On Monday Jan. 7 director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal took a shot at Congress in defense of their new film "Zero Dark Thirty" while accepting awards at the annual New York Film Critics' Awards Ceremony.
During the last few month politicians such Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Diane Feinstein and Arizona Senator John McCain have accused "Thirty" of endorsing the use of torture because of its graphic depiction of waterboarding, sexual humiliation, and other harsh torture techniques used on the detainees. As Kathryn Bigelow accepted the award for Best Director and Picture she stated that "I thankfully want to say that I'm standing in a room of people who understand that depiction is not endorsement, and if it was, no artist could ever portray inhumane practices; no author could ever write about them; and no filmmaker could ever delve into the naughty subjects of our time."
While accepting the Best Picture Award, writer Mark Boal defended the film by stating, "There's been a lot written about this movie; some of it has popped off the entertainment page to the news page. And from time to time, some of you might have wondered if we would have liked to comment on some of that coverage, and the answer is yes." He added, "Let me just say this: there was a very interesting story on the front page of the New York Times today by Scott Shane, about a CIA agent who is now facing jail time for talking to a reporter about waterboarding."
He also added, "This gentleman is going to jail for that. And all I can say is that I read that story very closely. It sort of reminds me of what somebody else said when they were running for president, which is, 'If this (explicative) was happening to somebody else, it would be very interesting. For us, it's quite serious."
The film depicts the manhunt for Osama Bin Laden, and its controversial nature has led to a Senate investigation regarding the writer and director's sources.
"Zero Dark Thirty" opened to special engagements on Dec. 19 to universal praise and has received numerous awards from the top critics. The film is nominated for four Golden Globes and is expected to pick several Academy Award Nominations on Thursday Jan. 10. Critic David Salazar of Latinos Post called the film " a formidable thriller with a heroic turn by Jessica Chastain."
"Zero Dark Thirty opens nationwide on Jan. 11.
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