CREDIT: COLUMBIA PICTURES
Jessica Chastain takes on the lead role of Maya in Zero Dark Thirty.

Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

It was one of the biggest moments in American history: the raid on a compound in Pakistan by Navy SEALS Team Six that ultimately killed Osama bin Laden. She is one of the greatest filmmakers of recent times, particularly when it comes to modern warrelated films, who won an Oscar for The Hurt Locker. When combined, these two should make for one of the most poignant films of the year. You might think that... but you'd be wrong.

Zero Dark Thirty tells the mostly true (or is it maybe true?) story of the CIA agent who worked tirelessly for nearly 10 years to track down and assassinate Osama bin Laden. The details on the accuracy of the film are still a bit hazy, but director Kathryn Bigelow maintains that she spoke extensively to the agents upon whom lead character Maya is based, while the current director of the CIA has made public statements saying the film is heavily fictionalized.

Whether accurate or not, the film follows CIA agent Maya, who is working at the American Consulate in Pakistan, and her hunt for anyone who can lead her to bin Laden. From interrogation scenes that prove more than a little unnerving to bombings at U.S. Air Bases to an attempt on Maya's life, the road is a long and difficult one for the hard-working agent who refuses to give up.

The cast of the film is perhaps its one and only strong point. Jessica Chastain, who has been enjoying critical acclaim for many of her roles in the past couple of years, takes on the role of Maya. Her character begins as a timid, unsure of herself agent who is forced to learn the harsh realities of interrogation techniques in a hurry. By the end of the film, she evolves into a confident, assured woman who knows exactly what to do and how to do it. In a word, Chastain's performance is powerful.

Stepping in beside Chastain is Kyle Chandler as Maya's boss Joseph Bradley. Bradley serves his purpose as the fall guy when the Detainee Program is shut down, thus bringing a swift end to prisoner interrogation that borders on torture, but also proves to be a strong presence on screen when it comes to supporting Maya.

Jennifer Ehle takes on the role of Jessica, Maya's closest friend, another CIA agent working at the American Consulate. Ehle is giddy onscreen, a positive presence in an otherwise dark story.

Rounding out the cast is James Gandolfini as the director of the CIA. Though he plays the character with perhaps a slight lack of intelligence, Gandolfini has that certain strength onscreen when playing powerful men.

The problems with Zero Dark Thirty just seem to keep piling on. Lazy filming techniques make the audience dizzy, the storyline is fractured in odd places and accelerated through others, the men in Team Six are given very little presence and the entire CIA organization is made to look like bureaucratic fools. The real trouble with this film is simply that since The Hurt Locker, we all know Bigelow can do so much better.

Rating: 3 out of 5