Slant Magazine

Slant: No, no, just the grocery store scene. After one character has rotated back to the world, after all he's been through, he's sort of stymied and defeated by a wall of breakfast cereal. You seem to feel that our consumer society takes more from us than it gives, in terms of the human spirit.

KB: I think that's a really smart assessment and an interesting one, although I wouldn't look at it quite so literally. You're not wrong at all, but what I think is—here's a guy who has spent however many days and however many tours of duty, in probably as high-risk a situation as is humanly possible, and he has this profound skill set that has kept him alive day in and day out. Then, you have the paradox of something so simple as a decision that people make many times during the day, the kind of mundane grocery store decision, and that's just overwhelming for him. I think that's an interesting aspect of war, or a look at the effects of war, rather. That's where I think the script was so well crafted, in how it just kind of sneaks up on you. You know, here's a man who is incredibly capable in what it is that he's doing. He's kept not only himself but his team alive day in and day out, but there is a price for that kind of heroism. That's the price of that courage. This is where I think the characters were so carefully crafted by Mark, the writer.

Slant: You met a lot of these techs, these soldiers, in your research. By and large, did they seem to know who they were and what they were fighting for, or trying to achieve?

KB: You mean understand what they were fighting for, politically? I think it's hard to judge their level of self-awareness, but I did find them to be incredibly professional and, I suppose, they are grateful to be appreciated in a certain way. I think if you were to say to someone on the street "What is Explosive Ordinance Disposal?," you'd probably find that it's a pretty fair assessment to say that the general public is not necessarily aware of it. They've certainly heard words like IED and they know what a roadside bomb is, but they probably aren't really aware of all the processes and the protocol and everything else that goes into identifying a live ordinance that's tucked into a rubble pile, you know? So, I guess this was an opportunity for me to kind of share that specificity, and I was just struck by each one. Each of them is an individual, and each one different from the other. I suppose I was just struck by their courage.

Slant: I think with my generalization, I was trying to move toward asking you about masculinity in general, which is something your previous work indicates much interest in, as does this film. I think you're our new Sam Peckinpah.

KB: [Laughs] Oh God, that's very flattering! I'm sure that you can look at The Hurt Locker as a portrait of masculinity, and that certainly did factor into it, but specifically my interest was just to humanize these particular individuals. It's more of a statement on that process of humanization. I make my choices about which films to do on a purely instinctual basis, and it's really not until I have the luxury of moments like this when I suppose I have to go back over the choices I've made and analyze either the processes or the thoughts that were behind them. So, I was really just drawn by the opportunity to humanize them.

Slant: Your choices never flow from a desire to operate in or improve certain film genres? I ask because you've certainly done much to elevate action cinema in your day.

KB: I never look at it from the standpoint of form. I always look at it from the standpoint of content. I've never approached [a project] as an opportunity to, let's say, expand a form. I'll approach it from the character and if the character takes me into a sort of presentation that necessitates tension, or suspense, or a kind of kinetic, experiential cinematic experience, then that's fine, but it's still informed and dictated by the character and the story itself. It's not from the outside in, it's always from the inside out. As long as it's a provocative story with some evocative characters, it doesn't matter whether those characters are sitting still and just talking in a room, or if there's bloodshed to be had, you know? It still goes back to the story and the characters, which is always what I find compelling, and that's what I found compelling with The Hurt Locker—not necessarily the form, but the authenticity of it, which was haunting and pervasive and provocative.