Trailer Talk: 'Zero Dark Thirty' Embraces Patriotism, Soldiers as Heroes

First, the good news. The second, more substantial trailer for “Zero Dark Thirty,” the film documenting the hunt for Osama bin Laden, looks terrific.

The tone is somber but thoughtful. The suspense builds with striking visuals, an engaging score and snippets of intriguing performances from Joel Edgerton, Jessica Chastain and Jason Clarke.

The odd thing about the trailer is how … patriotic it all feels. Can anyone imagine the film hitting theaters, with such fanfare, no less, had bin Laden been killed on President George W. Bush’s watch?

Conservatives should rightly applaud “Zero Dark Thirty” should it live up to the trailer no matter who was in the Oval Office making the call. No sucker punches against our troops, shots of American flags stripped of irony. Heroes getting the job that needs to be done done.

“Zero Dark Thirty” still comes with a checkered past, given the intelligence revelations regarding how the filmmakers got so much inside information to flesh out the project. Plus, the movie was originally slated to hit theaters before election day, possibly to boost President Barack Obama’s reelection prospects.

Movie goers will put politics aside starting Dec. 19 if “Thirty” is as arresting as this new trailer suggests.