MOVIE: Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

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Zero Dark Thirty Year: 2012 Rating: R Length: 157 minutes / 2.62 hours There are a few key moments from cinema that stick with me, even years after watching them for the first time. Zero Dark Thirty (2012) is a little frustrating to watch, but I suppose that's the whole point. Maya Harris (Jessica Chastain) had to deal with excessive government bureaucracy to avenge the United States after September 11th. That the last 30 minutes of this movie is the most gripping sequence I've ever seen is a testament to the payoff for two hours of buildup. What strikes me with this film is how raw it feels. It's unflinching in its depiction of torture. It doesn't hesitate to show that the U.S. would do anything to get back at those who killed so many on American soil. The problem is that it seems to insinuate that continuing in this extreme manner would have brought the eventual result a lot sooner. These red tape holdups...
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BOOK: The Zero (2006)

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The Zero Year: 2006 Author: Jess Walter Length: 640 minutes / 10.67 hours I'll be honest and say that I had no idea what this book was about before I started listening to it. Once I got into it, I could clearly see how the title and cover image related to the story at hand. It's interesting to think that a mere five years after the terrorist attacks on September 11th, a book like this could be written. Of course, there is plenty of highly descriptive language that helps to cement the story to the reality of the tragedy. That being said, there are many situations in the plot that feel quite cynical, if not downright dark in their humor. Perhaps it's this mixture of the absurd and the tragic that gives The Zero its interest. I did find the memory gaps experienced by the main character to be an interesting literary device, especially in their transitions. For the main character to have a series of...
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