“Zero Dark Thirty” summary and analysis paper PDF

Preview

Summary

Paper about the film and how it portrays the United States on the global stage ...

Description

Jena Phillips Dr. Crane-Seeber PS 236 April 10, 2018 Zero Dark Thirty Film Review Zero Dark Thirty follows the story of CIA agent Maya played by Jessica Chastain and her effortless pursuit to capture and kill Osama bin Laden. The film begins with the immediate aftermath of the attacks on September 11th and continues to depict the events leading up to the ultimate raid and eventual death of bin Laden. After years of interviewing and torturing detainees at CIA black spots, agent Maya is able to piece together the structure of bin Laden's inner circle. After several years of searching, undercover CIA operatives are able to locate the home of a close confidant of bin Laden. After researching the area and analyzing the house, Maya believes that there is an additional male living inside the house who she believes to be bin Laden himself. Despite initial defeat with colleagues and the political administration, Maya is eventually able to send a team into the location she believed to be the home of bin Laden and other upper-level leadership of the terrorist cell. After overcoming all odds, Maya’s hypothesis is correct and special forces teams complete a successful raid that kills bin Laden in the middle of the night on May 2nd, 2011. The death of Osama bin Laden elicited large amounts of praise for the United States government and brought a sense of closure to the American people. The relationship between the characters in this film is unique for it is loosely based off of real individuals and their pursuit of destroying terrorist cells. The lens of the film shows the audience what the filmmakers, and those funding the movie, wanted viewers to believe to be the accurate and full depiction of the story. Through this film, we paint U.S. military personnel as victims of attacks and heroes of our country. The enemy is thoughtfully constructed to be consistently evil and violent towards our relatively civil-military forces. What makes these relationships so unique, is that individuals from both the “good” and the “bad” side have never met or interacted with an individual from the opposing side. Inayatullah and Blaney would describe this reaction to difference as one of complete intolerance and separation of self. As described in the opening chapter of their book,  International Relations and the Problem of

Difference , whenever humans are faced with difference we react in one of two possible ways. In this film, the main characters of concern react in the most hostile way possible. They see difference and they immediately associate the other with a sense of inferiority and proceed to attempt to eliminate the difference altogether. Although the death of Osama bin Laden is the capstone to this film, the characters that oppose each other most are not individuals but agencies and societies as a whole. The film depicts the constant struggle between American military forces and Middle Eastern citizens. When looking at why these two characters are enemies we must first look at the history between these two parts of the world. The relationship between the United States and the Middle East is one of great complexity but is virtually unknown until the recent war sparked by the terrorist attacks in New York City in 2001. From this point forward, the relationship between these two forces has grown even more difficult to understand as agencies have become intertwined with one another. Although it is not depicted in this feature film, it is important to note the continued relationship between these two areas. Although American forces were successful in the murder of Osama bin Laden, years of searching and destruction created a whole new generation of individuals looking for revenge against the nation that killed their families and destroyed their homes. The tactics undertaken in this film are a prime example of the actions used by the United States military as depicted by McCoy in his book In the Shadow of the American Century.  The history between the United States and Osama bin Laden can be greatly contributed to ideals laid out in chapter two of McCoy's novel. As new leaders and governments emerged across the world, the United States became so nervous about the new world order that they began backing loyal dictators over independent governments (McCoy, 2017, 16). Despite the United States notion that if they intervened first these emerging nations would adopt similar governments, conflict broke out when these dictators engaged with other, less democratic, nations. Relationships that develop out of early beginnings such as this, are destined for greater disputes down the line. This scenario played out in several Middle Eastern countries and in other nations across the world. In addition to the similarities that can be drawn from In the Shadow of the American Century, we can also draw parallels between this film and the notion of constant warfare displayed in A History of Bombing . Throughout the course of the film, more than five

years go by during this period of war and fear. Neither United States officials nor Middle Eastern citizens found themselves safe for more than a single moment in time. In the opening of his book, Lindqvist states that “It was almost impossible to imagine that the world would ever be any different from the way it was” (Lindqvist, 2001, 77). Watching this film, and as a millennial myself, it is hard to imagine a time when the United States was not at war in the Middle East. In addition to the simple concept of war, Lindqvist discusses the notion that war, stigma, and stereotypes about these wars are engrained into who we are as American citizens. Although we may not have school drills for atomic bombs anymore as mentioned in Chapter one of A History of Bombing , we now have strict protocols and security measures when entering airports and other dense areas of population (Lindqvist, 2001, 74). We can draw the conclusion that as ingrained as bombs were during the time period of this novel, terrorism and terrorist attacks are just as entrenched in our modern society. Overall, the film Zero Dark Thirty is a visual example of many of ideas brought to light in both A History of Bombing  and In the Shadow of the American Century . In addition to providing its audience with context of the actions leading up to the death of Osama bin Laden, the film also plays out the relationship between nations when faced with difference. As displayed in the film, difference is often faced with intolerance and  Zero Dark Thirty  shows the effects of difference when both parties approach one another with an attitude of superiority. As our world evolves, we will continue to see reactions to difference, such as this, played out on camera for millions to enjoy.

Works Cited

Lindqvist, Sven. A History of Bombing. Granta, 2012.

McCoy, Alfred. In the Shadow of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of US Global Power. Haymarket Books, 2017.

Inayatullah, Naeem and David Blaney. International Relations and the Problem of Difference. Taylor and Francis Books, 2004....