Zero Dark Thirty review: Jessica Chastain shines

It's no surprise Chastain's performance earned her an Academy Award nomination

Interpreted from the true-life military memoirs ‘No Easy Day’ by Mark Owen, chronologically detailing the hunt and death of Osama Bin Laden through a female protagonist, non-threatening pale-skinned Maya. Not the kind of hero you’d likely expect to singularly lead a war movie.

When watching Zero Dark Thirty, it is impossible not to feel like you are watching an extended episode of Homeland. Jessica Chastain’s Maya is certainly similar to Claire Danes’ Carrie Mathison, both driven women who have a mission in mind and will not let it go. But Chastain’s character is much more serious.

In fact if there’s anything to say about this film, it’s that it is serious, so much so that it almost feels like a documentary rather than a movie. There are no parts that seem fabricated just for the viewer’s entertainment. This smart move is undoubtedly down to director, Kathryn Bigelow, whose previous film The Hurt Locker was critically acclaimed for its accurate presentation of the Iraq War. Audiences expecting an action-packed war film will be utterly disappointed, but those searching for an intelligent, gritty thriller, this delivers with ease.

The film literally escalates from beginning to its end, playing out much like a military operation itself with its deliberately segmented stages of the operation. The drama builds and becomes more and more intense as the CIA agents come closer to finding Bin Laden. This works well towards the end, but means that unfortunately, the earlier half of Zero Dark Thirty does come across a little slow.

Understanding that she obviously couldn’t have learnt about her character’s personality at all as their identity could not be fully disclosed, Chastain’s portrayal of Maya is flawless and never questionable. Despite there being no back story, no romance, nothing other than unyielding focus on her job, Chastain makes the lead emotive and most importantly, real.

People who enjoyed The Hurt Locker, will love this, as its style is effortlessly similar. However, if you go in expecting war footage, shoot-outs and slick Americans in suits you will leave the cinema bored and wishing they could get the last 2 and a half hours back. Zero Dark Thirty is an amazingly well made film; it’s just not for everyone.