From Michael Moore documentaries to Dan Brown adaptations, controversial movies are a dime a dozen these days. But it’s rare to find one that raises a fuss largely on account of its refusal to take a stand. Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty is one such anomaly, a film that takes the country’s most talked-about manhunt not as fuel for a grand political statement, but rather as a gripping human story of obsession, risk and moral ambivalence.
As Zero Dark Thirty begins, audio recordings of phone calls and newscasts from the 9/11 attacks play against a black screen. A sense of bleak hopelessness emerges, only to shatter when the camera transports us to a holding cell in Pakistan, where two CIA operatives — a seasoned pro named Dan (Jason Clarke) and a fresh young upstart called Maya (Jessica Chastain) — are trying to determine the location of Osama bin Laden. From here, we jump from research lab to lunchroom to embassy to helipad and so on for most of the film’s duration, tracking Maya on her single-minded and increasingly lonely quest for justice and closure.
Historical signposts such as authentic TV interviews and real-life bombings allow us to graph this journey in our collective cultural consciousness, but the film seems less interested in the politics of the search for bin Laden than it is in Maya’s personal ups and downs.
Screenwriter Mark Boal manages to add intrigue, tension and narrative focus to a tale of which we already know the ending. It’s fitting that even after presenting the audience with a harrowing recreation of bin Laden’s ultimate downfall, which would serve as the story’s climax in a lesser or simpler movie, the script’s attention turns toward Maya, whose rush to look upon the downed terrorist leader forms the true focus of the action.
It is Maya’s ferocity and wit that make her such an incomparably fascinating character. Bigelow and Boal have taken a major risk in placing so much focus on a woman who may not even exist, especially given the general public’s fascination with the moral and ethical implications of the manhunt, and their risk has more than paid off in the end.
Maya also embodies the enigmatic CIA operative, simultaneously showing signs of disgust and determination when forced to observe some of her agency’s nastier processes. Rather than offer up a scathing condemnation or a ringing endorsement of torture as employed by the operatives, for instance, the filmmakers simply present it as a brutal method Maya may or may not view as necessary. Black-and-white declarations and stances have no place in this film.
Throughout the film, Bigelow and Boal operate with frankness and honesty. Maya may arouse our sympathies when a barrage of misogyny and pessimism threatens her efforts, but Chastain’s unflinching portrayal never panders or attempts to conceal the agent’s flaws.
Sometimes Americans come across as unduly harsh, sloppy and irresponsible, while at other times, these same folks emerge as intelligent, thoughtful, and grounded characters — and such is life. Audiences from both sides of the political aisle will be sure to make a fuss about various scenes, elements and characters that allegedly portray particular aspects of the CIA operation in an unfairly unflattering light, but such is the mark of a great film.
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