Tribute to soldiers, not war

Rating: Null/10 (9 September 2002)

The first time the Spartans lost a land battle, they were defeated by a small city with an elite force of 300 men called the `Sacred Band.' The edge of the wedge, the Sacred Band crushed a Spartan phalanx 12-deep, stronger than the legendary Spartan group who held the pass at Thermopylae against the Persian hordes. Each of the 300 was bound to one other by a sacred oath of mutual protection. Like Jonathan and David, their mutual love and respect for each other were only broken by death.

Blackhawk Down is about this type of loyalty, the sacred bond between soldiers. War in general, and the conflict between the US and General Aidid in particular, are the movie's background. In the foreground stand the soldiers themselves.
Blackhawk Down fits you into the battle fatigues of the Army Rangers. Before going out on their mission, we feel the nervous energy of the men, who relieve their stress by joking around, or by prancing and farting and strutting like brewery horses in bock-beer time. As they leave base to battle, heading toward the uncertainty of their fate, the hypnotizing pulse of the helicopter, together with the funk of fear, induce distortions of sound and vision, the nauseous feeling of adrenaline overload. When the Blackhawk helicopter goes down, and the people of Mogadishu recognize their opportunity to shovel up hell, we actually feel the calm focus of training and instinct one feels when the fight is finally on. More than that, we feel what a soldier means when he says that `It's all bout the man next to you. And that's all it is.'
Leaving aside larger issues about the moral justification of one side against the other, Blackhawk Down pins the red badge of courage on all the combatants. There are poignant scenes of death and destruction on both sides of the conflict. They all operate under the color of separate beliefs and ideologies; and, they're all tragic victims of circumstance.

This film is a tribute to the courage and selflessness of soldiers, not war.