Zero Dark Thirty was the third movie that I watched crossing the Atlantic from
London to Washington, D. C.. I was surprised at the really good movies that were available from United Airlines. Actually I had no desire to see Zero Dark Thirty but I thought that it would be a good movie that may keep my interest with all of the distractions in a plane flying at 35,000 feet.
Zero Dark Thirty is a film that requires a lot of patience because it is not built in the mode of Hollywood movies. What is this film about? One woman's crusade to find and kill Osama Bin Laden. Why is she so determined? We don't know. We don't see any personal connection. She didn't volunteer. She was assigned. Why?
The first 30 minutes was full of undecipherable Arabic names being flung around during interrogations, questionings or in meetings in that "realistic" way of portraying conversation i.e. you can't understand anything.
As the film develops we see the workings of the CIA where politicians determine what the CIA professionals can do. It is sad. Ultimately we see the raid that kills OBL. This is well done.
I do not recommend this movie for most people because it is boring and tedious, but some may enjoy seeing this documentary that is not a documentary.