I too have no idea what the movie name refers to.

I am equally puzzled.

According to wikipedia:

The title is a colloquialism for being injured in an explosion, as in "they sent him to the hurt locker", or for "a place of ultimate pain". It dates back to the Vietnam War, where it was one of several phrases meaning "in trouble or at a disadvantage; in bad shape."

Oh, I haven't seen the movie, and have no idea if that's true or not. I'd certainly never heard that expression before.

DarkForest is correct. The writer and director were interviewed on npr (Fresh Air, I think?) and that's what they said it meant. I also took it to mean that we all have a hurt locker inside of us. A place where we cram all of our most painful experiences. A place we need to keep locked up in order to deal with everyday life. Perhaps I am over thinking this.

futz, I think you're right. (And that it ties back to the more literal term DarkForest mentioned.)

It comes from that monologue the main character has with his infant son towards the end, talking about keeping pain inside and finding something that lets you forget that pain. I thought that was the crux of the whole movie, and was the scene that made the title make sense.

I had an ex-Marine high school gym coach who called us "shitbirds" and threatened to put us into "the hurt locker." He also gave us nicknames, like "slap-happy" and "faggot."

What a fuckin' asshole.

I think it was pro wrestler Sgt. Slaughter who had a submission move akin to the figure four or the cobra clutch called the "hurt lock," but maybe it was someone higher profile like the Hulkster who would growl "I'm'n'a put you in a hurt lock!" right into the camera when Mean Gene would stage an interview.

In any case, I always associated the two; I assume it's a military thing.