I have to chime in on Hurt Locker as it’s one of the few films I walked out of. Tried to sit through it again on DVD. Failed. I finally managed to watch it when it came on TV.
Trite, plodding, grim, predictable melodrama wrapped in docu-drama clothing to make it appear gritty and realistic. It’s basically Top Gun re-hashed for the 00’s but instead of cold war fighter jets it’s Iraq bomb disposal. It just replaces the fun, humor and homo-eroticism with dour humourless homo-eroticism. Hurt Locker, more like Shit Pot.
Zero Dark 30 was much the same. I liked Bigelow when she had a sense of humour and could make an action movie that didn’t think it was a documentary.