If the prolonged controversy surrounding Kathryn Bigelow's depiction of torture in “Zero Dark Thirty” has for most neared an apex of tolerance, it's still staggering to think about the stress levels likely coursing through the director as she debates it. It must have been a welcome interlude then when during her long press tour she recently sat down for an entertaining and insightful chat with Stephen Colbert to discuss the film's heated debate.
During her first appearance on "The Colbert Report" since “The Hurt Locker” — an instance which Steven described as a “Colbert bump” to Oscar gold — Bigelow recounted the whirlwind reaction to “Zero Dark Thirty,” its resultant scrutiny by U.S. senators and political factions, and also her approach toward her “first draft of history.”
"We wanted to tell the story respectfully and honestly, and since it's part of the history, we had to show a few sequences of enhanced interrogation," she said. "But again, there's many techniques that led to [bin Laden's] compound in Abbottabad.” Colbert also asked Bigelow if she's ready to possibly testifying in front of Congress for the film's depiction of events, to which she expressed, “No one is ever ready,” but that she “stands by the film” that resulted from her and screenwriter Mark Boal's intensive research.
The interview is another expert example of when Colbert matches the interviewee in terms of respect for their discussion, and while those looking for laugh-out-loud humor may not find their requisite dose, the brief segment is well worth your time nonetheless. Take a look below, along with a featurette showing how the filmmakers brought bin Laden's compound to life in the film.