Date: Janurary 27, 2009
Contact: Carol Connelly, Director, Media & Communication Services, ext. 5267, cconnelly@pnc.edu

PNC, Libraries to Host “The Hurt Locker” Film Screenings

WESTVILLE – Public showings of the Academy Award-nominated film "The Hurt Locker” will be offered through a collaboration of the Purdue University North Central Odyssey 2009 - 2010 Arts and Cultural Events Series, LaPorte County Public Library, and Michigan City Public Library. The showings are free and open to the public.

It will be shown Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. at the LaPorte Library, 904 Indiana Ave. , LaPorte ; Sunday, Feb. 21 at 2 p.m. at the Michigan City Public Library, 100 E. Fourth St. , Michigan City and Thursday, Feb. 25 at 6 p.m. in the PNC Library-Student-Faculty Building Assembly Hall, Room 02. The film is rated R.

"The Hurt Locker” earned nine Academy Award nominations, including best picture and director. The Producers Guild of America and Critics Choice Awards named it Best Picture and the Directors Guild of America Awards presented its Best Director award to director Katherine Bigelow. It also gathered three Golden Globe nominations. Bigelow is just the fourth woman to be nominated for an Academy Award as best director.

Roger Ebert calls this “A great film. An intelligent film.” He considers Bigelow to be a “master of stories about men and women who choose to be in physical danger. She cares first about the people, then about the danger.” Actor Jeremy Renner was nominated as best actor for his portrayal of Staff Sgt. William James, a bomb disposal expert.

"The Hurt Locker” tells the story of the soldiers of Delta Company stationed in Iraq , whose job it is to detect and defuse bombs – improvised explosive devices. The men who diffuse the bombs are specialists who work with the skill of a surgeon and the bombs they encounter may be completely simple or amazingly elaborate. The hero of the film is Staff Sgt. James who not only understands the bombs but the minds of the bomb makers. Oftentimes the bomb makers are seen lingering nearby to watch the Americans work with their bombs.

“The New York Times” notes, “The movie is a viscerally exciting, adrenaline-soaked tour de force of suspense and surprise, full of explosions and hectic scenes of combat. You may emerge from ‘The Hurt Locker' shaken, exhilarated and drained but you will also be thinking.”

The Odyssey Arts and Cultural Events Series features various events throughout the year. A schedule can be found at www.pnc.edu . For information about this film, or any event in the Odyssey series, contact Judy Jacobi, PNC assistant vice chancellor of Marketing and Community Relations, at 785-5200, ext. 5593. Persons with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact Jacobi.

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