A different kind of war.

Rating: Null/10 (26 January 2002)

Ridley Scott's BLACK HAWK DOWN is a very unique war film that has appeared on the cinema screen. First of all it's based on a true incident in which U.S. troops were attacked in the country of Somalia. But it wasn't a deceleration of war, it was a operation where troops were to aid the citizens of Somalia by giving them food, food that isn't taken by cruel dictator Aidid who is starving hundreds of thousands of Somlaians to death in order to gain power. It was an operation, a operation that didn't get as much news publicity back when it did in 1993. The story of BLACK HAWK DOWN is about the operation in Somalia when U.S. troops were to aid the United Nations by feeding and aiding the crippling citizens of Somalia from the hands of the warlord Aidid. However, when the U.S. troops were to apprehend Aidid, Aidid's troops began attacking on the U.S. soldiers, causing two black hawk helicopter's to crash and to have U.S. troops get involved in the longest ground battle since the Vietnam War. What makes the story more sad about the mission is that after the helicopters crashed, the mission changed from a arrest of criminal, to a rescue and escape mission. The troops were all young men, some as young as 18 years old, others were very military experienced, but none were as experienced at the conflict on what they were about to go through. Before watching BLACK HAWK DOWN, I didn't want to raise my expectations. It's been getting high critical praise and reviews from around the globe on how much of a excellent of a film it is. I instead watched BLACK HAWK DOWN with an open mind. I wanted to wait and see for myself and see if it is really a great movie. And I was also wondering on how can anybody achieve a fantastic war film, when we were given perhaps the best war film of all time only three years ago with Steven Spielberg's SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. Well, I am pleased to say that the film does deserve all the praise and business that it's been getting because it is indeed a brilliant piece of work. Ridley Scott makes BLACK HAWK DOWN with it's own unique style for a war film. First of all it was a mission, not a war, and it didn't take place forty to sixty years ago, it was only nine years. And thousands of U.S. troops didn't die only nineteen died. Yet Scott manages to still deliver a solid war film that makes us think differently then next time U.S. troops go on another mission. Scott makes every bullet a U.S. soldier gets hit with very effective. Similar to THREE KINGS, every bullet pretty much counts in this film. Scott makes the viewer go through the experience of October 1993 with the soldiers on the screen, from the before the mission begins, to the battles on the soldiers trying to stay alive. At times it looks and feels like a documentary, that this is all real. And what Scott also does great is that he doesn't shy away from the violence of the film. This is a very bloody and violent film. And what makes it even more disturbing is that you see some of the soldiers get hit and blood is pouring out all over them, yet they are still alive and screaming in pain. It's disturbing images like that, which will hopefully give the public second thoughts when it comes to the U.S. taking on operations like Somalia. The acting in the film is also very well done. Sam Shepard as Major General William Garrison, gives the best performance in the film. You can see that General Garrison is worried and upset on what this mission has become, you also see the change on his face from brave to fear since the mission took disastrous u-turn. Sam Shepard always gives a great performance in every film that he appears in, but this is Shepard's best role since Chuck Yeager in RIGHT STUFF. Other good performances go to Josh Harnett (as the young Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann), Ewan McGregor (as the combat rookie Company Clerk John Grimes), Tom Sizemore, Eric Bana, William Fichtner, and Jason Issacs. But I was also glad to see a lot of familiar faces of character actors like Jeremy Piven, Ron Eldard, and Richard Tyson (a very underrated actor who should get more big roles like his role in THREE O' CLOCK HIGH). But what makes BLACK HAWK DOWN different is that you don't get much of a character study on these people. There are no cliche scenes like a soldier holding up a photo of his pregnant young wife, or another soldier waiting to go home and take over the family farm, etc. No, that's another unique thing about this film is that Scott gives the viewer little information or details about these men's backgrounds. Yet, he still manages to have us care and be concern when these men are surrounded by hundreds of armed Somalian citizens. Is it because they are Americans? Or humanitarians trying to do something right? Or would we do the same thing if we were in their situation? BLACK HAWK DOWN is without a doubt one of the best films of 2001, and along side with SAVING PRIVATE RYAN as one of the best war films of all time. Where some directors take a side on the viewpoint of a war or mission (an example would be any John Wayne pro-war film), Scott like Spielberg, instead tells the viewer with his film, that he's not going to take a side on the Somalia issue on whether it was a success or not. He's going to tell you the facts, and you decide on whether it was necessary, or not for the U.S. troops to be in Somalia. It's a war movie that makes you think, and also live the experience. And one more note on this film for Ridley Scott: I personally think it's his best work since the original ALIEN, if I was him, I would be very proud of this film. I know it's a bold statement to make since Scott has also made other great movies like BLADE RUNNER and GLADIATOR, but when you watch this movie, you too would hopefully understand on why this is a fantastic film. And it will hopefully forever change your viewpoint, like it did for me, the next time our U.S. soldiers go out on a operation. ***** (out of five)