MORALLY AMBIGUOUS

Does 'Zero Dark Thirty' Make the Argument For Torture?

One of Hollywood's most anticipated films irks some

Dec 12, 2012 by PolitixMayday

Staff Writer t

Image: Sony Pictures

"Zero Dark Thirty" depicts the hunt for Osama bin Laden in, what many critics say, is a pulse-pounding and honest manner. Director Kathryn Bigelow says she took a journalistic approach to the film. But some are calling the film pro-torture, suggesting it approves of morally questionable methods used to find the world's most wanted man.

New York Times columnist Frank Bruni says the film appears to depict torture as necessary, summarizing the message as "no waterboarding, no Bin Laden." While torture was used, it played an insignificant hand in finding bin Laden according to Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Carl Levin (D-MI).

But the film "borders on the politically and morally reprehensible," according to David Edelstein of New York Magazine, because it makes such an engaging case for torture.

Wired's Spencer Ackerman disagrees, saying the film's depictions of torture are frank, disturbing, and truthful about how little intelligence can be gathered through such methods. "'Zero Dark Thirty' does not present torture as a silver bullet that led to bin Laden," Ackerman writes, "it presents torture as the ignorant alternative to that silver bullet."

Via Boing Boing

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?	Could "Zero Dark Thirty" legitimize the use of enhanced interrogation?

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Comments (view in Forum)

Dec '12

DARSB

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As a general thing I think movies legitimize bad public policy in exactly the same way Yogi Bear legitimized stealing picnic baskets.
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Dec '12

Denizen_Kate

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Thanks, DARSB! My first belly-laugh of the day!:)
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Dec '12

SavageMazx

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that was just FREAKIN AWSOME LOL
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Dec '12

texas_cutie75

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Hey hey Boo Boo, let's go get a pic-a-nic basket...LOL
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Dec '12

Fishbone345

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What's wrong with stealing picnic baskets? You got a problem with us bears DARSB?
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Dec '12

jessejaymes

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Haven't seen the film. Can't comment. But that woman made one hell of an Iraq movie.
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Dec '12

Fishbone345

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Agreed.
Also, another of her movies has one of my favorite lines of all time. From the late Patrick Swayze in Point Break, "Also about fear, fear causes hesitation, and hesitation, causes your worst fears to come true."
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Dec '12

jessejaymes

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@Fishbone345 So true. On the money.
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Dec '12

twinertia

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No. You can't claim any type of "moral high ground" when you're no better than who you're going after.
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Dec '12

joyshusband

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I wonder if there will be riots and killings because of this anti Islam video.
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Dec '12

Sonny

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Maybe.
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Dec '12

NO-BAMA

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It worked didn't it? Stop crying about it. The left can't be happy about anything.
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Dec '12

Sonny

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Well that's the whole issue here....whether or not it worked or were other methods used to find and kill Bin Laden? And nobody is "crying" can't you right wingers allow for more than just your own point of view on anything?
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Dec '12

PoliticalSpice

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Your right, we should all be happy about torture.
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Dec '12

PoliticalSpice

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@Sonny "Can't you right wingers allow for more than just your own point of view on anything?"

Sonny, how long have you been reading this web site?
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Dec '12

Sonny

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@PoliticalSpice Don't understand your question, sorry.
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Dec '12

Nemesis3X

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@Sonny c'mon, I understand the jab perfectly. Isn't that right PS?
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Dec '12

Denizen_Kate

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"Director Kathryn Bigelow says she took a journalistic approach to the film." It's her film, she has a history of making good films, so I'll take her word for it. Show the waterboarding and let people draw their own conclusions as to whether it was a factor in this particular case. It gives us something to talk about, right?
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Dec '12

Sonny

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No. I have read that if a person is being tortured, they will say just about anything to make it stop. Now just in case you missed it...the operative phrase is "say just about anything". And as combatants know that they will be tortured if captured...they will simply find ways to defeat torture. For example...compartmentalizing information (so that a potential captive knows very little information of value). Commit suicide to prevent capture (hell they are already used to blowing them selves up anyway). But the worst thing they will do----is "return the favor". When one of our soldiers (or just an ordinary citizen) is captured---they will inflict the most sadistic and vicious torture tactics known to man on our people.....And those guys have been torturing people for centuries...and know how to do it. So the powers that be, in the US really need to think this through---before going down the road of torture.
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Dec '12

twinertia

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I have it on good authority that, if captured, a combatant is many times pre-instructed to provide misleading information in order to make the enemy spend time and resources chasing the proverbial wild goose. If the various agencies are aware of this (and they'd almost have to be), and "enhance" their interrogation anyway, then they're sadists pissing into a stiff breeze (on MY dime, no less).
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Dec '12

martydotcom

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Haven't had much respect for anything McCain has had to say as of late, but when he wants the report on torture released, he says because it will show we learned nothing of value as a result Of torture, I'll take his word. Who would know more than someone who has been tortured
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Dec '12

John_Matrix

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So they say torture was used but was insignificant in its importance... so they just did it for fun or what? Sounds like a bunch of whining assholes who don't want to face the truth that America is willing to undertake such unfavorable methods of intelligence gathering.
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Dec '12

Sonny

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No john...they are just questioning whether torture was THE thing that worked, or were other tactics ultimately what really helped here. That's all---now "whining assholes" just a few people (with more info than you or I) questioning all of the tactics used. Is that alright with you?
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Dec '12

Waynestew

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Have not seen the movie yet so cannot comment on it. No matter how effective, and I am not saying it is, torture is always wrong. Furthermore I really don't feel it is effective because anybody would say anything to stop someone from torturing them.
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Dec '12

SavageMazx

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I think the question of "enhanced interrogation" techniques is to complex to be legitimized by a movie of a piece of journalism. Is is right to fight evil with evil, or do you turn the other cheek and hope the bad guys go away. Tough one. I tend to lean towards the fact enhanced tactics as we have seen were turning the other cheek has gotten us.
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Dec '12

Wafflecone

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Jesus said to turn the other check, of course if your not a Christian I suppose what Jesus said doesn't matter.
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Dec '12

SavageMazx

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@Wafflecone and if your Christian and believe that Jesus father is the "god of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" then you know that the nation of Israel went into the "promise land" and wiped out cities and people in the name of God and fought to maintain is borders. The Bible says god doesn't change, so if that's so, why was it ok the kill the Philistines and other people? Why now are we suppose to turn the other cheek?
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Dec '12

RobertJHarsh

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The director of this also made that propaganda piece of trash called Hurt Locker. I know people personally who've been to Iraq and not one has said that movie was 1) accurate or 2) even remotely close to the realities of war. I can't see see the next thing she shat out.
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Dec '12

FollowTheMoney

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It'a movie....
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Dec '12

bsking

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this movie is a joke
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Dec '12

FFX_VA

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2-3 terrorists WB'ed, 10,000+ US military members have been WB'ed. Does this movie make a stronger statement than that? It's just a movie.
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Dec '12

MongoAPillager

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could the whole bin laden episode be a false flag?no way!!my government is not capable of this!! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12128...
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Dec '12

blue_yahoo

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Since when is waterboarding in the same class as having a pair of jumper cables attached to your nuts? Your fingers cut off one at a time/medical experiments performed on you/ your children/family lined up and shot one by one in front of you.........now that is torture. Countries/regeimes are laughing their guts out that this is considered torture.
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Dec '12

Thegrif

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Well we are talking about the torture of terrorist, I say if you wanna make a cake you gotta break some eggs.
Torture never has to happen, all they got to do is tell us what we want to know. They decide how much torture is inflicted. Which is more than I can say for those affected by terrorism.
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Dec '12

KyleMFb

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It's a need evil get over it people...
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Dec '12

gregorytoye

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I am pro toture f
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Dec '12

gregorytoye

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I am sorry my phon went all screwy i am pro torture for anyone who may be or is holding secrets against us or are countrie i dont really care about their human right because i can promise you if it were the other way around they would torture us for fun i onow the mediamakes them seem like there not people but the sad truth is that to us there not anything that risks rome has to be distroyed and anyone who wants to hurt us may meet the same fate dont get me wrong im not pro war im pro america i hate scare tatics and the media dose not control my views on these people their actions do i dont think we should have attacked iraq and i dont think we should be messin with iran untill the can actually make a nuke however w should be focused on north korea the can have and will launch a nuke whenever china gives them the ok
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Dec '12

Pmath47

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What if it does ? Why should it even matter when you can legally rip an innocent baby apart limb from limb, while its alive? Right here all day every day in the USA ! At least they let them live ! But our children dont matter. How come i find this hard to fathom ?
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Could "Zero Dark Thirty" legitimize the use of enhanced interrogation?