Kathryn Bigelow

In 2004, Sergeant First Class William James (Jeremy Renner) arrives as the new team leader of a U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit in the Iraq War. He replaces Staff Sergeant Matthew Thompson (Guy Pearce), who was killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Baghdad. Thompson's team was called in after there were reports of an IED in a Baghdadi neighborhood. Thompson inspected the IED via a remote-controlled robot. Thompson decided that he will trigger a controlled explosion of the IED with C4 to eliminate the threat. The wagon carrying the C4 to the IED malfunctions and hence Thompson has to carry the C4 himself. Thompson is decked in blast proof gear. While Thompson is returning after placing the C4, Sanborn notices a local with a phone near the IED. Before the man can be stopped, he triggers the IED, thereby killing Thompson (who was 25 meters away from the IED and still in the kill zone). James's team includes Sergeant J. T. Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldridge (Brian Geraghty). When James arrives on the scene, Bravo Company has 39 days left on its current deployment. James is often approached by an Iraqi youth nicknamed "Beckham" (Christopher Sayegh), attempting to sell DVDs. James challenges him to a game of soccer and takes a liking to him. James is a renegade for who the thrill of the dismantlement seems to be the ultimate goal regardless of the safety of his fellow team members, others on the scene or himself. James removes the protective layers on his windows at barracks as they block the sunshine, and he argues that they will not stop a mortar round coming from the roof. On his first day out in the streets, James decides to approach a suspected IED directly with his blast proof gear, without deploying the robot first. James detonates a smoke bomb to protect himself, without giving any warning to his colleagues. As James approaches the IED, a taxi breaks through the cordon and barrels towards James. James pulls out his own pistol and stops the taxi. After a protracted face-off, James forces the Taxi to reverse, where the driver is apprehended by US forces. James then finds the IED and dismantles it. He then finds several secondaries linked to the primary IED, and proceeds to dismantle all of them, before they can be triggered by an onlooking local. On the other hand, Sanborn is by the books. And Eldridge is an insecure soldier who is constantly worried that an error or misjudgment on his part will lead to the death of an innocent civilian or a military colleague. Next day, the team is assigned to a school, where a car has been parked illegally and is carrying something heavy in the back (as its suspension is sagging). As James approaches the car, it is fired upon by a sniper, and the car bursts into flames. James uses a fire extinguisher to extinguish the flames, while Sanborn is sent to the roof to suppress the sniper fire. James finds heavy IEDs in the trunk. He removes his blast gear, as anyways he won't survive if the IEDs go off. As James works on locating the triggering mechanism, Sanborn keeps shouting in his earpiece to hurry up, prompting James to remove his earpiece. Meanwhile, Sanborn and Eldridge find a local filming them on a camera and 3 locals giving instructions to him from a minaret. James manages to find the well concealed triggering mechanism. Sanborn hits James and warns him not to remove his headset again. Colonel Reed (David Morse) congratulates James for his bravery. James has dismantled 873 bombs so far. Sanborn and Eldridge consider James' maverick disposal methods and attitude reckless, raising tensions. When they are assigned to destroy captured explosives, James returns to the detonation site to pick up his gloves. Sanborn openly contemplates killing him by "accidentally" triggering the explosives, making Eldridge uncomfortable. Nothing is done, and tensions continue to increase. Returning to Camp Victory in their Humvee, the team encounters five armed men in traditional Arab garb and casual attire standing near a Ford Excursion, which has a flat tire. James' team has a tense encounter with their leader, who reveals they are private military contractors and British mercenaries. They have captured two prisoners featured on the most-wanted Iraqi playing cards. The group comes under fire; when the prisoners attempt to escape in the confusion, the leader of the mercenaries shoots them, as they are valuable (worth $500,000) dead or alive. Enemy snipers kill three of the mercenaries, including their leader (Ralph Fiennes). Sanborn and James (as spotter) take over the sniper gun to dispatch three attackers (who were attacking with their own sniper rifle from a distance), while Eldridge kills a fourth who tries the flank their position. Sanborn and James finally start to bond and enjoy their time together. During a raid on a warehouse (where they find several components of IEDs and a large amount of ammunition), James discovers a body he believes is Beckham, in which a bomb has been surgically implanted. During the evacuation, Lieutenant Colonel John Cambridge (Christian Camargo), the camp's psychiatrist and a friend of Eldridge, is killed in an explosion. Eldridge blames himself for his death as Elridge had goaded Cambridge to see the operations in the field and not pass judgments on people sitting in his cubicle inside the base. Returning to base, James approaches the stall where Beckham used to sell his DVDs and inquires the elderly man about him. The elderly man pretends not to know English. But at night, when the man packs up his stuff in his truck, James corners him with a pistol and asks to be taken to the people responsible for Beckham's death. James is dropped outside a home in a residential neighborhood. James breaks into the house of an Iraqi professor, seeking revenge for Beckham, but his search reveals nothing. Called to a petrol tanker detonation, James decides to hunt for the insurgents responsible, guessing they are still nearby. Sanborn protests, but when James begins a pursuit, he and Eldridge reluctantly follow. After they split up, insurgents capture Eldridge. James and Sanborn rescue him, but one of James' rounds hits Eldridge in the leg. The following morning, James is approached by Beckham, whom James believed was dead, and James walks by silently. Before being airlifted for surgery, Eldridge angrily blames James for his injury. James and Sanborn's unit is called to another mission in their last two days of their rotation. An innocent Iraqi civilian (Suhail Dabbach) has had a bomb vest strapped to his chest. James tries to cut off the locks to remove the vest, but there are too many of them. He abandons the man who is then killed when the bomb explodes. Sanborn is distraught by the man's death. He confesses to James he can no longer cope with the pressure and wants to return home and have a son. After Bravo Company's rotation ends, James returns to his ex-wife Connie (Evangeline Lilly) and their infant son, who still lives with him in his house. However, he is bored by routine civilian life. James confesses to his son there is only one thing he knows he loves. He starts another tour of duty, serving with Delta Company, a U.S. Army EOD unit on its 365-day rotation.

In 1961, the Soviet Union launches its first ballistic missile nuclear submarine, the K-19, commanded by Captain 2nd Rank Alexei Vostrikov (Harrison Ford), with executive officer Mikhail Polenin (Liam Neeson) (Captain 3rd rank), the crew's original captain. Soviets are responding to US deployment of nuclear subs near their shores and need MAD.. Vostrikov is alleged to have been appointed through his wife's political connections, as well as Polenin's tendency to put crew morale and safety before Soviet pride (Polenin failed in a missile launch drill and said that the boat was not ready yet to be put to sea and the deployment was being rushed). The K-19's first mission is to surface in the Arctic, test-fire an unarmed intercontinental ballistic missile, and patrol the Atlantic within striking range of New York City and Washington, D.C.. Vastrikov also argues in front of Marshal Zolentsov (Joss Ackland), Defense Minister, Admiral Bratyeev (John Shrapnel) and Vice-Admiral Konstantin Partonov (Tim Woodward), that without sea trials an assignment of this complexity is very risky.. but the seniors wants the Americans to know that Soviets can attack as well. Discovering the reactor officer drunk and asleep on duty, Vostrikov fires him, receiving a replacement, Vadim Radtchenko (Peter Sarsgaard), fresh from the academy. Polenin protests saying that the old reactor officer is the best in the navy. Vastrikov also orders the launch of the boat in 2 weeks, while Polenin again insists that critical equipment is not on board and the boat is not ready yet. Bad luck surrounds the launch; the medical officer is killed by a truck (he was running after the supplies truck as it delivered the wrong drugs to the submarine) and replaced by command's foremost medical officer, who has never been out to sea, and the inaugural bottle of champagne fails to break on the bow. 9 men died during construction of the boat. The men christen it "The widow-maker".. Crew includes Captain 3rd Rank Gennadi Savran (Donald Sumpter), Medical Officer. Captain 3rd Rank Yuri Demichev (Steve Nicolson), Torpedo Officer. Captain 3rd Rank Igor Suslov (Ravil Isyanov), Political Officer. Petty Officer Pavel Loktev (Christian Camargo), Senior Reactor Technician. Captain-Lieutenant Konstantin Poliansky (George Anton), Missile Officer. Seaman Anatoly Subachev (James Francis Ginty), Reactor Technician. Captain-Lieutenant Mikhail Kornilov (Lex Shrapnel), Communications Officer. Captain 3rd Rank Viktor Gorelov (Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson), Chief Engineer. Senior Seaman Dmitri Nevsky (Sam Spruell). Petty Officer 2nd Class Vasily Mishin (Sam Redford). Chief Petty Officer Leonid Pashinski (Shaun Benson). Captain-Lieutenant Anton Malahov (Kristen Holden-Ried). Petty Officer 1st Class Maxim Portenko (Tygh Runyan), Sonar Operator. Vostrikov orders many drills relentlessly to test the crew and the boat.. Vostrikov orders K-19 to submerge past its maximum operational depth (during an emergency dive drill, he orders planks to be jammed at 20 degrees down) (he takes the boat to 300 m, against safe limit of 250 m), then surface at full-speed to break through the Arctic pack-ice. Protesting the dangerous maneuver, Polenin storms off the bridge. The test missile launches successfully. Polenin tells Vostrikov that he was merely lucky. Vostrikov retorts that the crew needs to be tested to find the limits and to know what to expect in emergencies. En route to the patrol zone, a reactor coolant pipe bursts. Control rods are inserted to stop the reactor, but reactor temperature rises and the crew learns back-up coolant systems were not installed. Radtchenko inform Vastrikov that the temperature will keep rising to 1000 degrees and it will start a core meltdown that could lead to a thermonuclear reaction. The boat has 3-4 hrs. A decision is made to use the fresh water supply of 30 tonnes on board the submarine as a coolant for the reactor. But the drainage system has to be installed. Captain decides the exposure limit of 10 mins. Since there is no protective equipment on board, teams are sent in with raincoats and gas masks. K-19 surfaces to contact fleet command but the long-range transmitter antenna cable is damaged, possibly by the Arctic maneuver. Engineers rig a makeshift coolant system, working in shifts to limit radiation exposure. The first team emerges vomiting and blistered; the second and third teams cool the reactor, but all suffer radiation poisoning. With radiation levels rising, the submarine surfaces and most of the crew are ordered topside. Vadim Radtchenko (Peter Sarsgaard) (Ractor officer) balks after seeing the first team's injuries, and the crew chief takes his place on the third team. The coolant system is installed and the core temperature starts dropping gradually. Now, Vostrikov orders a return to the Russian base, under electric power, with most crew staying topside and the main ventilation system closed to isolate the radiation. Polenin again objects since the NATO base is only 160 Kms, but Vostrikov will never hand over the boat to the AMericans. A Sikorsky H-34 Choctaw helicopter from a nearby United States Navy destroyer offers assistance, which Vostrikov rejects. The Soviet government grows concerned when the K-19 ceases contact but is spotted near the destroyer. Hoping diesel submarines will be sent to tow the K-19, Vostrikov orders a return to port, but the pace could kill the entire crew. Radiation rises in every compartment and some pet mice die in the crew compartments. The repaired pipework leaks and reactor temperature rises again, and torpedo fuel ignites a fire. Initially ordering the fire suppression system activated - which would suffocate anyone in the area - Vostrikov is talked down by Polenin, who personally assists the fire crew. Two officers mutiny against Vostrikov, and Radtchenko enters the reactor alone to attempt repairs. Polenin deceives the mutineers into handing over their weapons, arrests them, and frees Vostrikov. Unaware of Radtchenko, Vostrikov, at Polenin's behest, announces his plan to dive and attempt another repair, fearing an overheating reactor could set off their warheads and incite nuclear war. The crew responds positively, and K-19 dives. Radtchenko's repairs are successful, but blind and weakened by heavy radiation, he is dragged out by Vostrikov. A meltdown is prevented, but irradiated steam leaks throughout the submarine. A Soviet diesel submarine reaches K-19, with orders to confine the crew on-board until a freighter can pick them up, but as it is too dangerous to stay, Vostrikov orders an evacuation, knowing he may lose his command and be sent to a gulag. Returning to the Soviet Union, Vostrikov is tried for endangering the mission and disobeying a direct order, but Polenin comes to his defense. An epilogue reveals Vostrikov was acquitted, but the K-19 crew was sworn to secrecy and Vostrikov never given submarine command again. All seven men who went into the reactor chamber died of radiation poisoning, and twenty others later died from radiation sickness. Only after the dissolution of the Soviet Union decades later could the crew discuss what happened. In 1989, an aged Vostrikov meets Polenin and other survivors at a cemetery on the anniversary of their rescue. Vostrikov informs the men that he nominated the 28 deceased crewmen for the Hero of the Soviet Union award, but was told the honor was reserved for combat veterans. Remarking "what good are honors from such people," Vostrikov toasts the survivors and those who sacrificed their lives.

An F.B.I. Agent goes undercover to catch a gang of surfers who may be bank robbers. In Los Angeles, California, a gang of bank robbers call themselves The Ex-Presidents. commit their crimes while wearing masks of ex-Presidents Reagan, Carter, Nixon, and Johnson. The F.B.I. believes that the members of the gang could be surfers, and send young Agent Johnny Utah undercover at the beach to mix with the surfers and gather information. Utah meets surfer Bodhi, and gets drawn into the lifestyle of his new friend. —Sami Al-Taher <staher2000@yahoo.com> Johnny Utah is a Special Agent for the F.B.I. Utah gets partnered with Angelo Pappas, an experienced Agent, who is more than committed to his work. The two are asked to investigate the number of robberies committed by a group called The Ex-Presidents, who wear masks of former Presidents Reagan, Nixon, Carter, and Johnson for their robberies. Pappas has a theory that The Ex-Presidents are a group of surfers, and asks for Utah to go undercover as a surfer. The problem is, Utah couldn't surf to save his life. That, plus the two continuously being hassled by unpleasant and rough Agent Harp. With the help of Tyler a competent female surfer, Utah begins to gain the respect of local surfer Bodhi and his group. Utah forms a close bond with Bodhi, but the relationship between Utah and Bodhi becomes limited when Utah suspects that Bodhi and his group are The Ex-Presidents. —Jeremy Thomson Right under the nose of the police, The Ex-Presidents, rubber-masked criminals terrorising sunny Southern California, rob banks and escape without leaving a trace. After 27 robberies in three years, inexperienced FBI agent Johnny Utah infiltrates the local surfing community to gather information. As Johnny befriends Bodhi, the group's enigmatic leader, he soon discovers a new meaning in life by learning how to catch the perfect wave. But Johnny walks a thin line. How far can the uninitiated intruder go without blowing his cover? —Nick Riganas

A rookie in the police force must engage in a cat-and-mouse game with a pistol-wielding psychopath who becomes obsessed with her. On her first day on the job, NYPD officer Megan Turner, the lone officer on the scene, shoots and kills the perpetrator of a supermarket hold-up. Since no gun was found on the perpetrator's person or at the scene and none of the witnesses could corroborate Megan's story definitively that the perpetrator was indeed wielding a gun, she is suspended from active duty. She is quickly albeit temporarily reinstated to the position of homicide detective because the spent shell casing from the bullet used in a subsequent murder had her name carved on it. This murder ends up being only the first in a series. Working on the case with fellow homicide detective Nick Mann, Megan initially has no idea who in her life could be the murderer. In short order, the murderer does show himself to her. He is commodities trader Eugene Hunt who she met immediately following her suspension and who she has since dated. He also implies to her that he was in the supermarket at the time of the hold-up and that he fled the scene with the perpetrator's gun. The supermarket shooting caused a psychotic break in him which resulted in among other things his obsession with her. However, beyond his implications only to her of being the murderer, Megan has no hard evidence that would stand up in a court of law that Eugene is indeed the murderer. Megan has to convince her colleagues, especially Nick, that she is telling the truth about Eugene, while stopping him from killing again and equally as important stopping him from his continued psychological torture of her.

Set ten years after the most peaceful revolution in United States history, it presents a dystopia in which the issues of many groups - minorities, liberals, gay rights organizations, feminists - are dealt with by the government. Set ten years after the most peaceful revolution in United States history, a revolution in which a socialist government gains power, this films presents a dystopia in which the issues of many progressive groups - minorities, liberals, gay rights organizations, feminists - are ostensibly dealt with by the government, and yet there are still problems with jobs, with gender issues, with governmental preference and violence. In New York City, in this future time, a group of women decide to organize and mobilize, to take the revolution farther than any man - and many women - ever imagined in their lifetimes.