Battle for Survival

Rating: 10/10 (18 January 2019)

Heroic and Intense, Black Hawk Down brings you right into the thick of the war in Somalia pinning you to your seat with your heart pumping scenes. Intense, Action filled scenes keep you engaged throughout the entire film. During the film, we see the heroism demonstrated by each one of the Army Rangers and the camaraderie they have with each other.
Based on the 1993 raid in Mogadishu, Somalia, we get a first-person point of view into the events of that fateful raid. The United Nations and the United States began setting up bases in Somalia after civil war broke out and the central government had been ousted. When UN forces began to withdraw the Insurgents led by Mohamed Farrah Aidid declared war on the remaining military personnel still there. In an act to try and weaken Aidid, the Army Rangers plan a raid on October 3rd, 1993 to capture two top-ranking officials. The mission fails and two Black Hawk Helicopters are shot down hence the title name.
The director of the film, Ridley Scott, uses modern film techniques incorporated with older props to recreate the setting of 1993 and tell the story of the film. Scott uses many different film techniques one of which being slow motion. During an important part of the film or when explosions and heavy gunfights are occurring Scott slows down the speed of the film to give it a more dramatic effect and to convey the significance of the moment. Scott also incorporates the use of close up shots to show the raw emotions of each of the soldiers as the violence around them breaks out.
One of the pivotal points in the film is when Private First Class Blackburn falls to the ground out of the Black Hawk Helicopter. Blackburn is a brave 18 year old who is just checking in when he has to leave to go on his first mission. Following this near-fatal fall Sgt. Jeff Streucker played by Brian Van Holt risks everything and he leads three humvees to pick up Blackburn and bring him back to base. On the way back to base, one of the gunner's is shot and killed instantly.
Sergeant Eversmann played by Josh Hartnett is the starring role during the film. Throughout the film, Hartnett plays his role with a methodical way of moving around so meticulous and detail oriented, every single movement is rushed, but you can tell he his putting everything he has into mastering his role to portray an accurate representation of that failed raid. Each scene is another battle that Eversmann must overcome in order to survive. In the end of the film, Eversmann says "Nobody asks to be a hero, it just sometimes turns out that way". Every single soldier who took part in the raid played a role in the safe exit of the situation and they are iall heroes.
Major General Garrison played by Sam Shepard is another key character. Shepard plays this role with such passion that you can see the raw emotion he shows during the raid and the casualties that are unraveling before his eyes. He keeps his composure to get the casualties and survivors out of the "hot zone". Garrison says "Danny, you understand me? No one gets left behind!". Risking everything, Garrison assures his soldiers that nobody leaves until the casualties and survivors are recovered. This shows heroism because risking their own lives the soldiers must stay in the hot zone until they can recover every single person.
Ridley Scott uses the right balance of sound, film and settings to portray the fateful raid in an accurate yet dramatized version. We see the importance that camaraderie and teamwork that is a necessity in achieving success. Each soldier who participated in the raid are hero's that day and Scott and the actors played each of their roles exceptionally well. The movie is a great tribute to the tragic events of that fateful raid.