DVD: The Hurt Locker (15), Kathryn Bigelow (DVD/Blu-ray, 124 mins)

"There's enough bang in there to blow us all to Jesus," explains bomb-disposal expert William James, before ripping off his protective suit. "If I'm gonna die, I want to die comfortable."

Kathryn Bigelow ( Point Break) excels at macho camaraderie/bonding/love, but The Hurt Locker is something more than a violent buddy movie; it's the best film yet about the Iraq war. Jeremy Renner plays the maverick William James, the new sergeant (the previous one, played by Guy Pearce, was killed by an improvised explosive device) for an elite ordnance disposal team. His jumpy, nervy colleagues soon become wary of him – he's putting their lives under greater risk in this hopeless conflict. The Hurt Locker is gripping, brutal and moving. A mastepiece.