating: B

Movie Review - Lawless

Lawless (2012)

Starring Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Dane DeHaan, and Guy Pearce

Directed by John Hillcoat

Although based on the true story of the three Bondurant brothers who, in the midst of early 1930s Prohibition, ran a very profitable moonshine business in a small Virginia county, Lawless is one of those films that you watch and simply ponder why it was brought to the big screen.  Why was this tale deemed exciting enough to be told?  And if it was worth retelling, what went wrong in its adaptation to the cinematic form?  Because, unfortunately, not much went right in this bland and boring flick directed by John Hillcoat (who also brought us the lukewarm The Road, a film which in retrospect I feel I overrated back in 2009).

Jack, Forrest, and Howard Bondurant (Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, and Jason Clarke, respectively) are known throughout Franklin County, Virginia, for creating some of the best moonshine around.  Selling to the local cops, they seemingly have it made until a bigwig Special Agent from Chicago, Charlie Rakes (Guy Pearce, overacting to the point of laughable ridiculousness), comes to the county and demands a share of their profits in order to allow them to continue their illegal shenanigans.  Well, the Bondurants don't want anything to do with that and their refusal leads to some violent outbursts from folks on both sides of the law.

When Lawless gets violent, there's actually some life in the story, but whenever there isn't a gun firing or a fist making the most out of hitting someone's face this is one of the most boring films released in 2012.  John Hillcoat is tasked with directing a misguided screenplay by Nick Cave that meanders all over the place.  Neither the director nor the screenwriter are able to reel in the story and give us the necessary dramatic ebb and flow to create a decent film.

Although I think Shia LaBeouf is obnoxious offscreen, I must admit that he's the best part of Lawless by far.  His scenes are the only ones worth watching and the only ones that have any modicum of life breathed into them.  Even the ridiculous romantic subplot he's shouldered with involving his character's fascination with an über-religious young gal (Mia Wasikowska) is better than it deserves to be because of his presence.  Unfortunately, when the film isn't in LaBeouf's hands, yawns are induced. Tom Hardy follows up his Dark Knight Rises mumblings with an even more incoherent performance here.  Seriously, open up your frickin' mouth when you talk, dude!  I liked you in Warrior and Bronson, but this marble-mouthed inarticulation is getting old.  And poor Jessica Chastain is just wasted here with nary a single character trait or meaningful plot point applied to her role as a former stripper with a heart of gold.

Even her unnecessary nudity couldn't save this one.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - Prometheus

Prometheus (2012)

*viewed in 3D*

Starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Logan Marshall-Green, Idris Elba, and Guy Pearce

Directed by Ridley Scott

**There will be some spoilers ahead here...the film's been out a month now, so I feel no qualms about that.**

Prometheus - the "not-a-prequel, but really-is-a-prequel" to Alien - has its share of problems most courtesy of a script from Jon Spaihts and Lost alum Damon Lindelof, but despite what are warranted criticisms, I couldn't help but like what I saw onscreen.  I've always been a fan of Ridley Scott's Alien and James Cameron's Aliens (see my Alien Week coverage here), and what Scott does here is further the backstory behind the sci-fi series while, at the same time, creating a stand-alone film that works quite well despite a few faults.

Those delving into Prometheus thinking that they're going to see something in the same vein of any of the previous four Alien incarnations are in for a surprise.  Instead, Prometheus is one archeologist's quest to discover the reason for human existence.  We meet Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) in the late 2080s as she and her team are exploring the rocky cliffs of Ireland.  There, they discover cave paintings that closely resemble similar paintings found all across the earth all of which seem to be pointing to the notion that something from space came to earth tens of thousands of years ago.  With the help of the Weyland Corporation (a name familiar to those who've seen other Alien flicks), Shaw and her partner Charlie (Logan Marshall-Green) are funded for an expedition to a far-off planet that seems to have the same capability as Earth for human existence with the hopes that this planet may hold some of the answers to these cave drawings.  When they land on the planet, Shaw, Charlie, and the crew of the ship Prometheus, including the captain (Idris Elba), Weyland overseer Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron), and android David (Michael Fassbender), set out to explore and uncover some interesting finds leading us both into familiar territory for this series and quite unfamiliar territory in the overarching religious and spiritual questions it attempts to pose.

Surprisingly, the biggest problem in the film tends to be with the alien side of things.  These people just seem to act plain stupid around them.  Here you've landed on a foreign planet with unknown creatures and you're just going to go right up to these "things" and try to pet them?  I mean, really?  The characters just end up losing all credibility in these scenes and it hurts the movie in the long run.  I think that's what makes the first two Alien films so successful -- even if the characters weren't fully realized (I'm looking at you, Aliens), they still acted "truthfully" and realistically based off of their personal characteristics.  You didn't really get a sense of that here with some of the characters presented.

However, there are two really solid performances from Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender.  Rapace is quite good, embodying a completely different female here than Sigourney Weaver's kick-ass Ripley.  Rapace's Elizabeth Shaw is mellow and slightly timid -- two characteristics that could never apply to Ripley.  Shaw's mission isn't to kill, but to try and understand all that she can about human existence and her place (and the place of spirituality and faith) in this world.  Fassbender also continues his excellent streak of work with the robotic David.  Even lacking the ability to show emotions, Fassbender still manages to draw your eye to him in every single scene thanks to this sense of underlying (and sometimes not so underlying) menace his character exudes in nearly scene.

I actually got a very "last episode of Lost" vibe from Prometheus thanks to the similarities in tone resulting from their exploratory dives into faith, and given that Damon Lindelof co-wrote the last episode of the series, that shouldn't be all that surprising.  However, also like Lost, Prometheus doesn't provide all the answers and while some would complain about that, I'm actually okay with the open-endedness.  To me, we can't have all the answers when we're discussing something as esoteric as faith and to expect them is almost ludicrous.  I'd be more than open for a sequel that delves a bit deeper.

The film looks beautiful visually and I give much credit to director Ridley Scott for taking things in a different direction with this flick.  Yes, there are still some excellent action sequences and some great set pieces (that "computerized surgery machine" came in quite handy, didn't it?) which show that Scott still has quite a knack at filming tense action.  But we also discover that he is quite adept at the quieter moments of which this film certainly has plenty.  If only he could've convinced the writers to give him more fully-realized secondary characters than I would've been a much happier camper.  But as it stands now, Prometheus is a solid addition to the Alien saga landing right in the middle in terms of quality for the series.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2011)

Starring Katie Holmes, Guy Pearce, and Bailee Madison

Directed by Troy Nixey

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark is an okay horror flick that felt like a slightly more adult version of Nickelodeon's 90s series Are You Afraid of the Dark.  Although tense, the film had a rather childlike innocence to it -- no cursing, no blood (for the most part), relying on tense build-ups and taut direction (although only in certain scenes).

That being said, despite a decent lead performance from the young Bailee Madison (whose character Sally started out a bit too one-note bratty to work completely for me) and fine turns from Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce (whose characters aren't given a whole lot to do other than doubt Sally when she says little gnome-like creatures are wreaking havoc on their newly bought hundred-year-old mansion), the film even at 99 minutes goes on too long.  It felt like the story could have (and should have) been told in the 30 minutes that those Are You Afraid of the Dark episodes were given.  The story was just dragged out too long to be effective.  Rather than excite, I found myself bored too many times.

It doesn't help that the aforementioned gnome-like creatures prove to be a little laughable rather than scary (which, once again, makes me feel like it would've been more at home on that 90s Nick show).  I just wanted to tell these folks to stomp on these little devils and run out of the house (because, just like every other horror movie, no one leaves the house until it's much too late to do so).

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom (2010)

Starring James Frecheville, Guy Pearce, Joel Edgerton, Luke Ford, Sullivan Stapleton, Ben Mendelsohn, and Jacki Weaver

Directed by David Michôd

While Animal Kingdom certainly wasn't off my radar (what with Jacki Weaver's Supporting Actress nod at this year's Oscars), I wasn't expecting to be completely riveted while watching it...but riveted I was.  This Australian modern-day crime drama slowly reveals its diabolical and surprising cards at just the right moments, creating an ominous tone throughout and proving that, along with 2010's release of the superb The Square, Australia is the new breeding ground for excellent thrillers.

Ultimately, I don't want to give much away here.  It's great to see this film unfold without knowing a whole lot, so I'll simply say what I knew going into it.  Seventeen year-old Josh Cody (James Frecheville) is left orphaned when his mother overdoses on heroin.  Not knowing where to turn, he calls his grandmother Janine (Jacki Weaver) whom he hasn't seen in years.  The outwardly pleasant Janine takes the teen into her home which she shares with her sons who all happen to be mixed up in various crimes, from robbing banks to selling drugs.  That's it.  That's all I knew...that's all you should know...now move this thing up towards the top of your Netflix queue.

First-time director David Michôd does a great job here.  Lensing his own screenplay, I was honestly amazed at how many times I was genuinely surprised by the direction the film veered.  And to keep things nervously tense for two hours is not an easy feat, but Michôd makes it seem like a piece of cake.

Of course, helping keep things interesting is Michôd's cadre of talented actors, including newcomer James Frecheville as Josh, who, much like the lead in the aforementioned The Square, plays things extremely solemn and gloomy, but manages to hold our attention nonetheless.  Couple his glumness with Jacki Weaver's exuberance (and the underlying sheer nastiness underneath the pleasant façade) and you've got a pretty nifty duo to watch.  But it would be a disservice not to direct your attention to the actors I list above underneath the title at the top of this post because everyone in this Australian crew is darn good.  Particular kudos to Ben Mendelsohn who managed to truly skeeve me out every time he came onscreen.

Despite a slight bit of a lag in the film's first act, Animal Kingdom is absolutely a must-see and one of the best films of 2010.  I doubt you'll be disappointed if you check it out.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - The King's Speech

The King's Speech (2010)

Starring Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Guy Pearce, and Helena Bonham Carter

Directed by Tom Hooper

Seeing as how I'm posting this review the day before the Oscars and this British period film has already made over $100 million at the box office, I'm sure anybody that wanted to see The King's Speech has seen it already and no review of mine will make a difference.  That said, The King's Speech is a lovely film.  Filled with wit, charm, and wonderful performances, it's easy to see why this connected with an adult audience longing to see smart films.

There's been talk this Oscar season of The King's Speech having "heart," hence it resonating with moviegoers more than The Social Network, and it's a statement that I can't deny.  I did walk out of The Social Network thinking that the whole affair was rather cold and detached, never letting me relate to any of the characters on a level I would have liked.  The King's Speech, however, is "feel-good" and contains characters we want to see succeed.  Don't get me wrong, I don't need my movies to be happy (heck, my number one flick of the year, Blue Valentine, is as depressing as it gets), but I can see where the Academy members give Speech an edge over Network because of the inspiring mood of the former.

Ultimately, I do think The King's Speech is the better movie of the two main contenders and a huge chunk of the reasoning behind that is the performances of Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush.  Firth is just great as King George VI, thrust into power even though he always found himself in the shadows of his father and brother thanks to his stuttering speech impediment.  Firth's role as a nervous and shy (future) king could've been played much showier which would have been much to the film's detriment.  As it stands now, Firth's rather subdued take on the monarch coupled with Geoffrey Rush's at times both snarky and sympathetic role as speech consultant-cum-psychologist Lionel Logue elevate the film to another level.  Two other men in these roles may have made the film run-of-mill and average, but Firth and Rush together play off of each other so brilliantly.

[I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Helena Bonham Carter as the King's wife.  This is probably the best I've seen Bonham Carter -- absolutely lovely.]

Credit also must go to director Tom Hooper who manages to make a period piece about British royalty not seem stodgy and uptight.  With some clever directorial choices and a surprising ability to keep things moving, Hooper deserves the kudos he's been receiving along the way this Oscar season.  Who would've thunk watching a five-minute speech would've been interesting and exciting?  Not I, but Hooper makes it so.

So, while I wouldn't say I saved the Best Film of 2010 for last, The King's Speech will definitely be a worthy winner of Best Picture should it take the top prize on Sunday night's Oscar telecast.  I, for one, would not be the least bit disappointed with it being victorious.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - The Road (2009)

Starring Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Robert Duvall, Charlize Theron, and Guy Pearce
Directed by John Hillcoat

I read Cormac McCarthy's The Road last year and it really got me started on this "I should read more" kick. I truly enjoyed the book -- McCarthy created a tale about an apocalypse with heart. Unfortunately, it's the heart and compassion that really feels like it's missing from the film adaptation. It's not that the film in and of itself is bad -- in fact, it's quite a well-crafted movie all around -- it's just that the book's hopeful soul is nonexistent.

Somehow, Earth has fallen to shambles. The sun no longer shines. All life -- trees, animals -- has died. Ash constantly falls. Earthquakes are a common occurrence. The few human survivors hunt for whatever nutrition can sustain them...even if that means resorting to cannibalism. However, a nameless father (Mortensen) and his nameless son (Smit-McPhee) will not resort to eating their fellow man and instead are on a constant search for food, shelter, and safety.

That's it. That's the story. It's surely a simple premise as we watch the man and boy travel across barren wastelands having awful things happen to them in the process. They're traveling south seemingly because that's what the man's wife (Theron) told them to do before she died. It seems that the father's dreams of his wife are pushing him on this journey...that and his strong desire to not have anything bad happen to his son.

Yes, the film certainly depicts a father's love for his son and vice versa. But the heart and soul that were in the novel seemed to be missing. And it's not that it was Viggo Mortensen's fault. He, once again, proves that he's one of the great actors of our generation (seriously, everyone should watch his badassery in the flick Eastern Promises). The love and devotion for his son certainly come through. And as his son, the young Kodi Smit-McPhee plays the role with a child-like innocence that worked to a tee. To some, the son may seem too innocent for his own good -- but to me, even though he's seen some horrific things, his father's love has somehow shielded him from the world around him. Born after the apocalypse occurred, the son's never seen anything outside of what his father has shown him -- no tv, no movies, no radio. I can see how some would be annoyed with the soft-spoken son, but it seemed spot on to me.

And as far as that missing "heart" goes, it's definitely there in a scene where the father and son come across stockpile of food in an underground shelter. That scene -- the one happy moment in the movie -- had everything that I was looking for in this movie. Unfortunately, the rest of the movie didn't have that sense of hope for me.

I realize I'm probably not making a lot of sense with this one, but I'm gonna post it this way anyway (it's 3am...). Once again, it's not that this movie was bad...in fact, the story itself was a decent adaptation. Something was missing, though. Maybe in a day or two I'll realize what that "thing" was.

The RyMickey Rating: B

Movie Review - The Hurt Locker (2009)

Starring Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Guy Pearce, David Morse, and Ralph Fiennes
Written by Mark Boal
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow

Whether you support the war in Iraq or not makes no difference to the filmmakers behind The Hurt Locker. They simply want to present what really happens to our courageous soldiers who risk their lives daily. It was a rather refreshing take and it made the flick play out as an action-suspense thriller rather than a message movie. [As surprising as this may be to those who know my Republican leanings, I'm not opposed to message movies, by the way. The two-year old In the Valley of Elah was a stunningly good look at post-war depression told in a fascinating way.]

Jeremy Renner is Staff Sergeant William James who is one of the army's best bomb diffusers. James and the two other soldiers in his Explosive Ordinance Disposal unit who serve as James's help and protection -- Sergeant JT Sanborn (Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldridge (Geraghty) -- go out on seemingly daily missions across Iraq diffusing a variety of different explosive devices. The flick is essentially a series of the various missions this EOD unit undertakes, but we also get glimpses into the different personalities of these three men.

Renner is fantastic. His James appears to be the strong one in the unit, but he's addicted to the adrenaline rush of diffusing bombs and also finds himself emotionally involved in helping the Iraqi people. There's one scene in particular where he breaks down after being so resolute that really got to me. Anthony Mackie is also great as Sanborn who doesn't take well to Sgt. James's approaches to diffusing EOD's. Similarly, Brian Geraghty's Eldridge is certainly emotionally unstable after having witnessed the death of a fellow soldier, and Sgt. James's gung-ho and reckless techniques don't sit too well with him. Geraghty was absolutely my favorite supporting character here. There wasn't a bum note in his performance which had to range from courageous to utterly frightened. I really loved it.

The star of the show, though, is Kathryn Bigelow's stellar direction. This flick is edge-of-your seat exciting and Bigelow is the one responsible for that. While she employs the shaky cam that has become so popular as of late, she doesn't overuse the method. In fact, my favorite scene of the film -- an hours-long showdown in the Iraqi desert that occurs about halfway through the flick -- is full of long pauses and absolutely has the feeling of tedium and weariness thanks in part to Bigelow's direction (and it's also helped immensely by the three actors I mentioned above).

I don't really want to ruin the movie for anyone, but I did have a problem with one particular vignette in the film. Sgt. James seeks revenge after a particular incident occurs and I honestly didn't buy it completely. It's not that I didn't understand the motivation behind it (I certainly understood it), but I just have my doubts that it would ever really happen. Without the extra ten minutes depicting this "event," the flick would've been a little more taut and would've been as close to a perfect movie as one could get.

Despite that one flaw, the film, as I said above, is nearly perfect. With spot-on performances, believable dialogue, three great performances, and some of the best direction I've seen in a long time, The Hurt Locker is an exciting piece of filmmaking that shouldn't be missed.

The RyMickey Rating: A-